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{"id":86478,"date":"2012-10-15T22:19:12","date_gmt":"2012-10-16T04:19:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/lookingcloser\/?p=86478"},"modified":"2012-10-15T23:02:06","modified_gmt":"2012-10-16T05:02:06","slug":"here-comes-good-letters-post-88-what-movie-should-i-choose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/lookingcloser\/2012\/10\/here-comes-good-letters-post-88-what-movie-should-i-choose\/","title":{"rendered":"Here Comes Good Letters Post #88. What Movie Should I Choose?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"\"$ <\/a>I\u2019m about to write my 88th post for the Good Letters<\/a> blog, the daily blog hosted by the prestigious IMAGE<\/em><\/a>, a journal of the arts and religion.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s such an honor to contribute to that beautiful, one-of-a-kind blog. Such a colorful, talented, insightful family of bloggers contribute there, often providing the best thing I\u2019ll read that day. (Take today, for example, when one of my favorite bloggers, Allison Backous Troy, wrote a heartfelt reflection on Pixar\u2019s Brave<\/em><\/a>.) I can\u2019t believe they haven\u2019t told me that I\u2019ve filled my quota and it\u2019s time to move on.<\/p>\n

Every two weeks, I face hard decision: Which movie have I seen recently that I should spend 5-10 hours writing about, in order to come up with 1,000 words worth reading?<\/p>\n

Which movie offers that much to consider?<\/p>\n

Which movie can I write about with passion? Which one is most meaningful to me? Which one relates to my life in such a way that I cannot merely review<\/em> it?<\/p>\n

This time around, I\u2019m pondering these six titles\u2026<\/p>\n

1. The Loneliest Planet<\/em><\/strong>, a new film that most readers haven\u2019t seen but that enthralled me for all 113 harrowing minutes.<\/p>\n

2. Argo<\/em><\/strong>, a popular new release that I\u2019ve already reviewed, but that raises a lot of questions about movies that are \u201cbased on true events,\u201d and that might tell us a lot about the differences between \u201ctrue stories\u201d and \u201cstories we want to hear\u201d.<\/p>\n

3. Abigail Harm<\/em><\/strong>, an undistributed, experimental new film by Lee Isaac Chung (Munyurangabo<\/em>) that most moviegoers will never see, but that marks another step forward in the career of a filmmaker I find increasingly fascinating.<\/p>\n

4. A River Runs Through It<\/em><\/strong>. Wow, is it really 20 years old? Time to revisit it!<\/p>\n

5. Fellini\u2019s 8 1\/2<\/em><\/strong>, which stands at #10 on the new Sight & Sound<\/em> All Time Top 10<\/a>, and which I have finally given my full attention, thanks to the Criterion Collection blu-ray.<\/p>\n

6. Or 42 Up<\/em><\/strong>, a documentary by Michael Apted, which has been around for a while, but which would be interesting since it tracks the life stories of several 42 year-olds, and, well\u2026 I just celebrated that very birthday.<\/p>\n

What a tough choice. I don\u2019t have much time this week to write. Any one of these would be a challenge.<\/p>\n

Thoughts, anyone? Which option would be most interesting to you<\/em>? Your response might influence my decision. (Then again, I might have some kind of epiphany in the next ten minutes and get right to work. We\u2019ll see. The spirit moves in mysterious ways.)<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"