twice in 24 hours

I went to my 2nd screening of The Movie this afternoon, viewing it twice in less than 24 hours.. it was just as compelling, gripping, and captivating as the first time. The story is already familiar, even before the 1st viewing, but my 2nd viewing didn’t leave me any extra breathing room to think or reflect, I was still totally emotionally engrossed, cringed just as hard at those excruciating moments, and still needed a good half hour or so to decompress.. 1 thought crossed my mind that this would be a great movie to watch once a year, probably around the Lenten season, as a part of a spiritual rhythm..

btw, Brian McLaren shared a few thoughts about The Movie earlier this week.. and quietly launched this week was the SemanticBible, a most powerful online Bible tool, displaying the sacred text’s rendition of the Gospel accounts portrayed in The Movie..

my 1st viewing was solo, by myself (in a theater about 85% full, evening showing); my 2nd viewing was a matinee with handful of co-workers, but we arrived late (in a theater about 25% full), theater was dark, so I just found a seat and didn’t sit with my group.. audio didn’t run right and didn’t come on until the priest was about to do the poetic toss of the 30 coins.. then as the movie ended, I timed the closing scene to be 75 seconds (it’s actually more than 15), and saw most people (my group) leave before the credit finished rolling, so I got up too (usually I’m a credit watcher).. so you might say my 2nd viewing was incomplete, peppered with tardiness, technical difficulties, and no credits.. I would’ve liked to engage more dialogue post-movie, but most of the others scrambled back to the office, quickly readjusted to real life again, while I’m stunned and needed time for re-entry..