http://bencrowder.net/blog/2006/02/states-of-mormon-cinema/ I make stuff. Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:45:36 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://bencrowder.net/blog/2006/02/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-470 Top of the Mountains » Blog Archive » Off the edge Sat, 14 Apr 2007 20:47:39 +0000 http://www.topofthemountains.net/2006/02/01/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-470 [...] Other posts I’ve written about Dutcher: States of Mormon cinema, God’s Army, Dancing on the edge, and At the edge. After seeing the preponderance of edge-related titles, I couldn’t help but continue the trend. :) [...] [...] Other posts I’ve written about Dutcher: States of Mormon cinema, God’s Army, Dancing on the edge, and At the edge. After seeing the preponderance of edge-related titles, I couldn’t help but continue the trend. :) [...]

]]> http://bencrowder.net/blog/2006/02/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-469 Ben Sat, 25 Feb 2006 18:58:33 +0000 http://www.topofthemountains.net/2006/02/01/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-469 That reminds me of something C.S. Lewis said, and one could well apply it to Mormon art as well -- we can't just write books about Christianity, but we also need Christians to write books about gardening and art and politics, and their Christianity will be evident. While it would be nice if Mormon-themed movies were able to make it in the mainstream (and for the Jews, <i>Fiddler on the Roof</i> did just that), but I suspect that we'll do more good by creating films that speak to a larger audience by not being about Mormons while still retaining our Mormon values. I do think we also need movies about Mormons, but if that's all we're doing, we're not going to make it. What we do need is better scripts, better acting, better everything. In some areas we're doing okay, but in others we're not. To me, there are still no truly <i>great</i> Mormon films, period. There are some decently good ones, but nothing that ranks on the greatness scale like Shakespeare and Dickens do for literature or Mozart and Beethoven do for music. That reminds me of something C.S. Lewis said, and one could well apply it to Mormon art as well — we can’t just write books about Christianity, but we also need Christians to write books about gardening and art and politics, and their Christianity will be evident. While it would be nice if Mormon-themed movies were able to make it in the mainstream (and for the Jews, Fiddler on the Roof did just that), but I suspect that we’ll do more good by creating films that speak to a larger audience by not being about Mormons while still retaining our Mormon values. I do think we also need movies about Mormons, but if that’s all we’re doing, we’re not going to make it. What we do need is better scripts, better acting, better everything. In some areas we’re doing okay, but in others we’re not. To me, there are still no truly great Mormon films, period. There are some decently good ones, but nothing that ranks on the greatness scale like Shakespeare and Dickens do for literature or Mozart and Beethoven do for music.

]]> http://bencrowder.net/blog/2006/02/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-468 Jared Fri, 24 Feb 2006 23:24:20 +0000 http://www.topofthemountains.net/2006/02/01/states-of-mormon-cinema/#comment-468 While I think that Richard Dutcher makes some great points when asked about the state of "Mormon Cinema." I wonder if many times he (and we, for that matter) are missing the point. Mormon Cinema is not a genre, it's a demographic. While most of the movies made by and for a mormon audience are self parody (home teachers, singles ward, etc.), mormon filmmakers should think more about who they are trying to reach, rather than what their subject matter is. While I think that Richard Dutcher makes some great points when asked about the state of “Mormon Cinema.” I wonder if many times he (and we, for that matter) are missing the point. Mormon Cinema is not a genre, it’s a demographic. While most of the movies made by and for a mormon audience are self parody (home teachers, singles ward, etc.), mormon filmmakers should think more about who they are trying to reach, rather than what their subject matter is.

]]>