ECC Movie Night

We know many individuals, couples and families have been turning the TV on more frequently during our isolation time. What we hope to provide you with is a way to help you engage with Christ through your movie watching experience. 


We have selected three different movies from three different streaming services (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+) and have provided you with some talking points to interact with each other and the movie. We have also provided you with a quick synopsis of the movie and any questionable material that may be involved.


So grab some popcorn, pick one of the three movies below and have a blast!

The Lion King ('94)

Disney+

Rating: PG

Parental Cautions: Some violence among the animals. Here's a more detailed parental review.



Synopsis: This Disney animated feature follows the adventures of the young lion Simba, the heir of his father, Mufasa. Simba's wicked uncle, Scar, plots to usurp Mufasa's throne by luring father and son into a stampede of wildebeests. But Simba escapes, and only Mufasa is killed. Simba returns as an adult to take back his homeland from Scar with the help of his friends Timon and Pumbaa.


Talking Points after the Movie


1. Simba tries to be brave and goes into the elephant graveyard and ends up getting himself into trouble. Mufasa gives Simba a lecture about how he deliberately disobeyed him by journeying into the elephant graveyard against Mufasa’s strict orders. Then Mufasa turns it into a lesson about how being brave doesn't mean Simba or anyone in life should go looking for trouble. 

What does it mean to be brave? What are ways we try to be brave?


2. Scar deceives Simba about his role in Mufasa’s death. This can be compared to the way Eve was tempted by Satan to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. Scar got Simba to believe that he was the one who caused the death of his father, Mufasa, much like the way Satan used deception to lure Eve to eat the fruit off the tree. 

Talk about ways that Satan can deceive us.


3. The song, “Hukuna Matata”, reminds all of us not to worry and puts a fun, catchy spin on it. God tells us not to worry about anything, what we will eat or drink, what we will wear. He even asks us “is not life more important than food and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air, they do not sew or reap or store aware in barns and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them.”- Mathew 6:25-34. 

Share about things that occupy your mind with worry.


4. Timon and Pumbaa create an everlasting friendship with Simba and even save his life can be compared to the way God wants a relationship with each of us, and helps us make lasting friendships with people in our lives. 

What has God done to build and everlasting relationship with us? John 3:16

Oddball

Amazon Prime

Rating: PG

Parental Cautions:

  • Two swear words are used in this film: “Jesus” which is spoken so softly you can easily miss it, and “damn” which comes through loud and clear.
  • One part of the film almost seems to suggest that we can talk to and see our loved one who have died in the sunshine on the water, the stars in the sky, etc. This is somewhat akin to the belief that, after people die, their spirits can inhabit animals, objects, etc. This thinking is incompatible with scripture where it teaches that after death, our spirits are with God in heaven or the other place.
  • When the grandfather is breaking into a facility, he says “I’m going to go to hell for this”. This could be a good opportunity to clear up a misconception about hell. People don’t go to hell for doing something slightly naughty but perhaps with a good heart. They go to hell because they reject God’s offer of salvation and willfully choose a life apart from God. 


Synopsis: Oddball is a dog who seems to create trouble wherever he goes and fails to do anything worthwhile. The town leaders barely missed voting him to be put down. Is Oddball worthless? Or is there something he can do that will change not only his life but that of the whole town?


Talking Points after the Movie


1. Almost everyone in town wants to get rid of Oddball; they see him as worse than worthless – they see him as trouble! 

Share with each other – was there a time in your life when you felt unwanted or devalued by those around you?


2. Emily wanted to keep the penguin sanctuary going no matter what. Her mother, who had died, had started the penguin sanctuary and it was her passion; this was Emily’s way of keeping her mother’s memory alive. In this story, not giving up worked but there are times in life when it does not work well at all. 

Is there a time when it is right for Christians to give up on something they feel is important? When would that time be? How could you know if you were giving up just because it was hard or because that was what God was leading you to do?


3. One of the powerful statements in this film is “they never forget where their home is because they depend on each other”. Together look up Philippians 3:20. As Christians, our true home is in heaven with Christ, because we depend on Him. 

What might be different about our lives if we saw heaven as our real home, to which we’d always long to return no matter where life moved us?


4. At some point in our lives, all of us will be around someone who is an “Oddball”. These are people who don’t seem to fit in, people who seem to fail a lot. 

What are some things we can do as Christians to show the love of Christ to such people? How can you make a person like that feel valued and included?


5. Swampy Marsh, Oddball’s owner, Oddball’s protector, Oddball’s teacher, saw the possibilities in Oddball when everyone else only saw uselessness and trouble. This mirrors how God sees us in our sin. We, like Oddball, are stuck and we can’t make things better by ourselves and we keep messing up. 

What does it tell us about God that He continues to work with us, to work in us, and refuses to give up on us?


Spider-Man Into the Spiderverse

Netflix

Rating: PG

Parental Concerns: This movie, though animated has some scenes of intense violence. Here's a more detailed parental review.


Synopsis: Bitten by a radioactive spider in the subway, Brooklyn teenager Miles Morales suddenly develops mysterious powers that transform him into the one and only Spider-Man. When he meets Peter Parker, he soon realizes that there are many others who share his special, high-flying talents. Miles must now use his newfound skills to battle the evil Kingpin, a hulking madman who can open portals to other universes and pull different versions of Spider-Man into our world.


Talking Points after the Movie


1. Miles feels like he can’t talk to his dad about becoming Spider- Man because of the opinions his dad has said about Spider-Man. 

Has there ever been a time you (the kids) have felt like you can’t talk to us (the parents) because of an opinion we have?


2. Towards the end of the movie, the idea of being willing to sacrifice one’s life to save your friends becomes extremely important. In John 15:13 Jesus says, "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends." 

Where did you see the characters in the movie providing examples of this type of self-sacrificing love? Why is sacrificing yourself a powerful expression of love? How has Jesus’ sacrifice for humanity affected you?


3. Shortly after Miles gets bit by a radioactive spider, a comic book falls into his lap and begins explaining what’s happening to him and his calling as Spider-Man. When we follow God, we also have a book of God’s words that explain our calling as followers of Jesus. Take a look at Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” 

The comic book sheds light on Miles’ next steps, how do God’s words from Scripture shed light on our next steps?


4. Miles Morales transforms into a full-fledged Spider-Man with the help of the other Spider-Men and Spider-Women from the multiverse. In the same way, as you grow to be more like Christ, you will be most successful when you are surrounded by others who are being transformed to look like Jesus. God did not create you to sit in a building one, twice, or even three times a week. You were made to look like God, and a part of that is to be connected to others and share the ups, downs, and in-between experiences you face. We are made to share life! 

In what ways can each of us surround ourselves with fellow believers to push each other towards fulfilling our call to be like Christ?