manna?

Kids, Mutts, and God by Steve Beard (Thunderstruck)

Posted by Ed Miller

In addition to avoiding movies with kids and animals, it is also considered wise to avoid the taboo subject of religion. Allowing for the notable exception of a cash cow such as The Passion of the Christ, religious movies simply do not make money. The feeling is that once you start to dabble into the area of theology, doctrine, and clerical collars there are too many opportunities to step on ecclesiastical toes.

Despite the previous-mentioned impediments, filmmakers are still defying the odds in order to make movies that families can watch together such as Because of Winn-Dixie. Adapted from Kate DiCamillo’s award-winning children’s book, the story revolves around a little girl named Opal (AnnaSophia Robb) and her loveable and mischief-prone mutt named Winn-Dixie whom she rescues at a grocery store. The two of them lean on each other to break the power of loneliness and rejection, and end up bringing a soulless town back to life.

Opal and her father live in a low-rent trailer park in Naomi, Florida. Her dad, whom she refers to as the Preacher (Jeff Daniels), is the new pastor of Open Arms Baptist Church which meets in a dilapidated convenience store where the congregation sits on folding patio chairs.

Refreshingly, religion in Winn Dixie is not treated like a strange hobby or the obsession of a tacky televangelist. Instead, faith is treated like a normal part of life. The movie deals honestly with the strained relationship she has with her father, an emotionally wounded man who is doing the Lord’s work and loves his daughter in the best way that he knows how.

Despite the fact that Jeff Daniels (Terms of Endearment and Dumb and Dumber) says he has not been to church in 30 years, his preacher character is not heartless or clichéd. “I’m glad we didn’t go fire and brimstone with him,” he said. “It seemed to be more of a part about a man who was also a father, who was a preacher. This was his calling.” Daniels said that he wanted his character to be “a guy who loved to preach, but had some issues.” Most clergy can relate to that.

Fans of musician and singer Dave Matthews will be delighted by his portrayal as Otis, the quirky ex-con who runs an odd pet shop. Raised in South Africa in a Quaker household, Matthews is well-aware of the struggles of faith. “Bartender, please/ Fill my glass for me/ With the wine you gave Jesus that set him free/ After three days in the ground,” he sings on his album Busted Stuff.

For his part, Matthews believes in a philosophy of life that elevates respect and kindness. “There have been great purveyors of that philosophy who have used different words to describe it, but I think Christ was probably the most famous of them — that respect and kindness will win the day if the day ever came,” he says. “It may or may not in my time, but I’ll still stick by it as a not unreasonable philosophy.”

Part of the joy of this movie is watching the relationship between Opal and Winn-Dixie. When she convinces her dad to allow her to take the dog to church, he howls while a quartet sings, embarrassing her father and raising more than a few eyebrows in the congregation. “He doesn’t know the words,” Opal says of the dog, “but he is sure moved by the spirit.”

Full Post:http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/beard200502180742.asp