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The Broken Hearts Gallery: Sifting through the Stuff

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Stuff is a funny thing.

I imagine the majority of us can sit down on any given day, look around and ask, “how did I get all this stuff?” I mean, at least that happens to me actually multiple times a day. I have antique heirlooms, random pieces of clay “art” that I have accumulated from each child during their pre-school and kindergarten years, more books than I will ever actually read, and notebooks…oh, how many notebooks I have.

But when I look at these items, whether in passing or in moments of contemplation, those items take me somewhere. They take me to my grandmother’s house and I remember exactly where it sat on the day we came back from her funeral 17 years ago this past August. They take me to the tiny, chubby hands presenting me with a painted “bowl” or “jewelry holder,” with the biggest grins of pride and accomplishment and tears begin to form. They transport me to my rough teenage and college years, or the early months of marriage, when I was figuring out just who I was and wanted to be. It’s stuff, yes, but that stuff comes with a message – of the past, of the present, of love, of heartbreak.

As such, I immediately connected with The Broken Hearts Gallery from Writer/Director Natalie Krinsky with Selena Gomez as an Executive Producer. Art curator Lucy (played by my new favorite comedic actress, Geraldine Viswanathan) collects mementos from all of her past relationships. Whether they are shoe strings, earbud cases, or ties, Natalie has these items meticulously placed throughout her room, much to the chagrin of best friends and roommates Amanda (Molly Gordon) and Nadine (Phillipa Soo, yes, of Hamilton). Despite their attempts to coax her out of her hoarder habit, Lucy is adamant that these items don’t just remind her of past loves, they hold memory of the good moments as well. On the heels of her most recent break-up mixed with a case of mistaken identity, Lucy stumbles into the path of Nick (Dacre Montgomery, aka “Billy” from Stranger Things). Their conversation on break-ups and stuff leads to Lucy’s inspiration for the Broken Hearts Gallery, which quickly becomes a social media sensation as people bring their mementos into Lucy’s care and later, on display.

I basically loved every minute of this movie. The script was delightfully witty and insightful, the chemistry between all the actors was electric. Viswanathan’s delivery and embodiment of Lucy had me wishing she was my new best friend, and Montgomery’s subtle charm had me smitten. 

Lucy’s heartfelt journey from collecting to freedom was authentic and moving, especially when she described heartbreak as “the great equalizer.” Pain and loss are universal. And while we all cope in unique ways, often we hold onto the physical mementos in an effort to hold onto the good memories before they fade away. 

But, even in our brokenness, we stitch pieces of ourselves back together. Sometimes it is through cleaning out the stuff. Sometimes it’s having a hard conversation with someone from our past. Sometimes it is opening ourselves up to a new kind of love, whether it be with another person or a new understanding and appreciation for our own self. No matter the how, The Broken Hearts Gallery does a phenomenal job of illustrating the why. And this is why it has earned a spot in my “must watch” collection. 

The Broken Hearts Gallery is available in theatres and on demand now.

Progressive Christianity? Fall Entertainment Preview

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What is progressive Christianity and how is it different from more “traditional” forms? Is it dangerous? What positives does it have to offer?

We discuss the pros and cons – referencing authors such as Alisa Childers, Pete Enns and Andy Stanley – and how to navigate the related issues.

It’s the fall, which means new shows, fall sports and plenty more in the world of entertainment.

We talk about what we’re into and what we’re looking forward to – including Lovecraft Country, The Vow, The Boys, Utopia, the PS5, NFL and college sports, The Gifted, The Last Kingdom and Dune – and share some perspective on entertainment in general, thanks to our collective boy, C.S. Lewis 🙂

Come along for Your Sunday Drive – quick conversation about current events, politics, pop culture and more, from the perspective of a couple of guys trying to follow Jesus.

Hosts: Matt Hill and Nate Polzin. Presented by the Church in Drive of Saginaw, MI, as often as possible. Please visit churchindrive.com and facebook.com/thechurchindrive

TIFF20: Akilla’s Escape

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Akilla’s Escape follows one night in the life of Akilla Brown (Saul Williams), a 40-year old drug trader who has decided that it’s time to get out of the game. Out on a routine hand-off, he is suddenly caught in the middle of a violent robbery. When he discovers that one of his attackers is , a fifteen-year-old Jamaican boy named Sheppard (Thamela Mpumlwana), he realizes that the young man is a member of the same criminal organization that he fell into himself as a child. As he attempts to help the him, Akilla must also confront his own upbringing as a youth (Mpumlwana again) in order to chart a new path for them both.

Written and directed by Charles Officer, Escape is a haunting experience that sits with you long after the film is over. Featuring bleeding colours and pulsating soundtrack, Escape visually creates two worlds and then blurs one into the next, highlighting the challenges of ever truly escaping the darkness entirely. Star Saul Williams—who also collaborated on the soundtrack with Massive Attack’s 3D—absolutely smolders onscreen as the elder Akilla, imbuing his character with confidence and humility. Not to be outdone, Mpumlwana is absolutely stunning as both the terrified Sheppard and the increasingly rage-fueled young Akilla. As a result of the film’s stellar cast and solid visuals, Akilla’s Escape is a gritty and visceral piece that serves as a tragic reminder of how difficult it can be to break free from our past yet Akilla’s journey also carries within it an admirable strength of character that feels hopeful. 

This is more than a film about gang life. 

This is a film with soul.

As he grapples with his own inner demons, Akilla’s journey is an example of what happens when our past collides with our present. Attempting to break the cyclical nature of violence and poverty, Akilla lives in a world that refuses to give him up. Ready to sell his profitable marijuana business, he believes the time is right to walk away, even if his business partners disagree. When he encounters Sheppard, Akilla’s personal journey feels as though it has come full circle. His desire to rescue the young man serves as both potential freedom for a youth heading down a dark path and redemption for his own lost childhood. (It’s worth noting here that Officer’s decision to cast the young Mpumlwana in both roles further highlights the fact that the elder Akilla sees himself in the young man.)

In many ways, Akilla’s father, Clinton (Ronnie Rowe), may be the subtle central figure of the film. Broken by his own childhood of violence, Clinton is abusive and filled with rage, passing on terrifying words of ‘wisdom’ to his young son. (“War is a matter of vital importance for the province of life,” he warns a wide-eyed Akilla.) Now grown himself, Akilla finds the words of his father ring in his ears, even as he kicks against them. Whereas Clinton pushed him towards violence, Akilla understands that hope lies beyond the barrel of a gun. For Akilla, his experience with Sheppard creates an opportunity to break the cycle and help someone take a new path, even as he carries his own scars with him.

As the credits roll, there is an intrinsic sadness within Akilla’s Escape that lingers. Though the film offers hope to its characters, this is a piece that shows the tragedy of generational pain and its affect on the future. As such, though Akilla’s past may be something he wishes he could forget, this is definitely a story worth remembering.

Akilla’s Escape is currently streaming on the TIFF Bell Digital Theatre as part of the Planet Africa series during the Toronto International Film Festival. 

I Am Woman – Raising Her Voice

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♫ “I am strong. I am invincible. I am woman.” ♫

Those words were part of what became the anthem of the Second Wave Women’s Movement in the 1970s. Unjoo Moon makes it the cornerstone of her Helen Reddy biopic, I Am Woman. The film is in part a celebration of her music set within her story amidst the background of the Women’s Movement.

Helen Reddy (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) arrives with her daughter in New York in 1966 thinking she has won a record contract. It turns out the label has no plans for her. She sings in a lounge trying to make ends meet, but it is a struggle. She is befriended by fellow Aussie Lilian Roxon (Danielle Macdonald). At a party, she also meets Jeff Wald (Evan Peters) who is seeking a way into the management business. Jeff and Helen hit it off romantically. They move to Los Angeles where Jeff gets his foot in the door of the industry, but Helen is languishing in the role of housewife. She nags him into doing for her what he does for other clients, eventually getting her a chance to record some covers. That gets her started on her career.

Throughout the first half of the film, the demeaning nature of the male dominated entertainment industry (and culture as a whole) is obvious. She is pigeon-holed in a certain genre of music. Her husband is in many ways just as bad as everyone else in his view of the place of women, but he knows how to help Helen find success. It becomes obvious when she writes “I Am Woman” and wants to include it on her album. The men react to it, thinking it sounds “angry” and “man-hating”. But Jeff convinces them to bury it in the last half of the album because no one listens to that part anyway. But Jeff promotes that song in ways that make it a hit. Helen is one her way.

This is a by-the-numbers biopic. Intro. Struggle. Love interest. Success. Marital problems. Finding a new personal fulfillment. That motif is frequently used to tell stories that are designed to inspire. I Am Woman is a story of a woman who has to overcome both the struggle to find success, and the effects of attaining it.

Playing in the background is the society-wide struggle that women faced during that period. We see bits of the Women’s Movement and the battle for the Equal Rights Amendment. In some ways, Helen Reddy’s story reflects that period. She faces being talked down to because she is a woman. But she also becomes a symbol of a successful woman, with her own TV show, and worldwide fame. But there is also a downside to the life she has tried so hard at achieve. And in the end, like the ERA, perhaps all the success is just for show and there needs to be more done.

I Am Woman is playing in theaters and on VOD.

Black Boys – The Two-edged Sword

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“The bottom line for why things haven’t changed is there is no love for black boys.”

Sonia Lowman’s documentary Black Boys opens with former NFLer Greg Scruggs reading The Little Engine that Could to his toddler son. It transitions to a middle school age boy taking Richard Wrights Black Boy from a shelf and reading it. That dichotomy of idealism and reality is the driving force of the film. Or as activist/rapper Malcolm Little puts it, “You’re talking a double-edged sword to be a black boy in America, because you have to tell yourself that you are magnificent and that you are free and beautiful, while simultaneously acknowledging that the world is not built for you. It’s not built for your success. It’s not built for you to survive.”

The film is designed in four sections entitled Body, Mind, Voice, and Heart. In each of those we get a touch of what it means for young black men as they grow into the world. Sports dominates the Body section. Sports may seem like a way out of the difficulties blacks face, but is it? Or is it just another exploitation of black bodies? Education becomes the main topic of the Mind section. Again, this is an area of great hope, but we also know that as early as kindergarten, black children are often getting less attention and are sold lower expectations. The Voice and Heart sections really focus more on the hopeful side of the film’s core contrast to let us hear what the experience has done to the people interviewed and how the future has an opportunity for change, but that is by no means a certainty.

I consider myself woke (at least for an old white guy), so there isn’t much in this film that is new to me. But it is a very powerful presentation of not just facts and figures, but of the emotional reality of the lives of the people we visit. This is in no small part because of the excellent work Lowman has done in interviewing her subjects to evoke their reflections. Whether the subjects are athletes, educators, activists, or young people looking at their future, the insights provided are always challenging without being overly judgmental. As a white person watching the film I didn’t feel as though I was being called on to feel guilty, but to be engaged with the issues of social justice that are brought forth.

One piece of archival footage that spoke to me, personally, was a press conference held by Philadelphia Eagle player Malcolm Jenkins in which he never spoke, only held up prepared signs. Several of the signs repeated the sentence, “You aren’t listening”. To me that is a reminder that the first (but not the last) thing I need to do when faced with the cries for social justice, is to listen. I may have heard these things before. I still need to listen again.

Black Boys is an invitation for all of us to listen. Some of us need to hear the facts and figures we may have missed. Some of us may need to hear the pain some people have lived through. Some of us may need to hear of the inequalities we never knew about. Some of us may need to hear the visions of hope that continue to be dreamed—and realized. Listen.

Black Boys is available on NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service.