Father to Son
Friday, June 03, 2005
Hotel Rwanda
Last night I saw a film that I would like to share with my son someday. Hotel Rwanda is the type of film that teaches invaluable lessons about responsibility and humanity. I can't imagine watching the film with my son until he is about 15 or 16, as it has some fairly extreme violence in it, and he wouldn't really be mature enough to fully understand the messages that this movie can provide until that time. In the meantime, I would like to come up with a list of films that are absolute must viewing with children of all ages...these films should be informative and teach the lessons of responsibility, trust and brotherhood (among many other lessons that we'd like to teach) that we'd all like to see our children learn.
Here is what I have so far:
- Hotel Rwanda - an absolutely brutal portrayal of the Hutu massacre of the Tutsis. Watching this movie I was ashamed of being a supposedly intelligent and informed westerner. It's not so much that the western world turned its back on the Rwandans that bothers me (although, don't get me wrong, that in itself is horrendous). Rather, the thing that really bothered me about the way the western world abandoned the people of Rwanda was the fact that the problem was a product of western culture...the fact that the Dutch invented the distinctions between the Hutus and the Tutsis makes the fact that they (and we) abandoned them at their point of need all the more egregious.
- Good Will Hunting - this may seem an interesting film on a must share with one's children list, but it has some pretty impressive lessons about using your skills wisely and not taking life for granted.
- The Princess Bride - perhaps my favorite movie of all time, this film can teach about the powerful connection that generations can have when effort is put into creating them. The fairytale story, in and of itself, is fun and entertaining, but what I really love about this movie (and even moreso the book, which if you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you get the 25th anniversary edition) is the important role that the story plays in drawing the characters together and giving them something to share...this is the kind of environment that I would think every family wants to create and share.
- Bambi/Old Yeller - really, the only reason that either of these movies is an important event to share with one's children is that they can provide lessons about the nature of the world and an opportunity to demonstrate methods for dealing with loss. I'm a big proponent of being honest with children and not sheltering them unnecessarily...at some point children need to learn the skills involved with grieving, and these films can act as a catalyst for those lessons.
