Watching Movies of Life - the Movie Meditation
These descriptions of certain emotional states of mind are intended to encourage us to watch specific aspects of our life as if they were a movie. A five star movie in this list is not rated necessarily as a highly entertaining, mainstream movie. Instead, a good movie suggested here may more accurately reflect the drama of life in all its facets -- the shadow of an emotion as well as its positive side. Find out what moves you and learn to simply let it be. Meditation is watching, unidentified and non-judging.
D -- A Real Hero
The shadow side
Being afraid of authorities, doubting oneself, longing for recognition of authorities (i.e. the father), having no idea what is real and authentic, being a follower, denying oneself, fear to speak in front of a crowd or to move people and surroundings through one's voice, being authoritarian
The light side
Being authentic, vocally expressing what is true, valuing oneself, following oneself, being fatherly and being able to protect, knowing what is real, seeing people and things as they are, being a hero
Movies with these themes
October Sky
In 1957 Coalwood, West Virginia, the coal mine is the town's largest employer and almost every male living there works, or will work, in the mines. John Hickam (Chris Cooper), the mine superintendent, loves his job -- despite its headaches and inherent dangers -- and hopes that his boys, Jim (Scott Thomas) and Homer (Jake Gyllenhaal), will one day join him working there. When it appears that Jim will receive a football scholarship to attend college, however, that leaves Homer to fulfill his father's dream, although the boys' mother, Elsie (Natalie Canerday), hopes for more for her son. It's not long before a prominent event gives him that chance...
200 Pounds Beauty
Kang Han-na (Kim Ah-jung) is an overweight phone sex employee and a secret vocalist for Ammy, a famous Korean pop singer who actually lip syncs as she cannot sing. Instead of being famous for her own amazing vocal talent, Han-na hides behind Ammy's performance stage and sings during Ammy's concerts, and records all of Ammy's songs. One day, Ammy ungratefully humiliates her in front of the music company's director Sang-jun (Ju Jin-mo) during his birthday party, knowing full well that Han-na has a crush on him. While crying in the bathroom, Han-na overhears Sang-jun telling Ammy that even though they are just using Han-na for her voice, they must be kind to her so she will not walk out on them....
Night at the Museum
Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is a divorced father who is unable to keep a stable job, the bulk of them being failed business ventures. He is desperate to win the support of his son Nick (Jake Cherry), whom he fears is beginning to look up to his more successful soon-to-be stepfather, Don (Paul Rudd), a bond trader on Wall Street. After being fired from his last job, he applies for a job at the Museum of Natural History, and is assigned as a night guard...
This is England
The film begins in July 1983, with 12-year-old Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) getting in a fight at school after someone makes a bad joke about his father who died in the Falklands War. On his way home, in an unhappy mood, Shaun runs into a group of skinheads led by Woody (Joe Gilgun), who feels sympathy for Shaun. The group eventually accepts Shaun as a member, and he develops a romance with Smell (Rosamund Hanson), an older girl who dresses in a punk/new wave style (similar to Boy George)...
Dune
Science Fiction
In the far future, the known universe is ruled by Padishah Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV; the most precious substance in his sprawling feudal galactic empire is the spice melange, which extends life, expands consciousness and is vital to space travel. The powerful Spacing Guild and its Navigators use the spice to safely guide interstellar ships to any part of the universe instantaneously...
Children of a Lesser God
Matlin plays Sarah Norman, a deaf and troubled young woman working at a school for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in New England. An energetic new teacher, James Leeds played by William Hurt, arrives at the school and encourages her to set aside her isolated life of frustration by learning how to talk. As she already uses sign language, Sarah resists James's attempts to get her to talk. Romantic interest develops between James and Sarah and they are soon living together, though their differences and mutual stubbornness eventually strains their relationship to a breaking point, as he continues to want her to talk, and she feels somewhat stifled in his presence. Sarah leaves and goes back to her mother's house, in the process reconciling with her once estranged mother. However, she later returns to James, as both realize they need each other...
The Curse of the Golden Flower
The plot is based on Cao Yu's 1934 play Thunderstorm (雷雨pinyin: Lei Yu), but is set in the imperial court of the Later Shu, which was during the turbulent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. Emperor Ping is a man of humble origins and strong ambition, having risen to the throne from the lowly rank of captain. He abandoned his first wife to marry the Princess of Liang, who is now his Empress Phoenix. The Emperor does not love his second wife or her often sour mood; he blames the latter on an illness, for which he has forced her to take medicine of his own concoction every two hours for the past ten years. Empress Phoenix has been outwardly obedient throughout the marriage and her husband's treatment, but has grown suspicious of the medicine in the recent span of ten days...
Big Daddy
For the last ten years Sonny has been living in his apartment in New York with his roommate, while working one day a week as a toll booth attendant and seeing his girlfriend, Vanessa (Kristy Swanson). Tired of Sonny's aimless existence, Vanessa tells Sonny she is going to Syracuse to visit her mother as they both need time to think, also presenting the ultimatum that Sonny get a "real job".
Kevin, Sonny's roommate, is going to China on a business trip and a party is held in his honor, which Sonny promptly ruins, angering Kevin's fiance, who does not care for Sonny's presence...
As it is in Heaven
Daniel Daréus (Michael Nyqvist) is a successful and renowned international conductor whose life aspiration is to create music that will open people's hearts. His own heart, however, is in bad shape. After suffering a heart attack on stage at the end of a performance, he retires indefinitely to Norrland in the far north of Sweden, to the village where he endured a terrible childhood of bullying...
Remark
Although the movie list is inspired by Tibetan Pulsing typologies on the human mind, it does not claim to be completely accurate in its assessment.
Latest
Read about the transforming power of man's sexuality when experienced with an attitude of surrender...
Breathe in, breathe out, but let it be love coming in, going out...