A few years ago I heard a talk by Ron Reed, Artistic Director of Pacific Theatre, on how movies can feed our souls. And one of the thing I remember his saying was that staying for the credits was like staying for the benediction at the end of a worship service. For many people today going to the movies is like going to church: it a communual/public activity in which the people participating share together an experience that touches their emotions. And the best movies speak to the truth of our human condition and reality and can sometimes even communicate a form of transendence.
At the end of the “service” the credits give us time to reflect and pause on what we have just seen/experienced. It gives us a a pause before we rush back into “normal” everyday life.
From another angle, it also gives us a chance to honour all the people who have helped in putting the movie together. From this point of view, to sit through the credits and acknowledge the names is an act of respect.
Usually there a couple of songs that play during the credits and these songs can play an important role in the experience of “benediction” – often summing up the “feeling” of the movie or sending the people who a specific sense of what has just been experienced.
So… just as no-one at church would thinking about walking out the middle of the benediction, it seems strange to walk out of a movie while the credits are still rolling. It’s not just something tagged on at the end – it’s part of the “whole” experience. But yet, in our consumer driven culture, there is little time for rest and reflection and there is so much peer pressure to leave after the main “consumable” action has been consumed.
Anyways… all of this came to mind at the end of the credits for “Away We Go” (see my previous post). Perhaps only six out of a congregation of 100 stayed for the benediction… but it was well worth holding out.
The music/score was such a key part of the movie. There was a mixture between some classic well known songs (from the likes of George Harrison, The Stranglers, The Velvet Underground and Bob Dylan) and songs from Alexi Murdoch – a London-born, Scottish bred, indie-acoustic musician who has made huge ways with his music but has refused to sign with a majot music label. His music has been used on countless mainstream American TV shows.
As the credits role we were treated to another two “soft warm blanket” Alexi Murdoch tunes. And it was totally benedictory. As I sat there, with all the emotion (laughter and tears) from this movie about this idealistic couple searching for “home” without any real idea of what they were looking for, I heard ”Orange Sky” – a song sung from the perspective of someone returning “home” realizing that their “salvation” lies in receiving the love of the family members who they have somehow turned their backs on – kind of like the Prodigal in the story of the Prodigal son who returns home to experience the embrace of his Father.
The lines of the repeated chorus were particularly poignant and as I heard them I heard the confession of the Christian…
My salvation is in your love.
What an amazing benediction – and all those who had left didn’t get the chance to savour it. As for me, once again I was in tears.
Here’s the song with the full words below. Listen for all the “Prodigal Son” references. Enjoy.
Well I had a dream
I stood beneath an orange sky
Yes I had a dream
I stood beneath an orange sky
With my brother standing by
With my brother standing by
I said brother, you know you know
It’s a long road we’ve been walking on
Brother you know it is, you know it is
Such a long road we’ve been walking on
And I had a dream
I stood beneath an orange sky
With my sister standing by
With my sister standing by
I said sister, here is what I know now
Here is what I know now
Goes like this
In your love, my salvation lies
In your love, my salvation lies
In your love, my salvation lies
In your love, in your love, in your love
But sister you know I’m so weary
And you know sister
My hearts been broken
Sometimes, sometimes
My mind is too strong to carry on
Too strong to carry on
When I am alone
When I’ve thrown off the weight of this crazy stone
When I’ve lost all care for the things I own
That’s when I miss you, that’s when I miss you, that’s when I miss you
You who are my home
You who are my home
And here is what I know now
Here is what I know now
Goes like this
In your love, my salvation lies
In your love, my salvation lies (etc)
In your love, in your love, in your love
Well I had a dream
I stood beneath an orange sky
Yes I had a dream
I stood beneath an orange sky
With my brother and my sister standing by
