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Spiritual Movies and Books
A list of my favorite films would include such mindless entertainment as Alien, and The Terminator, and fascinating documentaries like Grizzly Man, and The Kid Stays in the Picture. I do enjoy a well-made
movie, but this list is of a handful of films that resonate with me on a profound level -- what some call spiritual cinema. Some of these films directly address the spiritual, while others serve as a momento mori.
Closer Than Close (2008)
-- "a deftly crafted and poignant tale that weaves the stories of a handful of seekers bivouacked at various stages along the spiritual path with the straight-talk wisdom of three extraordinary individuals...." Read more.
Ansel Adams: An American Experience Documentary Film by Ric Burns (2002) -- As a young man hiking in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Ansel Adams saw something that he would
spend the rest of his life trying to convey through his photographs.... Read more.
American Beauty (1999) -- The closest a movie has ever come to expressing the feel of
a cosmic consciousness experience.... Read more.
The Thin Red Line (1998) -- Set during the American invasion of Japanese-held Guadalcanal,
this war film drifts between the human and the transcendent. Read more.
Fearless (1993) -- Harrowing depiction of a jetliner crash, music from Gorecki's
Symphony No.3, and the powerful story of one man's transcendent experience make this one
of my favorites. Read more.
Star Trek The Next Generation: "The Inner Light" (Episode 225, Season 5, 1992) --
A poignant and mind-bending episode that makes me weepy every time. Read more.
TAT April 2006: What is Spiritual Action? and TAT April 2005: Beyond Mind Beyond Death -- Two sets of DVDs that document the annual April TAT Conference. Read more.
Slow Down and Fast (2007) -- Would you fast for thirty days, alone in the woods, if you thought it might bring you answers? Read more.
The Fountain (2006) -- Visually entrancing, peppered with thought-provoking moments, and hauntingly scored by Clint Mansell and the Kronos Quartet, The Fountain is nevertheless far from flawless. Read more.
Into Great Silence (2005) -- A documentary about life in a Carthusian monastery. Read more.
Unforgiven (1992) -- This Clint Eastwood film broke new ground in its attempt to display
the harsh realities of gunplay and justice in the Old West. Read more.
Jacob's Ladder (1990) -- A Vietnam vet fears for his sanity as dream-like images and demons begin
to appear. Read more.
Our Town (1940, 1977, 1989) -- A Thornton Wilder play which looks at the pleasures and pains of
life in the small New Hampshire town of Grover's Corners in the early years of the 20th century. Read more.
Blade Runner (1982) -- Harrison Ford as a film noir detective of the future whose job
is to hunt renegade androids. Read more.
Two-star Films -- Here is a list of films I found interesting, but not my favorites.
For a few literary recommendations, let's go to the books page .