Posted 8:45 pm Sunday, March 07, 2010
Responses to 'The Education Of A Mancub'
Below are reader responses suggesting movies to help boys become men, as requested by Nelson Clyde, Tyler Morning Telegraph publisher, in his column titled "The Education of a Mancub." The column was published Feb. 28, 2010.
Re: Suggestions for "Movies That Help Boys Become Men"
Dear Mr. Clyde,
I applaud you mentoring your son, using movies to help instill values. Where, in centuries past, tribal elders would inculcate society's values by reciting ancient legends, and later, epic poetry, movies now serve the same role, whether for good or ill, and whether we understand their influence in shaping the values of the viewers. And whether it is The Illiad, or the Gilgamish epic, or Beowolf, or now movies, as Dr. Bruno Bettelheim noted in the introduction to his National Book Award-winning The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales, "our cultural heritage finds expression in fairy tales, and through them is communicated to the child's mind." Bettelheim included fairy tales, fables and folk tales in his study. I would now include movies and television as the media through which most values are taught to our youth.
I applaud you mentoring your son, using movies to help instill values. Where, in centuries past, tribal elders would inculcate society's values by reciting ancient legends, and later, epic poetry, movies now serve the same role, whether for good or ill, and whether we understand their influence in shaping the values of the viewers. And whether it is The Illiad, or the Gilgamish epic, or Beowolf, or now movies, as Dr. Bruno Bettelheim noted in the introduction to his National Book Award-winning The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales, "our cultural heritage finds expression in fairy tales, and through them is communicated to the child's mind." Bettelheim included fairy tales, fables and folk tales in his study. I would now include movies and television as the media through which most values are taught to our youth.
But due to the caustic nature of far too many of today's movies, one must be careful in selecting the proper movies, with an eye towards the specific message or theme of the movie. And your pattern of watching the movie with your son, then discussing the messages is arguably Biblical. Deuteronomy 6: 6-9.
But, as noted above, epic tales recited around a roaring fire to spell-bound young warriors millennia ago, long ago gave way to written stories (I am reminded of well-spent summer afternoons in pre-teen days of reading and then immediately re-reading Weiss' Swiss Family Robinson), and then that, in turn, ceded the center stage to radio dramas (a little before my time, but the classic Orson Wells' War of the Worlds, and the panic it caused one Halloween night in the late 1930's comes to mind).
But the technical advancement (I hesitate to say 'progress,' for one's own imagination, his or her 'mental eye' that gives form to what the spoken or written word described has now been supplanted by someone else's 'vision' of the story, and we are merely carried along, vicariously watching the story unfold before our eyes) has caused the spoken word and the written word to be supplanted by 'moving pictures' (I use that now antiquated term to include both movies and television).
Your search for suitable movies for your son reminds me of several years ago, when I led a "Dinner and A Movie" ministry at Green Acres Baptist Church, where we showed a carefully selected movie, then I led the discussion of the lessons in the movie while the pizza was delivered for participants and set out (the "Dinner" portion of the evening).
But, though the audience is different, the goal is the same: To show that goodness (in that context, through GOD'S Providence) prevails over evil.
And, I would note, when I was juvenile judge, one of my first actions was to suggest to Nelson Downing, the then newly-appointed director of the Smith County Juvenile Probation Department, that we create a short "movie." The idea was taken from the seminal "Scared Straight" juvenile program at East Jersey Prison in Rahway, New Jersey, where juveniles were taken to prison to "scare" them to be "straight" and avoid prison, but it failed to achieve its goal for the targeted audience. But our focus was on the reality of juvenile detention, which I suggested was something more closely approaching "Bored Straight." In the 20-something minute short film, "Now You Are Ten: Making Good Choices," a juvenile is shown going through a typical day in the Smith County Juvenile Attention Center. Nelson and I, and Juvenile Probation Officers, presented that short film, interspersed with our live comments about specific aspects of an average day for detained juveniles as shown in the film, to over ten thousand Smith County students in eight months, and, I believe was pivotal in changing the life-paths of many of those students away from the downward spiral made to seem so appealing in "gangster rap" videos and movies glorifying violence. So I know the efficacy of movies to change the hearts and minds of an audience.
As mere movie titles give little guidance as to the strengths or weaknesses of a given movie, I have included an explanation of why I think those movies merit your time and consideration. With that preface, I would suggest the following films to see with your son:
But the technical advancement (I hesitate to say 'progress,' for one's own imagination, his or her 'mental eye' that gives form to what the spoken or written word described has now been supplanted by someone else's 'vision' of the story, and we are merely carried along, vicariously watching the story unfold before our eyes) has caused the spoken word and the written word to be supplanted by 'moving pictures' (I use that now antiquated term to include both movies and television).
Your search for suitable movies for your son reminds me of several years ago, when I led a "Dinner and A Movie" ministry at Green Acres Baptist Church, where we showed a carefully selected movie, then I led the discussion of the lessons in the movie while the pizza was delivered for participants and set out (the "Dinner" portion of the evening).
But, though the audience is different, the goal is the same: To show that goodness (in that context, through GOD'S Providence) prevails over evil.
And, I would note, when I was juvenile judge, one of my first actions was to suggest to Nelson Downing, the then newly-appointed director of the Smith County Juvenile Probation Department, that we create a short "movie." The idea was taken from the seminal "Scared Straight" juvenile program at East Jersey Prison in Rahway, New Jersey, where juveniles were taken to prison to "scare" them to be "straight" and avoid prison, but it failed to achieve its goal for the targeted audience. But our focus was on the reality of juvenile detention, which I suggested was something more closely approaching "Bored Straight." In the 20-something minute short film, "Now You Are Ten: Making Good Choices," a juvenile is shown going through a typical day in the Smith County Juvenile Attention Center. Nelson and I, and Juvenile Probation Officers, presented that short film, interspersed with our live comments about specific aspects of an average day for detained juveniles as shown in the film, to over ten thousand Smith County students in eight months, and, I believe was pivotal in changing the life-paths of many of those students away from the downward spiral made to seem so appealing in "gangster rap" videos and movies glorifying violence. So I know the efficacy of movies to change the hearts and minds of an audience.
As mere movie titles give little guidance as to the strengths or weaknesses of a given movie, I have included an explanation of why I think those movies merit your time and consideration. With that preface, I would suggest the following films to see with your son:
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence -- John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart:
There are many lessons contained in this classic John Wayne western movie. Violence (personified by Lee Marvin as Liberty Valence) beats down a young lawyer (Jimmy Stewart) who is not cowed but continues to endeavor to change his world by education, and finally, reluctantly, takes on Marvin using guns, not law books.
The story is multi-layered: John Wayne, the true "man's man" in the movie, actually killed Marvin. But John Wayne has seen the love of his life turn her heart to Stewart, and unlike Miles Standish sending John Alden to woo her back, John Wayne allows Stewart to get the credit, and the girl. And so Stewart became the governor and then U.S. Senator, riding on the wave of the fame he had 'achieved' for being 'the man who shot Liberty Valence.' And John Wayne, the true brave hero fades away, eschewing honor and recognition, and most poignantly, losing the hand of his beloved for the 'greater good.' There are many 'talking points' for conversations between a father and son contained in this treasure.
I would anticipate that some may also suggest Stagecoach (the 1939 classic John Wayne version, with John Wayne in the role of 'Ringo,' of course), but I would counter with a better John Wayne film that, in a more nuanced manner, has the same theme: a man on a downward trajectory being redeemed by, and this is a significant point, the potential of obtaining the love of a good woman. That better movie would be Angel and the Bad Man. in which 'the angel,' a quiet Quaker woman, saved the life, and the soul, of 'the bad man,' played by John Wayne.
The great line in Angel and the Bad Man is when the local sheriff confronted John Wayne for perhaps trifling with the heart of that honorable woman, and then disdainfully telling John Wayne that, although he was an outlaw, the sheriff had previously respected him so much that he had always planned to hang John Wayne with "a new rope." Then, in the final scene, after John Wayne had been won over, body and soul, by the sweet Quaker and her faith's gentle ways, as the happy couple rode away in the buckboard, John Wayne tossed his pistol at the feet of the sheriff. When his deputy asked what he was going to do with the pistol, the movie's eloquent last words were the sheriff saying, "I'm going to hang it with a new rope."
The story is multi-layered: John Wayne, the true "man's man" in the movie, actually killed Marvin. But John Wayne has seen the love of his life turn her heart to Stewart, and unlike Miles Standish sending John Alden to woo her back, John Wayne allows Stewart to get the credit, and the girl. And so Stewart became the governor and then U.S. Senator, riding on the wave of the fame he had 'achieved' for being 'the man who shot Liberty Valence.' And John Wayne, the true brave hero fades away, eschewing honor and recognition, and most poignantly, losing the hand of his beloved for the 'greater good.' There are many 'talking points' for conversations between a father and son contained in this treasure.
I would anticipate that some may also suggest Stagecoach (the 1939 classic John Wayne version, with John Wayne in the role of 'Ringo,' of course), but I would counter with a better John Wayne film that, in a more nuanced manner, has the same theme: a man on a downward trajectory being redeemed by, and this is a significant point, the potential of obtaining the love of a good woman. That better movie would be Angel and the Bad Man. in which 'the angel,' a quiet Quaker woman, saved the life, and the soul, of 'the bad man,' played by John Wayne.
The great line in Angel and the Bad Man is when the local sheriff confronted John Wayne for perhaps trifling with the heart of that honorable woman, and then disdainfully telling John Wayne that, although he was an outlaw, the sheriff had previously respected him so much that he had always planned to hang John Wayne with "a new rope." Then, in the final scene, after John Wayne had been won over, body and soul, by the sweet Quaker and her faith's gentle ways, as the happy couple rode away in the buckboard, John Wayne tossed his pistol at the feet of the sheriff. When his deputy asked what he was going to do with the pistol, the movie's eloquent last words were the sheriff saying, "I'm going to hang it with a new rope."
Second Hand Lions -- Robert Duvall, Michael Caine, and Halley Joel Osment
A 'throw-away' boy, Walter, is saved by his two eccentric uncles. Fantastic story of rough-hewn love shaping the life of someone no one wanted, and grooming him to be a man. And the more 'normal' people are revealed to be evil, self-centered, and often, money-grubbers. One lesson is that one must look into the life and the heart to see the true measure of someone. And there is a story-within-the-story, as Michael Caine tells the young boy about his and Duvall's youthful adventure and Duvall's lost true love.
An aside: The boy grows up to be a cartoonist. If the cartoon style looks familiar it is because the credits reveal that Berke Breathed, who was the master of the Bloom County comic strip, actually drew the cartoons that the Walter character 'drew' as a grown man.
An aside: The boy grows up to be a cartoonist. If the cartoon style looks familiar it is because the credits reveal that Berke Breathed, who was the master of the Bloom County comic strip, actually drew the cartoons that the Walter character 'drew' as a grown man.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor and End of the Spear
Two movies, based on two books by the same titles, telling of the same event, the January 8, 1956, murder of Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, and three other missionaries by Ecuadorian jungle tribesmen. End of the Spear is a more juvenile look at the events, for it is told from the perspective of Steve Saint about those events that occurred when he was a child, but that also makes it more accessible to a young boy (think of 'Scout' in To Kill A Mockingbird). I especially commend the Epilogue of the book for consideration.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor is Elisabeth Elliot's recounting of the same events, for her husband of less than two years, Jim Elliot, was also killed. While End of the Spear (a double entendre, since the missionaries were killed by the (pointy) end of the natives' spears, but when the natives became Christians and stopped using spears, their lives were radically changed, and thus the 'end of the spear' was the beginning of life (John 10: 10)) was a more factual telling of the events leading to the death of the five men, and the widows' outreach to the murderers.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor is far deeper, as Elisabeth Elliot traces the life trajectories often people, showing how GOD led those five young men and five young women to meet and to marry, and then led those five couples to join together so they could minister together, and then for the men to ultimately give their lives in evangelism. The discussion questions contained in the DVD package draw the mind to the ineluctable conclusion that GOD'S great purpose for these men's lives (Jeremiah 29: 11) may seem meaningless to non-Christians (I Corinthians 1: 18-29), but is deeply meaningful from a Christian perspective (2nd Timothy 4: 6-8).
After watching the two movies, and especially viewing the scene in End of the Spear of Nate Saint being murdered, a re-reading of the End of the Spear epilogue is appropriate, together with Hebrews 12: 1-4 and especially Acts 7: 55-56.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor is Elisabeth Elliot's recounting of the same events, for her husband of less than two years, Jim Elliot, was also killed. While End of the Spear (a double entendre, since the missionaries were killed by the (pointy) end of the natives' spears, but when the natives became Christians and stopped using spears, their lives were radically changed, and thus the 'end of the spear' was the beginning of life (John 10: 10)) was a more factual telling of the events leading to the death of the five men, and the widows' outreach to the murderers.
Beyond the Gates of Splendor is far deeper, as Elisabeth Elliot traces the life trajectories often people, showing how GOD led those five young men and five young women to meet and to marry, and then led those five couples to join together so they could minister together, and then for the men to ultimately give their lives in evangelism. The discussion questions contained in the DVD package draw the mind to the ineluctable conclusion that GOD'S great purpose for these men's lives (Jeremiah 29: 11) may seem meaningless to non-Christians (I Corinthians 1: 18-29), but is deeply meaningful from a Christian perspective (2nd Timothy 4: 6-8).
After watching the two movies, and especially viewing the scene in End of the Spear of Nate Saint being murdered, a re-reading of the End of the Spear epilogue is appropriate, together with Hebrews 12: 1-4 and especially Acts 7: 55-56.
Braveheart -- Mel Gibson
An eloquent, moving, dramatic defense of giving one's life for freedom.
The Alamo -- the 1960 version with John Wayne as Davy Crockett -- another eloquent defense of giving one's life for freedom, with great speeches about freedom.
Do not watch the recent version with Billy Bob Thomton as Davy Crockett; it is meaningless 'eye candy' and tripe. The recent movie is a 'politically corrected' re-writing of 'history,' where the dictator Santa Anna comes across as being a better person than either William Barrett Travis and Jim Bowie, whose strongest personal characteristic seems to be as slave-owners. When the movie's release was delayed, a scathing comic strip had a strip where the two characters were discussing the delay, and pointing to the billboard for the upcoming Alamo movie behind them, and one of the characters said, "The studio is tweaking the ad campaign." The billboard was advertised "The Alamo: Making Texas Safe for Slave Owners."
The recent Alamo movie violates one of the core messages of Bettleheim: the child must see that there is good and evil, and that evil is vanquished and good prevails, or as he writes: "that is why in fairy tales the bad person always loses out." In the recent Alamo, since the folks in the Alamo were portrayed as slave owning revolutionaries, their defeat was not bad. By muddying the moral water, and somewhat equating all sides as being evil, the defeat of one side was meaningless on so many levels. Rather than the Alamo being 'the Texas Thermopylae' as in John Wayne's Alamo, the new version was a muddle. And, as a result, a huge money loser for the movie studio.
The Alamo -- the 1960 version with John Wayne as Davy Crockett -- another eloquent defense of giving one's life for freedom, with great speeches about freedom.
Do not watch the recent version with Billy Bob Thomton as Davy Crockett; it is meaningless 'eye candy' and tripe. The recent movie is a 'politically corrected' re-writing of 'history,' where the dictator Santa Anna comes across as being a better person than either William Barrett Travis and Jim Bowie, whose strongest personal characteristic seems to be as slave-owners. When the movie's release was delayed, a scathing comic strip had a strip where the two characters were discussing the delay, and pointing to the billboard for the upcoming Alamo movie behind them, and one of the characters said, "The studio is tweaking the ad campaign." The billboard was advertised "The Alamo: Making Texas Safe for Slave Owners."
The recent Alamo movie violates one of the core messages of Bettleheim: the child must see that there is good and evil, and that evil is vanquished and good prevails, or as he writes: "that is why in fairy tales the bad person always loses out." In the recent Alamo, since the folks in the Alamo were portrayed as slave owning revolutionaries, their defeat was not bad. By muddying the moral water, and somewhat equating all sides as being evil, the defeat of one side was meaningless on so many levels. Rather than the Alamo being 'the Texas Thermopylae' as in John Wayne's Alamo, the new version was a muddle. And, as a result, a huge money loser for the movie studio.
Sergeant York -- 1941, with Gary Cooper
An eloquent statement of the American character, to bring peace and freedom throughout the world.
This movie opened with little fanfare, as Americans were still clinging to their isolationism in the face of Nazi and Japanese aggression around the world. It was still in theaters on December 7, 1941, and, like the "Why We Fight" series, Gary Cooper's Sargent York articulated America's reticence to go to war, but our core belief of the goodness of America and our desire to spread that goodness and freedom throughout the world.
I was recently teaching United States Constitutional law at a leadership conference in Iraq, and when asked why America had come to Iraq, I reminded the audience that I had begun my presentation with the opening words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I explained that America believes so much that all people are created equal and have an inalienable right to be free that the United States has spent the last century freeing the world from such people as Hitler, and listed the countries of Europe that America had freed from Hitler's domination and had rebuilt from the war's ravage. I explained that Saddam Hussein was just another dictator depriving the Iraqis of their right to be free. And I stated that Americans paid dearly for world's freedom, at the high cost of the lives and blood of our young people and vast expenditure of our wealth. My frail words echoed Gary Cooper's defense of America's goodness and belief in freedom for all people.
This movie opened with little fanfare, as Americans were still clinging to their isolationism in the face of Nazi and Japanese aggression around the world. It was still in theaters on December 7, 1941, and, like the "Why We Fight" series, Gary Cooper's Sargent York articulated America's reticence to go to war, but our core belief of the goodness of America and our desire to spread that goodness and freedom throughout the world.
I was recently teaching United States Constitutional law at a leadership conference in Iraq, and when asked why America had come to Iraq, I reminded the audience that I had begun my presentation with the opening words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I explained that America believes so much that all people are created equal and have an inalienable right to be free that the United States has spent the last century freeing the world from such people as Hitler, and listed the countries of Europe that America had freed from Hitler's domination and had rebuilt from the war's ravage. I explained that Saddam Hussein was just another dictator depriving the Iraqis of their right to be free. And I stated that Americans paid dearly for world's freedom, at the high cost of the lives and blood of our young people and vast expenditure of our wealth. My frail words echoed Gary Cooper's defense of America's goodness and belief in freedom for all people.
The Lord of the Rings
Good conquers evil. Though the battle is long, and many are lost in the long struggle, good does prevail.
League of Grateful Sons
A stunning documentary DVD that I have seen only at The Scroll.
Iwo Jima is an island near Japan that United States Marines had to invade and conquer in preparation for the pending invasion of Japan in the closing days of World War II. It was a massive bloodbath. Today the Japanese, who suffered huge losses there, allow Americans on the island only once a year, and then allows only the veterans of the battle to come to tour the island. And now, in the veterans' twilight years, Japan also allows younger men to come to help them get across the volcanic sand. It is stunning, and humbling, to watch these once-powerful Marines, now constrained to walkers and wheel chairs, look across their battleground and reminisce of those bloody days so long ago. And when they want to go somewhere else, four stout young Marines, healthy and strong as the old men were when they were fighting there, respectfully lift and gently carry their wheelchairs to where the old veterans want to go.
The focus is the producer/narrator/writer who takes his son to see and experience that day. It is touching as the aging Marines recount, not necessarily the events of the battle, but, rather, how their families reared them to be such honorable young men that they would willingly give their lives that others could be free and live in peace. It is the youth, those 'grateful sons,' having heard what these men have done for them, who will be better men, having learned the life lessons of these honorable old Marines, and having heard the call, will strive to live lives with the higher call of service to other. These 'grateful sons' will no longer be the same as they were before, having seen and heard the pattern of how to live honorable lives. When I see this documentary, I always think of the young Israelites sitting at the feet of an aging Joshua and Caleb, hearing their great deeds as they conquered the Promised Land through GOD'S Providence.
Rio Bravo
Redemption. Good conquers evil. Though often outnumbered, goodness still prevails.
Science fiction writer Leigh Brackett wrote (and sold!) the same screenplay three times, each of which was made with John Wayne as the sheriff holding in jail the errant, murdering son of the local wealthy landowner. The first of these three movies, Rio Bravo, is the best. John Wayne was joined by Dean Martin and Rick Nelson (the two sang duets - they were in the prime of their recording days.). Walter Brennan played the comic relief side-kick (in the next iteration of this movie, Rio Lobo. Jack Elam played the same role).
Interestingly, when you weave Rio Bravo's story line, especially Dean Martin as a drunk former deputy sheriff who is redeemed by the faith of the sheriff, into Gene Wilder's role, and Marlene Detrich's "Frenchie" character in Jimmy Stewart's Destry Rides Again (a good movie with Stewart as a non-gun toting sheriff), into Madelein Kahn's character as the "Teutonic Titwillow," you have most of the story line of Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles.
Rio Bravo is simply a classic Western.
Old Yeller
Both the book by Fred Gibson and the Walt Disney movie are great. Especially for young boys and younger men, showing that we are all called to great things, though often, those' great deeds are just working steadily and being a productive member of the family and of society. Fess Parker (who played Davy Crockett in the Walt Disney television episodes) played the father. As Fess Parker told his steadfast teenage son, we can become men if we stand firm and carry the burdens and meet the challenges before us. Old Yeller is a good family pulling together to survive, and then thrive, in a rugged post-Civil War Texas.
Hotel Rwanda and Shake Hands With the Devil
The books on which these two movies are based are stunning. Hotel Rwanda is based on An Ordinary Man: An Autobiography by Paul Rusesabagina, in which Rusesabagina recounts how he saved the lives of over a thousand Hutus by hiding them in the luxury hotel. Hotel des Mille Collmes, of which he was manger during the Rwandan genocide in 1994, when, in a hundred short days, approximately one million people were slaughtered. Shake Hands With the Devil is a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation documentary, premised on a book written by Romeo Dallaire, entitled Shake Hands With the Devil- The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda. Dallaire was a Canadian Lt. General who was in command of the United Nations troops in Rwanda during the genocide.
Hotel Rwanda tells the story of Rusesabagina, as portrayed by Don Cheadle, as he bribes various Hutu militia leaders to spare the people who have sought refuge in the Mille Collmes. In the movie Dallaire is played by Nick Nolte. After the horror of the genocide, Rusesabagina moved the surviving members of his decimated family to Belgium where he is still supporting his family as a taxi driver Hotel Rwanda won 2004 Academy Award nominations for Cheadle and for original screenplay It is rated PG-13 for "violence, disturbing images and brief strong language." Brutal. But that is what life is like in many places in Africa - think of Sudan, the Congo, Zimbabwe or Iraq during the sectarian violence, or Yugoslavia during its dissolution and the resulting civil war in Shake Hands With the Devil, the Canadian documentary, follows General Dallaire as he returns to Rwanda, a tragic figure, broken by the horrors of what he saw but which he could not stop. The craven actions of the American government, and primarily President Bill Clinton and Madeleine Albright the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, are revealed, as they refused to intercede in the genocide, with Clinton breezily proclaiming there was no "American interests in Rwanda worthy of America's intercession.
An international tragedy. And an eternal black mark against the Clinton legacy.
I have visited both the Holocaust Museum in Israel, and the Genocide Museum in Kigali, Rwanda After seeing thousands of skulls of the dead, visiting the Rwandan museum, with its photos of stacks of bodies desiccated by two years' exposure to the ravages of rain and weather, was even more devastating than the Holocaust museum.
Murphy's Romance -- James Gamer and Sally Field.
A personal, gentle favorite. Older man, James Gamer in his Oscar nominated role, fancies a younger, somewhat jaded woman. Sally Field, who cannot decide whether to reunite with her immature ex-husband or the settled, mature James Gamer. Sally Field's son, in his mid-teens is steadied by watching the honorable Murphy. Since Sally Fields finally chooses the good, honorable James Gamer, even old cynics should be encouraged. A very pleasant, sweet movie. The symbolism of the ex-husband's motorcycle, tied down in the back of the truck like a once free animal now broken, in the last scene is priceless.
Young men need to see that honor is ultimately more attractive and leads to more stable relationships than slick phrases and self-centered, carnal minded behavior.
The Three Hundred
A recent "graphic novel" movie. A retelling of the battle of Thermopylae. The lesson is that one must fight the battles before them, whether they win or lose, live or die.
The moral of the battle of Thermopylae still echoes down history to resound in our ears even today (a similar theme Mel Gibson evokes in Braveheart): even when faced with annihilation, you cannot surrender or turn and run. Because there is something far worse than defeat and honorable death, and that is the chains of abject slavery.
And there is a great line from the battle. As the battle was winding down, with most of the Spartans dead on the field of battle, the Persian king, Xerxes (the same one mentioned in The Bible) offered to let King Leonidus and the tattered remainder of his original small force of 300 Spartans to become part of the Persian king's own personal guard. The Spartan King bluntly rejected the offer, and the infuriated Persians coldly responded that they would "darken the sky with our arrows," to kill the few surviving Spartans. A Spartan lieutenant (I believe it was Laeretes) retorted, "Good, we will fight in the shade."
Quite audacious in the face of certain death. But the battle bought the Greek city states time to prepare (and complete their Olympics games), and when they came against the million man Persian army, they ultimately defeated the Persians and thwarted the invasion. And Grecian freedom and its republics survived. See The Alamo above.
Shenandoah
Jimmy Stewart trying to keep his family together in the midst of the Civil War.
It's A Wonderful Life
Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. Its moral is that each life is precious, each person has the capacity, if life is lived for others and not for self, touches people is ways we cannot know, this side of Heaven.
Fire Proof
Sherwood Baptist Church of Albany, Georgia has funded a series of Christian movies. The movies are written, produced, and most of the cast comes from the church membership.
Men of any age need to be taught the value of marriage, and of commitment. In a world where there truly is Truth, and goodness, and Living Water, American and Western society too often tells our youth, through all media, that relationships are transitory and meaningless, and that one should get all the pleasure they can out of life.
Rather than reveling in a fall life and Living Water, "they have abandoned Me, the fountain of living water, and dug cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that cannot hold water." Jeremiah 2: 13.
A young man should have this pattern in his mind of how blessed marriage can be.
Facing the Giants
Another Sherwood Baptist Church movie. God does have great plans for us, plans for good and not for evil, to give us a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29: 11.
The Perfect Stranger
Based on David Gregory's book Dinner With a Perfect Stranger. A person is invited to dinner (thus the "Dinner and a Movie" ministry mentioned above) by Jesus Christ. They debate theology. The movie portrays, and stunningly ends where any relationship with Jesus Christ begins. Revelations 3: 20.
The Outlaw Josey Wales
With a bit of hesitancy, because your request was to provide unequivocally moral movies to guide young minds into the paths of righteousness. Psalm 23: 3. But I nonetheless suggest a movie that all good Texas young men should see: The Outlaw Josey Wales. In my humble opinion this is Clint Eastwood's greatest role. Based on a good book, which has been somewhat tarnished by subsequent revelations about the author's, Forrest Carter, earlier life.
A classic Western motif, a man living according to his own strict standards of behavior, and eventually, finding peace and family. In Texas. A tougher edged view of post-Civil War Texas. Like Old Yeller without the dog. Or Fess Parker. And lots more dead folks. Maybe for older boys.
A similar argument can also be made for John Wayne's last movie, The Shootist. another classic Western, featuring an aging, dying gunfighter facing his mortality in a radically changing world. With Ron Howard as an adoring young man, entranced by Wayne's character's murderous reputation.
Perhaps you will find at least a couple of these movies worthy of consideration, and maybe you will include several of these movies in the "essential" list of movies you are drafting to use to shape the minds and the morals of young men.
And, Mr. Clyde, I pray you have many a memorable evening of watching movies with your son, Jamie. And far more importantly, may you have many evenings of life-shaping conversations with your son. For, as GOD admonished: we are to "Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all you strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." (Deuteronomy 6:5-9).
May GOD continue to richly bless you and your family. Numbers 6: 24-26.
I remain,
Sincerely,
Sam Griffith
Growing up in a house of boys made me aware of these essentials....Hoosiers and Chariots of Fire. Between family - Caddy Shack! In a year or two get him into some Louie Lamour books to continue the quest.
Add
Big.
Lonesome Dove, Silverado
The Princess Bride
Hey, Nelson. I really appreciate your creative articles, brother. Also, you must be one hell-of-a great dad. Bless you for that.
Here are a few great stories with "lessons for life" put to film:
"To Kill a Mocking Bird"
"Lord of the Flies"
"The Picture of Dorian Gray"
Blessings, my friend,
Aubrey
Nelson, thanks for your column each week, I do enjoy it and look forward to it. I have an older son who is 21 and has been to Iraq 3 times so far while serving in the military. I also have a 5 year old son who is the one that keeps me busy. When the oldest was a young lad we both watched the classic Old Yeller several times during his preschool to teen years. He made the comment several times; this is his favorite movie of all time. Recently the movie came on the new fangled satellite television. Me and my then 4 year old hunkered down with popcorn, jelly belly's chips and dip to savior a true growing up epic. We both watched like we have never seen it before. When it was over with he looked at me and said I love you Dad, thanks that was a great movie, did you record it on the television? I checked and nope it was not set to record. I then made the statement to my wife to see if you can purchase it on DVD these days. My darling wife went over the television stand and dug in it for what seems like hours and pulled out a set of movies. The set contained the movie Old Yeller and the sequel Savage Sam which we all know is Yeller's pup. When I was recently going thru Mason, I visited the statue old Yeller and Travis at the Beven Eckert Library and hope to someday take both my son's there to see for themselves this is a real classic set in the Texas Hill Country. I hope they both will pass the same tradition of the movie on their younguns when they have them.
Thanks,
Robert Eckeberger
Back in 1960, at age 10, no movie had a greater impact on me that the newly released John Wayne version of The Alamo, especially the speech by Davy Crockett (John Wayne) about the word “Republic”. Give your son another year or three and explain to him the complexities of the man “Patton” as brilliantly portrayed by George C. Scott in what may have been the finest job of acting of all time – he virtually ‘became” Patton. When he is a little older, it is time for “The Graduate” –and don't let it be lost on the affair but rather on its message about having a plan to pursue all during one's lifetime.
Robert Hindman
Shane
Charles Curtis
Brownsboro
Hello Nelson,Two movies that EVERY father and son should watch in my opinion:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097958/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119432/
Christmas Vacation (1989)
Jungle 2 Jungle (1997)
Which order to watch them in? You decide!
A little off the subject of father & son but still very interesting movies to watch, check out this site: http://artofmanliness.com/2009/07/13/100-must-see-movies/ and in the links is this sub link: http://artofmanliness.com/2009/10/08/the-15-best-buddy-movies/.
I would definitely check out and watch the 15 best buddy movies (2nd link) as each of these are staring 2 men in the lead roles. And some very good movies, even if only for fun and sharing each other's company, they are definitely Father & Son movies.
Please let me know if you need any other information or if I may help you in your search.
Sincerely,
James G Coley
If you haven't shown your son Old Yeller then now is the time to watch this movie. The main character, Travis Coates, is left in charge of the family when his father goes on a cattle drive. The movie takes place in the 1860s. An old yellow dog befriends the family, and Travis is reluctant at first to take the dog in, but he does. Old Yeller teaches Travis courage, loyalty and trust by defending the family against bears, snakes, raccoons and assorted animals. I watched these movies with my boys, who now have sons of their own, and they have carried on the tradition of watching this classic movie. When my youngest grandson is old enough, we will view this movie again to watch Travis Coates cope with problems that with the help of an old yellow dog he conquers to become a man.
Margaret Trott
Nelson,
You got my vote on Rudy.
Here's another must see:
"A River Runs Through It"
Beautiful and awesome film about a boy growing up in Montana in the early 1900s.
Best Regards,
John Barry
My selection for a movie to inspire boys of any age is "BAND OF BROTHERS".
This movie shows that boys, regardless of their social status, can rise as men doing extraordinary feats under impossible conditions.
My wife votes for the "THE SANDLOT".
This movie is about boys trying to retrieve a baseball from a backyard containing what they think is a bad dog and a mean man.
Joe Goodin
I applaud your quest and the fact that you are including your son in the effort. Thank you for stepping up to the parenthood plate and hitting a home run. As you circle the bases, put these movies in the queue...Best all around movie about boys to men...
Second Hand Lions - The best story about how to be a man and what to believe in
Classic Westerns -
Old Yeller doing the right thing even when it is is the hardest thing imaginable.
Shane define who you are and staying true to yourself
Remember the Alamo (with John Wayne) - every Texan man or woman needs to see this.
Classic Books/ made into Movies with Disney's help
Treasure Island
Science Fiction
Starship troopers
The StarWars Trilogy
Braveheart
Gladiator
The Count of Monte Cristo - another classic...up there with Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn
The Sandlot - a statement of how meaningful friendship is: how it last, and how much we learn from our friends.
To Kill a Mockingbird - arguably the great American novel and great movie with Gregory Peck
There are many others....but I would encourage you if you only select one from this combined list (see previous e-mail!) Let it be this one:
SECOND HAND LIONS Starring Michael Caine, Robert Duval, Kyra Sedgwick, and Haley Joel Osment I think you will be pleasantly surprised!!!
I raised two great young men -- I have two great brothers, and a wonderful father...My husband is also a great father like yourself...part of this list is from their perspective as well as my own....
Good luck and Enjoy the movies!!!
pass the popcorn please!!
Pen Starnes
Tyler Texas
I enjoyed your "essential movies" list selected for the influence that each holds for our male off-spring. I saw those that you named and agree with your description of the lessons found in each. Isn't it too bad that in today's world there are so many Moms who insist on shielding their kids from many of these movies because of the violence that they depict. . .as if to suggest, or pretend, that there are no evil dangers in endless forms lurking out there in the real world. I don't think these parents give their kids enough credit for their ability to discern the difference between movies and reality, and by keeping them from those adventures into an imaginary world, they miss out on so many lessons that can hardly be taught in a better way.I would want to add two movies (series) to your list--"Lonesome Dove" and "Star Wars". The latter was simply a futuristic version of the old Saturday westerns that I enjoyed so much back when the movies cost nine cents for a double feature. (I knew from the very beginning that when the bad guys got shot and fell off their horse, they were acting.) Star Wars provided its viewers a visual personification of pure evil, the overpowering temptations that every young man faces, and an illustration of how faith and courage can help to overcome its influences."Lonesome Dove" tells us that life, and the fulfillment of our dreams will almost certainly include risks, and that they can't all be anticipated. It teaches that success requires accepting responsibility, and that a major part of being responsible means being a person whose word means something. Throughout our history the personality and character of the male of our species could probably be divided into two groups, much like the difference in reputation of the men of the Greek and Roman cultures. . .the Greeks being the philosophers and the thinkers, while the Romans were the industrious "doers and road builders". That difference could never be better depicted than in Larry McMurtry's characters, Gus and Call. It is a movie providing the adventures and work-ethic to entertain and educate young boys, while providing young men with lessons on responsibility and what it takes to be a good parent.
Richard Fothergill, Kilgore, Texas, It's me too—
Empire of the Sun, 1987, Christian Bale's role of Jim
PS-I enjoy your column very much.
Donna M. Dietz, P.E., LEEDŽAP
I think "Second Hand Lions" is one of the all time great dad/son movies. It has a great story line and alot of action. Hope this will be a winning entry.
Susan Taylor
You have a very wonderful writing style; it is very satisfying and your article is the first one that is read in the morning by me! Today's article was very special; you and your son Jamie must enjoy a good friendship, much needed for communication during the so-called "turbulent" teen years that are soon to follow!
The movies The Karate Kid motivated my son Ben, a shy young man by nature, to have the courage to study karate, but best of all to believe. Everything begins in the mind(yes, the heart helps, but it must originate in the mind).
After karate lessons, he also found the courage to tackle guitar lessons in high school and really learned the instrument well for the next eight years, learning all styles(he recently began taking lessons in guitar blues and jazz to his family's delight). The Karate Kid taught him to dream big and he qualified for the Academic Decathlon team (well over twenty years ago) at RELee, winning a total of ten regional medals and one state medal. Because he dreamed big, he went on and received a bachelors degree in communications and really got serious and went on for his masters in this field and finished with his highest grades ever!
Another movie that set the foundation was Star Wars; he learned that he must follow the light and stay away from the darkness to really be happy and live a good life (of course, he heard that message many times at home, going to church and studying the Bible, but it was cool to have such vivid imagery come to life when he was very young with this movie). Star Wars touched many lives in pointing to the Gospel message of the True Light, Jesus Christ, although it was done in a very clever way!
Ben has been married almost fifteen years to a lovely woman he met in graduate school, loves his family, has enjoyed travel with his family throughout the world and now is not as shy as he used to be. I credit this to the short successes in his early life that gave him the confidence to "focus on his dream" (The Karate Kid) and "follow the light"(Star Wars).
Most Sincerely,
Cristina Randolph
I was reading your column today & just thought I'd throw in a couple of suggestions on movies to show your son. One that came to mind, though it's been awhile since I saw it, is "Old Yeller", because if memory serves me right, the young man in the story(the older brother) had to take on a lot of responsibility with his Dad being gone for a time. But the one that immediately came to mind, probably because I just recently watched it again, was "To Kill A Mockingbird". Atticus Finch is a great example of the kind of man you would want your son to be! And by the way, AMC is showing it Tuesday night, at 7 p.m.
Those are my picks...I hope they help.
Suzanne
Don't forget " OLD YELLER " at the top of your list and " SHENANDOAH " is another good father/son , boy to man movie.
Steve Thompson
Jacksonville
Old Yeller - on respect, relationships, responsibility and doing what must be done
enter the dragon - not for any moral reason, but just because every man should be able to say he's seen this bruce lee classic
howard
Nelson, I enjoy reading your Sunday commentary. Two movies I would like to add are Magnificent Seven and Gunfight at the OK Corral. Great Westerns! Keep up the good work!
Mitch Willens
I think the movie, Silverado, is one of the best movies for guys (and girls). You see the character in the men who are wronged and their bravery.
Also, Mrs Mineva, is another great movie that we watched with our sons, and now they have watched this movie with their wives.
These two movies immediately jumped to mind so I hope you check them out.
Elise Brooking February 28 at 2:08pm
But look what my mom just sent me. She absolutely loved your article and felt compelled to write in. This is what makes me proud to be a fellow East Texan (from Brownsboro.) Thank you for letting our class help work with you as a client!
-- Elise
From my mother, Sherry Brooking:
From: Sherry Brooking
Date: February 28, 2010 9:50:34 AM CST
To: Elise Brooking
Subject: article
Elise, see if you think this is cheesy-----I am not a writer by nature, but I felt compelled this morning after my Sunday ritual of enjoying the paper to send this. What do you think?
"This is to all those pessimists who think newspapers and journalism is a dying art that is slowly being replaced by none other than the techno computer, internet world. Kudos to the Tyler Courier-Times-Telegraph for a job well done. Kudos to them for such a wonderful actual, touchable, reusuable item in their “newspaper”. Not everyone has a computer or desires to have one to “catch up” on the news of the world or in our part of small east Texas. But, I do notice newspapers just about everywhere---your local physician's office, restaurant, auto repair shop-----anywhere you can “lay one for many to enjoy”. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against computers. I just want newspapers and journalist to get the due they deserve. With this in mind, please accept this compliment to the Tyler Courier-Times-Telegraph. The article by Nelson Clyde about his son and their “education' this past Sunday was heart warming as was the BBQ Smoker story by Stewart Smith----how awesome is it to actually have something built and loaned out to the public by a Newspaper Company!!! Please continue your awesome job of coverage for our East Texas area and know that you are greatly appreciated! Kudos to the wonderful world of written words on that black and white thing we call newspapers!"
Please tell Jamie how much we enjoyed his idea of your column being “about boys”. At the Brookshire household, we have lived out the mancub to manhood theme 3 times over………or for 26 years!! Hands down, our favorite father/son movie is The Patriot. Mel Gibson plays a South Carolina leader of a makeshift militia in the American Revolution. Through courage and bravery, they play a pivotal role in turning the tide against the Redcoats. Aside from the violence & language (which is justifiable to the passion of the character development) this action film is jam-packed with life lessons. Our boys (men) still quote the favorite words: “aim small……….miss small” from Mel Gibson's emotional instructions to his boys. Your column stimulated so many cherished memories of all the fun movie nights spent on the family couch!
Regards,
Sunni
PS….our favorite belly laughing movie: Sandlot
Read your article and I had to smile while reading. So many of the movies you mentioned, I have seen with my boys. One that you did not mention, that I think Jamie would enjoy is October Sky. It is a must! My older boy's favorite!
Lisa McDaniel
I love the movie idea. I saw a great movie on TV in 2009 called The Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story staring Cuba Gooding Jr. as Dr. Ben Carson. It is a true story that is as inspiring as Rudy, but it is not sports related. Google it for more info. I think they should show it in all schools.
Kay K. Caserta
No prize necessary, but add To Kill A Mockingbird with G Peck, the man shows responsibility towards raising his kids, can shoot a rifle like Sgt York,can talk down a mob like any old west sheriff, has a real since of justice , knows right and wrong and also demonstrates a strong since of compassion.By far one of the best movies ever.
Robin from downstairs.
My suggestion for a movie is "Tall Tale" with Patrick Swayze. It is a story of a young boy who draws on the inspiration of legendary western characters (Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyun and John Henry) to find the strength to fight an evil land baron in the old west who wants to steal his family's farm and destroy their idyllic community. I hope you and your Mancub enjoy this.
Teresa Smart
First off let me tell you that I really enjoy your column each week, it is the first item I read!
Next...on your movies for boys.... I must say that I think every boy, and of course girl, should watch the movie Where the Red Fern Grows...I taught school for almost 30 years public and private, mostly 5th Grade Reading, Social Studies and Math, I required my children to read this wonderful book and then we watched the movie to do a comparison of book and movie. I always heard that it was their favorite book of all that I required them to read ( they usually read about 6 books in my class). This wonderful novel and movie brought tears and wonder to all my students!! It is a must...of course the book is far better than the movie...that's just the teacher's point of view!
Keep up the great work on your column.
Thank you,
Deborah Bosworth Robertson
Thanks so much for addressing a much needed topic. Two of my favorites demonstrating positive male role models are: "It's a Wonderful Life" with Jimmy Stewart, & "The Lion King". Thanks Again,
Linda Evans-Land
As I read your article the one and only movie that sticks out is “Finding Nemo”. I hope you have seen the movie. I and not a move watcher but when it came out we bought it for Peyton. He watched it repeatly so I had to hear it playing. Finely I sat with him and watched it. It was the best Movie! I have watched it I know 9 to 10 time and love it still. Peyton has watched it more. Even though this is an animated movie it has a lot of valuable lessons in it. You have a father that loved his son very much and the son loved the father very much. Because of the overprotection of the father the son disobeys his father and put himself in a very dangerous situation. You know the rest. To make a long story short this movie demonstrates strong faith, love and determation. Even though it was an animated movie “faith” definitely played a part to have the desperation to overcome everything Marlin (the father) encountered to find his son and “Love” was certainly strong because it never weakens. This would be an excellent Movie for the whole family to watch. Matter of fact I have been waiting on Nemo II to come out and finally Melanie said, but what else could you do to the movie. It's perfect.
Vanessa Lane
Tyler Morning Telegraph Retail Account Executive
I suggest "Where the Red Fern Grows" the original if possible. My son is 38 and still gets misty watching this.
Ethel Ingold
Your article in Sunday's paper touched my heart since I have 5 children, 10 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren. My fervent prayer is for all the grandchildren to grow into the fine young men and women that some of the heroes you mentioned embodied. Your son is very fortunate to have a dad that loves to guide him through life. You asked for a movie suggestion and I thought of an old but good one – It is a true story with the usual Hollywood embellishments but Gary Cooper is the perfect hero in “Sergeant York”. May God bless you and your family.
Sincerely,
May Lou Stove
I thoroughly enjoy reading your “Is It Just Me” in the Sunday Paper, you are very tongue in cheek funny. Regarding your article today “The Education of a Mancub”, you have watched some good movies with your son, but there are 2 others that are a must. These 2 movies are Second Hand Lion and October Sky, wonderful, wonderful. I hope you choose them to watch with your son.
Your faithful reader,
Uschi Granberry
We're back!!! I feel like a normal person again. Here's Dent's list:
Butch Cassidy
Shane
Old Yeller
The Alamo
Out of Africa
Seconhand Lions
The Dirty Dozen
Cool Hand Luke
Bullit
Talk to you later!
Love you - Pam
Art – Rudy & Remember the Titans
Dave – Red Badge of Courage, High Noon, Smoke Signals
Diana – October Sky, SandLot, Radio Flyer, In Harm's Way & The Longest Day
Matt – Hoosiers & Rudy
Miscellaneous Staff members – Goonies, Hook, Bridge over the River Kwai, Magnificent 7, Cool Hand Luke, Napoleon Dynamite, Caddyshack
Lindsey & Taylor – Man from Snowy River, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Paul Newman & Robert Redford), Where the Red Fern Grows, Big Trouble in Little China, Never Ending Story, Big, Princess Bride,
James - Hatari, Old Yeller, Houseboat
League of Grateful Sons
A stunning documentary DVD that I have seen only at The Scroll.
Iwo Jima is an island near Japan that United States Marines had to invade and conquer in preparation for the pending invasion of Japan in the closing days of World War II. It was a massive bloodbath. Today the Japanese, who suffered huge losses there, allow Americans on the island only once a year, and then allows only the veterans of the battle to come to tour the island. And now, in the veterans' twilight years, Japan also allows younger men to come to help them get across the volcanic sand. It is stunning, and humbling, to watch these once-powerful Marines, now constrained to walkers and wheel chairs, look across their battleground and reminisce of those bloody days so long ago. And when they want to go somewhere else, four stout young Marines, healthy and strong as the old men were when they were fighting there, respectfully lift and gently carry their wheelchairs to where the old veterans want to go.
The focus is the producer/narrator/writer who takes his son to see and experience that day. It is touching as the aging Marines recount, not necessarily the events of the battle, but, rather, how their families reared them to be such honorable young men that they would willingly give their lives that others could be free and live in peace. It is the youth, those 'grateful sons,' having heard what these men have done for them, who will be better men, having learned the life lessons of these honorable old Marines, and having heard the call, will strive to live lives with the higher call of service to other. These 'grateful sons' will no longer be the same as they were before, having seen and heard the pattern of how to live honorable lives. When I see this documentary, I always think of the young Israelites sitting at the feet of an aging Joshua and Caleb, hearing their great deeds as they conquered the Promised Land through GOD'S Providence.
Rio Bravo
Redemption. Good conquers evil. Though often outnumbered, goodness still prevails.
Science fiction writer Leigh Brackett wrote (and sold!) the same screenplay three times, each of which was made with John Wayne as the sheriff holding in jail the errant, murdering son of the local wealthy landowner. The first of these three movies, Rio Bravo, is the best. John Wayne was joined by Dean Martin and Rick Nelson (the two sang duets - they were in the prime of their recording days.). Walter Brennan played the comic relief side-kick (in the next iteration of this movie, Rio Lobo. Jack Elam played the same role).
Interestingly, when you weave Rio Bravo's story line, especially Dean Martin as a drunk former deputy sheriff who is redeemed by the faith of the sheriff, into Gene Wilder's role, and Marlene Detrich's "Frenchie" character in Jimmy Stewart's Destry Rides Again (a good movie with Stewart as a non-gun toting sheriff), into Madelein Kahn's character as the "Teutonic Titwillow," you have most of the story line of Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles.
Rio Bravo is simply a classic Western.
Old Yeller
Both the book by Fred Gibson and the Walt Disney movie are great. Especially for young boys and younger men, showing that we are all called to great things, though often, those' great deeds are just working steadily and being a productive member of the family and of society. Fess Parker (who played Davy Crockett in the Walt Disney television episodes) played the father. As Fess Parker told his steadfast teenage son, we can become men if we stand firm and carry the burdens and meet the challenges before us. Old Yeller is a good family pulling together to survive, and then thrive, in a rugged post-Civil War Texas.
Hotel Rwanda and Shake Hands With the Devil
The books on which these two movies are based are stunning. Hotel Rwanda is based on An Ordinary Man: An Autobiography by Paul Rusesabagina, in which Rusesabagina recounts how he saved the lives of over a thousand Hutus by hiding them in the luxury hotel. Hotel des Mille Collmes, of which he was manger during the Rwandan genocide in 1994, when, in a hundred short days, approximately one million people were slaughtered. Shake Hands With the Devil is a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation documentary, premised on a book written by Romeo Dallaire, entitled Shake Hands With the Devil- The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda. Dallaire was a Canadian Lt. General who was in command of the United Nations troops in Rwanda during the genocide.
Hotel Rwanda tells the story of Rusesabagina, as portrayed by Don Cheadle, as he bribes various Hutu militia leaders to spare the people who have sought refuge in the Mille Collmes. In the movie Dallaire is played by Nick Nolte. After the horror of the genocide, Rusesabagina moved the surviving members of his decimated family to Belgium where he is still supporting his family as a taxi driver Hotel Rwanda won 2004 Academy Award nominations for Cheadle and for original screenplay It is rated PG-13 for "violence, disturbing images and brief strong language." Brutal. But that is what life is like in many places in Africa - think of Sudan, the Congo, Zimbabwe or Iraq during the sectarian violence, or Yugoslavia during its dissolution and the resulting civil war in Shake Hands With the Devil, the Canadian documentary, follows General Dallaire as he returns to Rwanda, a tragic figure, broken by the horrors of what he saw but which he could not stop. The craven actions of the American government, and primarily President Bill Clinton and Madeleine Albright the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, are revealed, as they refused to intercede in the genocide, with Clinton breezily proclaiming there was no "American interests in Rwanda worthy of America's intercession.
An international tragedy. And an eternal black mark against the Clinton legacy.
I have visited both the Holocaust Museum in Israel, and the Genocide Museum in Kigali, Rwanda After seeing thousands of skulls of the dead, visiting the Rwandan museum, with its photos of stacks of bodies desiccated by two years' exposure to the ravages of rain and weather, was even more devastating than the Holocaust museum.
Murphy's Romance -- James Gamer and Sally Field.
A personal, gentle favorite. Older man, James Gamer in his Oscar nominated role, fancies a younger, somewhat jaded woman. Sally Field, who cannot decide whether to reunite with her immature ex-husband or the settled, mature James Gamer. Sally Field's son, in his mid-teens is steadied by watching the honorable Murphy. Since Sally Fields finally chooses the good, honorable James Gamer, even old cynics should be encouraged. A very pleasant, sweet movie. The symbolism of the ex-husband's motorcycle, tied down in the back of the truck like a once free animal now broken, in the last scene is priceless.
Young men need to see that honor is ultimately more attractive and leads to more stable relationships than slick phrases and self-centered, carnal minded behavior.
The Three Hundred
A recent "graphic novel" movie. A retelling of the battle of Thermopylae. The lesson is that one must fight the battles before them, whether they win or lose, live or die.
The moral of the battle of Thermopylae still echoes down history to resound in our ears even today (a similar theme Mel Gibson evokes in Braveheart): even when faced with annihilation, you cannot surrender or turn and run. Because there is something far worse than defeat and honorable death, and that is the chains of abject slavery.
And there is a great line from the battle. As the battle was winding down, with most of the Spartans dead on the field of battle, the Persian king, Xerxes (the same one mentioned in The Bible) offered to let King Leonidus and the tattered remainder of his original small force of 300 Spartans to become part of the Persian king's own personal guard. The Spartan King bluntly rejected the offer, and the infuriated Persians coldly responded that they would "darken the sky with our arrows," to kill the few surviving Spartans. A Spartan lieutenant (I believe it was Laeretes) retorted, "Good, we will fight in the shade."
Quite audacious in the face of certain death. But the battle bought the Greek city states time to prepare (and complete their Olympics games), and when they came against the million man Persian army, they ultimately defeated the Persians and thwarted the invasion. And Grecian freedom and its republics survived. See The Alamo above.
Shenandoah
Jimmy Stewart trying to keep his family together in the midst of the Civil War.
It's A Wonderful Life
Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. Its moral is that each life is precious, each person has the capacity, if life is lived for others and not for self, touches people is ways we cannot know, this side of Heaven.
Fire Proof
Sherwood Baptist Church of Albany, Georgia has funded a series of Christian movies. The movies are written, produced, and most of the cast comes from the church membership.
Men of any age need to be taught the value of marriage, and of commitment. In a world where there truly is Truth, and goodness, and Living Water, American and Western society too often tells our youth, through all media, that relationships are transitory and meaningless, and that one should get all the pleasure they can out of life.
Rather than reveling in a fall life and Living Water, "they have abandoned Me, the fountain of living water, and dug cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that cannot hold water." Jeremiah 2: 13.
A young man should have this pattern in his mind of how blessed marriage can be.
Facing the Giants
Another Sherwood Baptist Church movie. God does have great plans for us, plans for good and not for evil, to give us a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29: 11.
The Perfect Stranger
Based on David Gregory's book Dinner With a Perfect Stranger. A person is invited to dinner (thus the "Dinner and a Movie" ministry mentioned above) by Jesus Christ. They debate theology. The movie portrays, and stunningly ends where any relationship with Jesus Christ begins. Revelations 3: 20.
The Outlaw Josey Wales
With a bit of hesitancy, because your request was to provide unequivocally moral movies to guide young minds into the paths of righteousness. Psalm 23: 3. But I nonetheless suggest a movie that all good Texas young men should see: The Outlaw Josey Wales. In my humble opinion this is Clint Eastwood's greatest role. Based on a good book, which has been somewhat tarnished by subsequent revelations about the author's, Forrest Carter, earlier life.
A classic Western motif, a man living according to his own strict standards of behavior, and eventually, finding peace and family. In Texas. A tougher edged view of post-Civil War Texas. Like Old Yeller without the dog. Or Fess Parker. And lots more dead folks. Maybe for older boys.
A similar argument can also be made for John Wayne's last movie, The Shootist. another classic Western, featuring an aging, dying gunfighter facing his mortality in a radically changing world. With Ron Howard as an adoring young man, entranced by Wayne's character's murderous reputation.
Perhaps you will find at least a couple of these movies worthy of consideration, and maybe you will include several of these movies in the "essential" list of movies you are drafting to use to shape the minds and the morals of young men.
And, Mr. Clyde, I pray you have many a memorable evening of watching movies with your son, Jamie. And far more importantly, may you have many evenings of life-shaping conversations with your son. For, as GOD admonished: we are to "Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all you strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." (Deuteronomy 6:5-9).
May GOD continue to richly bless you and your family. Numbers 6: 24-26.
I remain,
Sincerely,
Sam Griffith
Growing up in a house of boys made me aware of these essentials....Hoosiers and Chariots of Fire. Between family - Caddy Shack! In a year or two get him into some Louie Lamour books to continue the quest.
Add
Big.
Lonesome Dove, Silverado
The Princess Bride
Hey, Nelson. I really appreciate your creative articles, brother. Also, you must be one hell-of-a great dad. Bless you for that.
Here are a few great stories with "lessons for life" put to film:
"To Kill a Mocking Bird"
"Lord of the Flies"
"The Picture of Dorian Gray"
Blessings, my friend,
Aubrey
Nelson, thanks for your column each week, I do enjoy it and look forward to it. I have an older son who is 21 and has been to Iraq 3 times so far while serving in the military. I also have a 5 year old son who is the one that keeps me busy. When the oldest was a young lad we both watched the classic Old Yeller several times during his preschool to teen years. He made the comment several times; this is his favorite movie of all time. Recently the movie came on the new fangled satellite television. Me and my then 4 year old hunkered down with popcorn, jelly belly's chips and dip to savior a true growing up epic. We both watched like we have never seen it before. When it was over with he looked at me and said I love you Dad, thanks that was a great movie, did you record it on the television? I checked and nope it was not set to record. I then made the statement to my wife to see if you can purchase it on DVD these days. My darling wife went over the television stand and dug in it for what seems like hours and pulled out a set of movies. The set contained the movie Old Yeller and the sequel Savage Sam which we all know is Yeller's pup. When I was recently going thru Mason, I visited the statue old Yeller and Travis at the Beven Eckert Library and hope to someday take both my son's there to see for themselves this is a real classic set in the Texas Hill Country. I hope they both will pass the same tradition of the movie on their younguns when they have them.
Thanks,
Robert Eckeberger
Back in 1960, at age 10, no movie had a greater impact on me that the newly released John Wayne version of The Alamo, especially the speech by Davy Crockett (John Wayne) about the word “Republic”. Give your son another year or three and explain to him the complexities of the man “Patton” as brilliantly portrayed by George C. Scott in what may have been the finest job of acting of all time – he virtually ‘became” Patton. When he is a little older, it is time for “The Graduate” –and don't let it be lost on the affair but rather on its message about having a plan to pursue all during one's lifetime.
Robert Hindman
Shane
Charles Curtis
Brownsboro
Hello Nelson,Two movies that EVERY father and son should watch in my opinion:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097958/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119432/
Christmas Vacation (1989)
Jungle 2 Jungle (1997)
Which order to watch them in? You decide!
A little off the subject of father & son but still very interesting movies to watch, check out this site: http://artofmanliness.com/2009/07/13/100-must-see-movies/ and in the links is this sub link: http://artofmanliness.com/2009/10/08/the-15-best-buddy-movies/.
I would definitely check out and watch the 15 best buddy movies (2nd link) as each of these are staring 2 men in the lead roles. And some very good movies, even if only for fun and sharing each other's company, they are definitely Father & Son movies.
Please let me know if you need any other information or if I may help you in your search.
Sincerely,
James G Coley
If you haven't shown your son Old Yeller then now is the time to watch this movie. The main character, Travis Coates, is left in charge of the family when his father goes on a cattle drive. The movie takes place in the 1860s. An old yellow dog befriends the family, and Travis is reluctant at first to take the dog in, but he does. Old Yeller teaches Travis courage, loyalty and trust by defending the family against bears, snakes, raccoons and assorted animals. I watched these movies with my boys, who now have sons of their own, and they have carried on the tradition of watching this classic movie. When my youngest grandson is old enough, we will view this movie again to watch Travis Coates cope with problems that with the help of an old yellow dog he conquers to become a man.
Margaret Trott
Nelson,
You got my vote on Rudy.
Here's another must see:
"A River Runs Through It"
Beautiful and awesome film about a boy growing up in Montana in the early 1900s.
Best Regards,
John Barry
My selection for a movie to inspire boys of any age is "BAND OF BROTHERS".
This movie shows that boys, regardless of their social status, can rise as men doing extraordinary feats under impossible conditions.
My wife votes for the "THE SANDLOT".
This movie is about boys trying to retrieve a baseball from a backyard containing what they think is a bad dog and a mean man.
Joe Goodin
I applaud your quest and the fact that you are including your son in the effort. Thank you for stepping up to the parenthood plate and hitting a home run. As you circle the bases, put these movies in the queue...Best all around movie about boys to men...
Second Hand Lions - The best story about how to be a man and what to believe in
Classic Westerns -
Old Yeller doing the right thing even when it is is the hardest thing imaginable.
Shane define who you are and staying true to yourself
Remember the Alamo (with John Wayne) - every Texan man or woman needs to see this.
Classic Books/ made into Movies with Disney's help
Treasure Island
Science Fiction
Starship troopers
The StarWars Trilogy
Braveheart
Gladiator
The Count of Monte Cristo - another classic...up there with Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn
The Sandlot - a statement of how meaningful friendship is: how it last, and how much we learn from our friends.
To Kill a Mockingbird - arguably the great American novel and great movie with Gregory Peck
There are many others....but I would encourage you if you only select one from this combined list (see previous e-mail!) Let it be this one:
SECOND HAND LIONS Starring Michael Caine, Robert Duval, Kyra Sedgwick, and Haley Joel Osment I think you will be pleasantly surprised!!!
I raised two great young men -- I have two great brothers, and a wonderful father...My husband is also a great father like yourself...part of this list is from their perspective as well as my own....
Good luck and Enjoy the movies!!!
pass the popcorn please!!
Pen Starnes
Tyler Texas
I enjoyed your "essential movies" list selected for the influence that each holds for our male off-spring. I saw those that you named and agree with your description of the lessons found in each. Isn't it too bad that in today's world there are so many Moms who insist on shielding their kids from many of these movies because of the violence that they depict. . .as if to suggest, or pretend, that there are no evil dangers in endless forms lurking out there in the real world. I don't think these parents give their kids enough credit for their ability to discern the difference between movies and reality, and by keeping them from those adventures into an imaginary world, they miss out on so many lessons that can hardly be taught in a better way.I would want to add two movies (series) to your list--"Lonesome Dove" and "Star Wars". The latter was simply a futuristic version of the old Saturday westerns that I enjoyed so much back when the movies cost nine cents for a double feature. (I knew from the very beginning that when the bad guys got shot and fell off their horse, they were acting.) Star Wars provided its viewers a visual personification of pure evil, the overpowering temptations that every young man faces, and an illustration of how faith and courage can help to overcome its influences."Lonesome Dove" tells us that life, and the fulfillment of our dreams will almost certainly include risks, and that they can't all be anticipated. It teaches that success requires accepting responsibility, and that a major part of being responsible means being a person whose word means something. Throughout our history the personality and character of the male of our species could probably be divided into two groups, much like the difference in reputation of the men of the Greek and Roman cultures. . .the Greeks being the philosophers and the thinkers, while the Romans were the industrious "doers and road builders". That difference could never be better depicted than in Larry McMurtry's characters, Gus and Call. It is a movie providing the adventures and work-ethic to entertain and educate young boys, while providing young men with lessons on responsibility and what it takes to be a good parent.
Richard Fothergill, Kilgore, Texas, It's me too—
Empire of the Sun, 1987, Christian Bale's role of Jim
PS-I enjoy your column very much.
Donna M. Dietz, P.E., LEEDŽAP
I think "Second Hand Lions" is one of the all time great dad/son movies. It has a great story line and alot of action. Hope this will be a winning entry.
Susan Taylor
You have a very wonderful writing style; it is very satisfying and your article is the first one that is read in the morning by me! Today's article was very special; you and your son Jamie must enjoy a good friendship, much needed for communication during the so-called "turbulent" teen years that are soon to follow!
The movies The Karate Kid motivated my son Ben, a shy young man by nature, to have the courage to study karate, but best of all to believe. Everything begins in the mind(yes, the heart helps, but it must originate in the mind).
After karate lessons, he also found the courage to tackle guitar lessons in high school and really learned the instrument well for the next eight years, learning all styles(he recently began taking lessons in guitar blues and jazz to his family's delight). The Karate Kid taught him to dream big and he qualified for the Academic Decathlon team (well over twenty years ago) at RELee, winning a total of ten regional medals and one state medal. Because he dreamed big, he went on and received a bachelors degree in communications and really got serious and went on for his masters in this field and finished with his highest grades ever!
Another movie that set the foundation was Star Wars; he learned that he must follow the light and stay away from the darkness to really be happy and live a good life (of course, he heard that message many times at home, going to church and studying the Bible, but it was cool to have such vivid imagery come to life when he was very young with this movie). Star Wars touched many lives in pointing to the Gospel message of the True Light, Jesus Christ, although it was done in a very clever way!
Ben has been married almost fifteen years to a lovely woman he met in graduate school, loves his family, has enjoyed travel with his family throughout the world and now is not as shy as he used to be. I credit this to the short successes in his early life that gave him the confidence to "focus on his dream" (The Karate Kid) and "follow the light"(Star Wars).
Most Sincerely,
Cristina Randolph
I was reading your column today & just thought I'd throw in a couple of suggestions on movies to show your son. One that came to mind, though it's been awhile since I saw it, is "Old Yeller", because if memory serves me right, the young man in the story(the older brother) had to take on a lot of responsibility with his Dad being gone for a time. But the one that immediately came to mind, probably because I just recently watched it again, was "To Kill A Mockingbird". Atticus Finch is a great example of the kind of man you would want your son to be! And by the way, AMC is showing it Tuesday night, at 7 p.m.
Those are my picks...I hope they help.
Suzanne
Don't forget " OLD YELLER " at the top of your list and " SHENANDOAH " is another good father/son , boy to man movie.
Steve Thompson
Jacksonville
Old Yeller - on respect, relationships, responsibility and doing what must be done
enter the dragon - not for any moral reason, but just because every man should be able to say he's seen this bruce lee classic
howard
Nelson, I enjoy reading your Sunday commentary. Two movies I would like to add are Magnificent Seven and Gunfight at the OK Corral. Great Westerns! Keep up the good work!
Mitch Willens
I think the movie, Silverado, is one of the best movies for guys (and girls). You see the character in the men who are wronged and their bravery.
Also, Mrs Mineva, is another great movie that we watched with our sons, and now they have watched this movie with their wives.
These two movies immediately jumped to mind so I hope you check them out.
Elise Brooking February 28 at 2:08pm
But look what my mom just sent me. She absolutely loved your article and felt compelled to write in. This is what makes me proud to be a fellow East Texan (from Brownsboro.) Thank you for letting our class help work with you as a client!
-- Elise
From my mother, Sherry Brooking:
From: Sherry Brooking
Date: February 28, 2010 9:50:34 AM CST
To: Elise Brooking
Subject: article
Elise, see if you think this is cheesy-----I am not a writer by nature, but I felt compelled this morning after my Sunday ritual of enjoying the paper to send this. What do you think?
"This is to all those pessimists who think newspapers and journalism is a dying art that is slowly being replaced by none other than the techno computer, internet world. Kudos to the Tyler Courier-Times-Telegraph for a job well done. Kudos to them for such a wonderful actual, touchable, reusuable item in their “newspaper”. Not everyone has a computer or desires to have one to “catch up” on the news of the world or in our part of small east Texas. But, I do notice newspapers just about everywhere---your local physician's office, restaurant, auto repair shop-----anywhere you can “lay one for many to enjoy”. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against computers. I just want newspapers and journalist to get the due they deserve. With this in mind, please accept this compliment to the Tyler Courier-Times-Telegraph. The article by Nelson Clyde about his son and their “education' this past Sunday was heart warming as was the BBQ Smoker story by Stewart Smith----how awesome is it to actually have something built and loaned out to the public by a Newspaper Company!!! Please continue your awesome job of coverage for our East Texas area and know that you are greatly appreciated! Kudos to the wonderful world of written words on that black and white thing we call newspapers!"
Please tell Jamie how much we enjoyed his idea of your column being “about boys”. At the Brookshire household, we have lived out the mancub to manhood theme 3 times over………or for 26 years!! Hands down, our favorite father/son movie is The Patriot. Mel Gibson plays a South Carolina leader of a makeshift militia in the American Revolution. Through courage and bravery, they play a pivotal role in turning the tide against the Redcoats. Aside from the violence & language (which is justifiable to the passion of the character development) this action film is jam-packed with life lessons. Our boys (men) still quote the favorite words: “aim small……….miss small” from Mel Gibson's emotional instructions to his boys. Your column stimulated so many cherished memories of all the fun movie nights spent on the family couch!
Regards,
Sunni
PS….our favorite belly laughing movie: Sandlot
Read your article and I had to smile while reading. So many of the movies you mentioned, I have seen with my boys. One that you did not mention, that I think Jamie would enjoy is October Sky. It is a must! My older boy's favorite!
Lisa McDaniel
I love the movie idea. I saw a great movie on TV in 2009 called The Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story staring Cuba Gooding Jr. as Dr. Ben Carson. It is a true story that is as inspiring as Rudy, but it is not sports related. Google it for more info. I think they should show it in all schools.
Kay K. Caserta
No prize necessary, but add To Kill A Mockingbird with G Peck, the man shows responsibility towards raising his kids, can shoot a rifle like Sgt York,can talk down a mob like any old west sheriff, has a real since of justice , knows right and wrong and also demonstrates a strong since of compassion.By far one of the best movies ever.
Robin from downstairs.
My suggestion for a movie is "Tall Tale" with Patrick Swayze. It is a story of a young boy who draws on the inspiration of legendary western characters (Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyun and John Henry) to find the strength to fight an evil land baron in the old west who wants to steal his family's farm and destroy their idyllic community. I hope you and your Mancub enjoy this.
Teresa Smart
First off let me tell you that I really enjoy your column each week, it is the first item I read!
Next...on your movies for boys.... I must say that I think every boy, and of course girl, should watch the movie Where the Red Fern Grows...I taught school for almost 30 years public and private, mostly 5th Grade Reading, Social Studies and Math, I required my children to read this wonderful book and then we watched the movie to do a comparison of book and movie. I always heard that it was their favorite book of all that I required them to read ( they usually read about 6 books in my class). This wonderful novel and movie brought tears and wonder to all my students!! It is a must...of course the book is far better than the movie...that's just the teacher's point of view!
Keep up the great work on your column.
Thank you,
Deborah Bosworth Robertson
Thanks so much for addressing a much needed topic. Two of my favorites demonstrating positive male role models are: "It's a Wonderful Life" with Jimmy Stewart, & "The Lion King". Thanks Again,
Linda Evans-Land
As I read your article the one and only movie that sticks out is “Finding Nemo”. I hope you have seen the movie. I and not a move watcher but when it came out we bought it for Peyton. He watched it repeatly so I had to hear it playing. Finely I sat with him and watched it. It was the best Movie! I have watched it I know 9 to 10 time and love it still. Peyton has watched it more. Even though this is an animated movie it has a lot of valuable lessons in it. You have a father that loved his son very much and the son loved the father very much. Because of the overprotection of the father the son disobeys his father and put himself in a very dangerous situation. You know the rest. To make a long story short this movie demonstrates strong faith, love and determation. Even though it was an animated movie “faith” definitely played a part to have the desperation to overcome everything Marlin (the father) encountered to find his son and “Love” was certainly strong because it never weakens. This would be an excellent Movie for the whole family to watch. Matter of fact I have been waiting on Nemo II to come out and finally Melanie said, but what else could you do to the movie. It's perfect.
Vanessa Lane
Tyler Morning Telegraph Retail Account Executive
I suggest "Where the Red Fern Grows" the original if possible. My son is 38 and still gets misty watching this.
Ethel Ingold
Your article in Sunday's paper touched my heart since I have 5 children, 10 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren. My fervent prayer is for all the grandchildren to grow into the fine young men and women that some of the heroes you mentioned embodied. Your son is very fortunate to have a dad that loves to guide him through life. You asked for a movie suggestion and I thought of an old but good one – It is a true story with the usual Hollywood embellishments but Gary Cooper is the perfect hero in “Sergeant York”. May God bless you and your family.
Sincerely,
May Lou Stove
I thoroughly enjoy reading your “Is It Just Me” in the Sunday Paper, you are very tongue in cheek funny. Regarding your article today “The Education of a Mancub”, you have watched some good movies with your son, but there are 2 others that are a must. These 2 movies are Second Hand Lion and October Sky, wonderful, wonderful. I hope you choose them to watch with your son.
Your faithful reader,
Uschi Granberry
We're back!!! I feel like a normal person again. Here's Dent's list:
Butch Cassidy
Shane
Old Yeller
The Alamo
Out of Africa
Seconhand Lions
The Dirty Dozen
Cool Hand Luke
Bullit
Talk to you later!
Love you - Pam
Art – Rudy & Remember the Titans
Dave – Red Badge of Courage, High Noon, Smoke Signals
Diana – October Sky, SandLot, Radio Flyer, In Harm's Way & The Longest Day
Matt – Hoosiers & Rudy
Miscellaneous Staff members – Goonies, Hook, Bridge over the River Kwai, Magnificent 7, Cool Hand Luke, Napoleon Dynamite, Caddyshack
Lindsey & Taylor – Man from Snowy River, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Paul Newman & Robert Redford), Where the Red Fern Grows, Big Trouble in Little China, Never Ending Story, Big, Princess Bride,
James - Hatari, Old Yeller, Houseboat
