Make a Date with Redbox
I watched the “Blue Like Jazz” movie on DVD this week thanks to our local Redbox. I loved it even more than the first time I saw it in the theater. If you have a Redbox in your town, go rent the movie. Better yet – go buy it, watch it and share it with others.
The movie is based on the same titled book which is a New York times best seller. It was published in 2003 and I read it not long after it. I echo thousands of others who said upon reading BLJ – “I’m not alone!” Author Donald Miller courageously wrote what so many of us, especially those who had grown up in the church, were thinking and feeling. I remember sitting on a couch in a condo outside Atlanta on vacation with my parents feeling like I was reading my journal – a much more witty and intelligent journal but still. And although the movie is based on the book, the two are very different. The book is a collection of essays, not a story. They had to create a better story in order to tell the heart of the book. The whole process of creating that better story for the movie is the focus of Miller’s last book – A Million Miles in a Thousand Years (another fantastic book that I highly recommend.) I seriously hope I get commission on any purchases you all make.
If you are looking for a good movie to watch this weekend, considering renting it. Grab some friends, your spouse or your dog and sit on the couch with some popcorn and a drink. Leave your assumptions or religious upbringing outside so that you can be open to what this movie wants to teach us. It isn’t a Christian film. It will offend a lot of Christians. If you are offended watching it, you may be missing the point. Christians need to laugh at ourselves because we’ve earned it. We are ridiculous. Our God is not. There is a difference. Some of us who are lifelong Christians and card carrying members of the church establishment need to have our world shaken so we can embrace a journey like Don’s in which we discover what we truly believe and Whom we truly follow.
If you rent it this weekend or if you’ve seen the movie, I’d love to hear your thoughts! Share them in the comment section!
Here is the trailer for the movie:
