Pagan films part 1 - updated


Looking for Paganism in films

One of the things I hear a lot is that there are not enough Pagan-themed films. Well, I have an exclusive report from the Subversive Underground of Pagans concerning three films that contain hidden Pagan elements designed to lure well meaning people to our Secret Cause. These films are not recent releases, if I gave the recent releases that would derail the Master Plan.

First up is Pirates of Silicon Valley. Now I know what you are thinking. How could a story about the early days of Microsoft and Apple possibly have anything to do with Paganism? Ahh, I say, you have to pay closer attention. Look at the programers working deep in their secret places, far away from the common view. Later in the film, they are even working through the night in their rites and devotions. But that isn't the most Pagan element.

Steve Jobs is portrayed as a temple builder.

Watch carefully. From the display at the first electronics show/con to the point where he summons Bill Gates to talk about Windows, it's all about sacred space. Even when the Microsoft crowd gets their first glimpse of a Macintosh, it's on an altar.

Revolving in and out on cue, promising mystery and wonder and magick, all rolled into one. It's straight out of the classical temples of old.

The second film is The Horse Whisperer. Now you may think you have seen sweeping vistas and unrequited love in The Lord of the Rings, but I will tell you that the landscapes in this film are absolutely amazing. Better yet, they are real.

And there is a very definite sexual tension between the horse whisperer and the mother, but both are consumed with the magick they need to make.

It's about honor and promises and sacrifice. Best of all, it's the lady who chooses, just as it is in the mediaeval romances.

The choice was still made for love.

And my final film this round is Life as a House. Radical life choices, redemption, restitution, and sacrifice in the name of another. All wrapped up in a story that alternates between a coming of age tale and a personal hero's journey.

There is even some nudity and sex thrown in, which reclaims and strengthens our two lead characters.

And now, it's time for me to confess.

These aren't Pagan films as such. They do contain things that could be Pagan, but not intentionally.

That is my point.

The things that make good Pagan storytelling are the things that make good storytelling, period.

The more we look for the specifically Pagan films that we can call our own, the more we leave out of our own life experience.

There is no Master Plan, no Pagan Conspiracy.

What parts of the story you take away depends on you and your experience. What parts you pass on depends on you.

Popcorn anyone?

Posted: Sat - June 24, 2006 at 05:01 AM
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