Simple Alpha

Recently my wife and I went to the movies. I'd been anticipating Devil due to its laughable premise and the gem of a trailer which touted that it came "From the Mind of M. Night Shyamalan". Obviously it takes much more than a mind to make a movie, and while I was excited to dismiss it as mere garbage it has been turning in a stream of positive reviews. I recently found out this is probably due to the fact that it was directed by someone else, and the screen play was written by someone else. Shyamalan and another guy co-wrote the story, but over all he had very little to do with it. So since Devil stands as neither a comeback attempt or outlandish trash, I think I will wait for a rental.

Back to the main point, we ended up seeing Easy A (as was the plan all along I suppose). I had been very curious to see this, partly because it is a loose adaptation of classic literature (The Scarlet Letter) and also because I knew it had to have at least some commentary on religion due to its controversial nature.

As an adaptation it works as a modern translation. Also in a "let's not be Decaprio's Romeo and Juliet", it fully embraces that this is modern day and the movie makes overt reference to the Scarlet Letter, to the point that the main character is explaining via blog how her life is currently paralleling the book. It is a fun and funny look at how a subject so serious has changed so much and yet so little.

The lack of change comes with the religious commentary I mentioned above. I should have been more specific, I knew that the scarlet letter would have at least something to say about Christianity, and boy did it. The movie stars Amanda Bynes as an obnoxious Bible thumper who portrays a very specific "religious" stereotype.

I think there are a lot of people who will be offended by the films portrayal of Christians, but honestly, those offended should take time to pause and reflect. The sad truth is there are people out there like that, and that is the way Christians are perceived. Now one thing I really enjoyed is that while Easy A takes a tongue in cheek approach to this subject it never crosses the line into lampooning or demonizing. It showcases a classic case of the messenger being a fool (Proverbs 26:6).

Apart from that the film remains secular (and no I don't mean that as a dirty word). The wit tends to be sharp and jokes spot on, certainly better then I thought it would be. There is a good message about sacrifice and not judging others that everyone should take to heart and an ending that will make any 80's movie buff smile. This and it's all packed neatly into a relatively raunch free PG-13. So go see it, ya know, if Scott Pilgrim isn't miraculously still playing in a theater near you.