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Three movies that need to be made

Bill FoxBy Bill Fox/Columnist

I don’t know what it is.  Maybe it is because of my age.  Maybe it is as a result of recent events in Las Vegas.  Whatever the cause, I am really tired of the themes of the newer movies being released.  I guess I am just tired of the violence and the guns, and I’m wondering if movie makers have ran out of unique story lines?

With that in mind, might I suggest 3 ideas for movies that I believe would be blockbusters.  The first would be a remake of the movie, BLACK LIKE ME. If you read the book, you know this movie was a poor rendition of the story.  For those not familiar with the story, white journalist John Howard Griffin recounted his journey in the Deep South of the United States, at a time when African-Americans lived under Racial Segregation. Griffin had his skin temporarily darkened to pass as a black man. He travelled for six weeks throughout 5 segregated states to explore life from the other side of the colour line.  Griffin kept a journal of his experiences and the 188-page diary was the genesis of the book. When he started his project in 1959, race relations in America were particularly strained.  Personally I think this movie might help us realize once again that underneath our appearance, we are all much the same, and that racism and prejudice has to be eradicated.

Viktor Frankl’s book, MAN’S SEARCH FOR MEANING, chronicled his experiences as an Auschwitz concentration camp inmate during World War II.  As a method of survival Frankl identified a purpose in life to feel positive about, and then imagined that outcome. According to Frankl, the way a prisoner imagined the future affected his longevity. Frankl concluded that the meaning of life is found in every moment of living; life never ceases to have meaning, even in suffering and death. Frankl concludes from his experience that a prisoner’s psychological reactions are not solely the result of the conditions of his life, but also from the freedom of choice he always has even in severe suffering. The inner hold a prisoner has on his spiritual self relies on having a hope in the future, and that once a prisoner loses that hope, he is doomed.  I think we have all experienced this sense of the loss of hope from what happened in Las Vegas, yet if we look deeply enough we can see fantastic stories of heroism amongst the survivors of this mass killing.  Such stories make us realize that humanity is still great despite the actions of one sick mind able to avail himself of automatic machine guns.

Lastly, I would like to see a movie based on the life of Saint Mother Teresa.  Now there was a 2015 movie called, The Letters, based on Mother Teresa’s life but film critic, Roger Ebert gave it only 1 out of 5 stars and says, “On the level of dramatization, however, the film is almost an object lesson in how not to tell a story like that of Mother Teresa”.  It might be that the filmmakers wanted to capitalize on the fact that Mother Teresa had just been made a Saint.  So I would hope for a re-make with all the professionalism that a top feature film deserves. There are so many beautiful, inspiring and life changing lessons to learn from this kind woman.  Here are a few of the lessons, I believe a movie, about Mother Teresa might teach us based on these few quotes;

“Loneliness is the leprosy of the modern world.”

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”

“It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”

“What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family.”

“Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”

Now having met each of these 3 remarkable people, I’m hoping someone will bankroll and produce each of their stories.  I can be reached at bdfox@rogers.com.

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