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stranger things

The Broken Hearts Gallery: Sifting through the Stuff

September 14, 2020 by Heather Johnson Leave a Comment

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.

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Reviews Tagged With: Dacre Montgomery, Geraldine Viswanathan, Molly Gordon, Natalie Krinsky, Phillipa Soo, selena gomez, stranger things, The Broken Hearts Gallery

The Immigration Debate; Stranger Things 3

July 16, 2019 by Matt Hill Leave a Comment

How should Christians respond to the current debate and controversy surrounding immigration? Are there deeper spiritual meanings to be found in Stranger Things 3?

In this episode of the Your Sunday Drive podcast, we go deep on these issues, touching on topics such as: the early history of conflict for Christians between loyalty to God’s kingdom and loyalty to governments; how immigration became a moral/political issue for Christians in the U.S.; questions such as “do the ends justify the means?” and “what would Jesus do?”; nostalgia and loss of innocence in Stranger Things; Stranger Things as a portal story and call to adventure.

Take a listen and let us know what you think! Want to interact with us? Comment here, or on Spreaker or Facebook!

Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: christian podcast, church in drive, democrat, hill, immigration, politics, polzin, pop culture, stranger things, Trump

Get Re-Enchanted: Stranger Things 2, Pop Culture & God

October 16, 2017 by Matt Hill Leave a Comment


i am
*so* psyched
for Stranger Things 2

like, *psyched* psyched

i want more mystery,
more stylish 80s homage,
more dope soundtrack,
way more Eleven;
i want #justiceforbarb,
Eggos ate raw,
Winona Ryder everything,
coffee and contemplation

honestly, who can deny
that the whole
Stranger Things thing –
like much of what
it lovingly calls back to –
is one of those
oh so pleasant
serendipitous revelations;
one of those things where,
now that it’s happened,
you can no longer imagine
the pop landscape
without it

however,
(serendipity be damned),
why?

why such a strong reaction
to Stranger Things,
by so many,
seemingly
“out of nowhere”
?

i thought
Alissa Wilkinson
(in a Christianity Today
article called
“How ‘Stranger Things’
Re-Enchants the World”
)
was onto an answer:

In a modern world—where science can explain everything from depression to deja vu to the Aurora Borealis… even religious folk yearn for a re-enchanted world, one where fairies, or demons, or other intelligences exist just beyond what we can see.

What we’re after is joy—the serendipity of discovery, the thrill of mystery, the feeling of excitement lurking around the corner…

Our desire for magic doesn’t let up… art still seems best poised to capture that magic. Stranger Things is just the latest version of this yearning…

agreed for sure:
part of the draw,
the allure
of Stranger Things,
is that it sort of
re-imbues the world
with a magic,
a mystery,
an enchantment;
Stranger Things
takes the “regular world”
and adds the “upside down” –
takes plain old “things”
and makes them “stranger”
(again)

so is that it?
Stranger Things
speaks to us so
cuz it’s a reminder that
“there’s more to things
than meets the eye”
?
and cuz the experience
of that is… fun?

no, that’s not (just) it

as Wilkinson notes,
the show is
“the latest version
of this yearning
[for magic];”
Stranger Things is also
powerful precisely
because it participates
in this long line of
pop culture manifestations
of a specific
human yearning

what yearning,
specifically?

a yearning not only for magic –
read: the supernatural –
but for a universe
*built* with and on magic;
a magical universe
that not only
brings “joy,”
but makes possible
an explanatory
and existential
completeness
that an un-strange,
mundane,
materialistic,
naturalistic universe of
pure scientism
actually *cannot*

a yearning, in other words,
for a universe of meaning

what meaning?

literally *any* meaning

for in an un-strange,
mundane,
materialistic,
naturalistic universe of
pure scientism,
science is the only
game in town;
but though science excels
at explaining the “how”
of things,
it is exceedingly bad
at explaining the “why;”
in fact, science
does not,
*cannot*
speak the language of “why”
at all, and therefore
cannot lend meaning
in the sense we mean

you need things to be a bit…
stranger…
for that kind of meaning;
you need a magic universe
of possibilities
for that kind of meaning;
for that kind of meaning,
you need
a universe with a God

once you have that,
magic and the
possibility of
knowing the
“why” of things
reappear,
along with all
our dearest, deepest meanings –
good is better than evil,
love defeats hate,
sacrifice overcomes greed –
the narratives
we inescapably spin
to demonstrate
those meanings,
and the pop avatars
we create to animate
those narratives…
Stranger Things,
thankfully,
awesomely,
among them

(for some related
ideas about narratives,
see “What IT Means
(and How *Any* Good Story ‘Means’)”
)

Filed Under: Editorial, Reviews, Television Tagged With: #justiceforbarb, belief, Christian, christianity today, eleven, Faith, God, Jesus, meaning, morality, narrative, Netflix, pop culture, review, Science, scientism, spiritual, story, stranger things, stranger things 2, wilkinson

good, bad, ugly: nostalgia edition

December 14, 2016 by Matt Hill Leave a Comment

re

some say
we live in an age
of nostalgia

round up the recent remakes,
the reboots, the revivals,
the side stories,
the things even just
intentionally reminiscent
of other, older,
more established things,
and prepare to be
flooded in the fond feels,
deluged in the delights
of yesterday, of yesteryear

remember Star Wars?
you don’t have to.
Disney will ensure
a regular fresh hit
from here on out.

want more Harry Potter?
no problem.
muggles everywhere
will always need educating
on fantastic beasts.

need you some Dory again?
some female ghostbusters?
girls of the Gilmore persuasion?
a differently, yet still
extremely packed abode?
Westworld for the 2010s?
all them stranger 80s things?
for some reason,
a bazillion different spider-men?

you are super. duper. covered.

i kinda bet you always will be

and sometimes, tbh, such things
are bad;
bad as in lack-of-quality bad;
maybe it’s a lack
in the original source,
maybe a misfire –
a spoiling of legacy –
maybe just
too much
too soon
of a good thing;
whatever the case,
let’s agree:
sometimes,
nostalgia is bad

and sometimes,
unfortunately,
nostalgia is ugly;
South Park‘s recent
memberberries storyline
reminds us what a
short walk it can be from
simple nostalgia to
nationalism,
racism, sexism –
of the inherent danger in
seemingly innocent desires like
“make America great again”

but sometimes,
nostalgia is good;
good as in quality good;
good as in
more-of-a-great-thing good;
good as in –
South Park be damned –
i think the new Star Wars
was cool,
and yeah, Rogue One probably
will be too,
and yeah, J.J. Abrams
could probably reboot
the “Star Spangled Banner”
and make it awesomer

and,
sometimes,
most importantly,
nostalgia is even
more good than that;
way even more good

sometimes it’s good in a
that’s-where-i-come-from
sort of way, a
this-is-what’s-important
sort of way

an
ah-yes-that’s-what-i’m-about
sort of way, a
that’s-who-we-are
sort of way

an
i’m-still-the-same, but
i’m-not-the-same
sort of way, a
this-means-this-
for-me-now
sort of way, an
i-own-this-anew
sort of way

you know:
a nostalgia-as-ritual
sort of way;
a vital,
bread-and-wine-
in-remembrance-
of-me,
write-my-words-
on-your-heart-and-
teach-them-to-your-kids,
everything-old-is-new-
is-old-is-new-is-old-
-(is-new)-
sort of way

you know:
the way where –
far from not
being able to look forward
for looking back –
unless we look back,
we don’t even know
what forward means

Filed Under: Editorial, Featured, Reviews Tagged With: abrams, Christian, Fuller House, gilmore girls, Harry Potter, nostalgia, south park, spiritual, Star Wars, stranger things, Westworld

Seeing and Believing: SciFi Returns to the 80s

November 2, 2016 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

“There has been an awakening. Have you felt it?”   -Supreme Leader Snoke, Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis) Ph: Film Frame © 2014 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Right Reserved..

There’s always been a tension between seeing and believing.

Especially over the last few decades, there has been an increasingly heavy emphasis that truth exists only when we can prove things scientifically or experience them for ourselves. Over that time, this debate has caused a real tension between the church and the scientific community, seemingly forcing people to ‘pick a side’.

Unsurprisingly, this has also shown up on the big screen.

For instance, let’s just look at some of the most popular science fiction stories in recent years. Films like Prometheus, Interstellar, and The Martian have all been hits at the box office and explored questions of our purpose in life. In each case, the films shoot for lofty ideas but land on the idea that life is really about us and what we can do. (For instance, often called a ‘love letter to science’, The Martian also explains that, “if you solve enough problems, you get to come home.”)

martian-gallery3-gallery-image

In an interesting twist, even some of the most recent Biblical epics attempted to explain God’s interaction with creation in a more scientific manner. Films such as Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings and (arguably) Aronovsky’s Noah have both offered new depictions of the Biblical stories with a smaller focus on God and a greater emphasis on our human perspective and understandings as a source of hope.

Now, hear me out. I’m not, in anyway, taking a shot at science. Not at all. It’s our primary way of understanding our world. However, what I am noticing is that the pendulum of knowledge has swung so far in the ‘seeing to believe’ direction that our culture seems to have lost it’s ability to believe in anything other than itself.

But I think that the pendulum is about to swing back.

strangerthings4

All of a sudden, science fiction has opened the door a crack to admit that, sometimes, they don’t have all the answers. This year alone, there have been some substantial film releases that take a scientific approach that, although helpful and meaningful, isn’t always the final word on what’s real. Films like Jeff Nichol’s Midnight Special, Marvel’s Dr. Strange, this summer’s underrated Ghostbusters reboot or even Netflix’s massive hit, Stranger Things, have all fused a scientific worldview with an eye staring keenly into the spiritual.

Now, these films tell us that we have to believe to see.

Just look at Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

finn2

When rebooting the franchise, one of the most important factors in the film’s success was bringing back an emphasis on the mystery of ‘the Force’. Whereas George Lucas wanted to explain away this amazing power in his infamous prequels—remember Midichlorians?—the fans and director J. J. Abrams wanted the Force to be seen as mysterious. By emphasizing the power of the Force, Abrams breathed new life into an idea that had lost its grandeur, without taking away any scientific explanations the Lucas had introduced.

Science and faith were friends again.

Interestingly, all of these examples are ‘throwback’ feel to them. Whether they take place in the 1980s themselves or are simply reboots of old franchises, each case seems to point to a ‘simpler time’. With this in mind, one has to ask if, maybe, our world is wondering if, for all our advancements, we’ve lost something along the way. Is it possible that, with all we’ve learned, we’re starting to realize that there’s still something powerful that we can’t explain? Does God really fit into our scientific worldview?

Maybe, our culture has finally realized that, to understand our world, we need both seeing and believing.

doctor-strange-poster-slice-600x200

Filed Under: Editorial, Film Tagged With: Benedict Cumberbatch, Darren Aronovsky, Dr. Strange, Exodus, Finn, J. J. Abrams, Jedi, lightsaber, Marvel, Matt Damon, Noah, Ridley Scott, Star Wars, stranger things, The Force Awakens, The Martian

Always On: The Netflix Revolution

July 27, 2016 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

netflix-everywhere-prime

“Have you seen it yet? It’s on Netflix.”

Not sure what “it” I’m talking about? It doesn’t matter. Daredevil. House of Cards. Orange is the New Black. Or, basically any other show/movie you can name.

The ‘it’ changes based on the person but the site remains constant.

The truth is that, ever since Netflix took over the universe roughly 3-4 years ago, the way we interact with media has changed a lot for us.

Now, don’t worry. I’m a full-blown Netflix devotee (even though it single-handedly murdered my beloved Blockbuster video stores). Not only do they have a lot of the shows my family wants to watch but, in all seriousness, they’ve also got some of the most interesting original content I’ve seen in a while. (Stranger Things is my latest obsession.) It’s convenient and they (usually) have what you want and when you want it… and I like that.

A lot.

netflix-house-of-cards

Having said that though, Netflix also perfected another key part of our viewing lifestyle by bringing binge-watching into the mainstream.

Even though I truly love the fact that I can throw down 6 episodes of Kimmy Schmidt or Brooklyn Nine Nine at any given moment, I also feel like we’re not really thinking about the impact of this. With our access to media at an all-time high, we need to be conscious not only of what we’re taking in (a favourite topic amongst Christian leaders) but how we’re taking it in. All of a sudden, the barriers between our favourite shows and ourselves have disappeared. (Heck, we’ve even almost eliminated commercials!) It is very literally a ‘round-the-clock’, all-you-can-eat buffet of tv shows, movies, YouTube clips, vines, and more! While this is great for our own convenience, it really has shaped our world around… well… us.

Think about it.

The more accessible things become, the less boundaries there are. Viewing a new show used to take weeks (or months) to finish a season but now we will do it over a weekend (or even an afternoon), simply because we ‘feel like it’. Then, when we’re done, what’s our next impulse? To look for something else (after all, we’ve ‘seen that’ now). To go back to the buffet analogy, you wouldn’t think twice if you saw someone go for their 2nd or 3rd plate… but what about their 11th or 12th? You’d probably think that was pretty unhealthy and undisciplined. It wouldn’t be wrong to get your money’s worth… but too much isn’t good for you either.

netflixwatchingstill

Plus, with the opportunity to watch at any time, it also puts our needs as most important. While this might not seem like a big deal, it begins to set up an expectation that we should be able to have what we want when we want. After all, we deserve it. (Not convinced? Think about how frustrated you get when your Netflix is slow. It’s the very definition of #firstworldproblems.)

And therein lies the problem.

While it’s not bad to have that sort of access, we must watch our hearts and their own sense of privilege. A book I read once said that “no one should think of themselves more highly than they ought.” (Spoiler alert: It was the Bible.) It wasn’t in there to cut us down but, rather, to make sure that we understood that our needs and wants aren’t what’s most important. While Netflix doesn’t tell us that, it is an example of a culture that wants us to believe that we’re the centre of the universe. Left unchecked, our lives of bingeing can create an atmosphere that points us to the belief that our interests come first.

And that’s not who God has called us to be.

Now let’s see what else is on.

Netflix customer Arthur Michelson demonstrates the online Netflix movie service Roku at his home in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, July 23, 2009. Netflix Inc.'s second-quarter profit coasted past expectations as recession-weary customers continued to embrace its DVD-by-mail and streaming movie service. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

Filed Under: Editorial Tagged With: Brooklyn Nine Nine, Daredevil, House of Cards, Netflix, stranger things, The Unbreakable Kimmy Shmidt

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