Criteria: The Catholic Film Podcast

In this bonus episode of Criteria, Thomas asks attorney and scholar Louis Karlin whether Robert Bolt’s play and film A Man for All Seasons accurately depict St. Thomas More’s views on the rights of conscience, and his motives for martyrdom. More’s involvement in the prosecution of heretics is also examined: even if More was a martyr of conscience, is it accurate to call him a champion of religious freedom? One thing is certain: the portrayal by Hilary Mantel and others of More as a torturer of heretics is false. Next on the Vatican film list is the first installment of Dekalog, a 10-part series of short films inspired by the Ten Commandments. See below for information on where to watch it. Links The Center for Thomas More Studies https://thomasmorestudies.org/ Lecture by Richard Rex critiquing the historical fiction of Hilary Mantel, “More the villain and Cromwell the hero?” https://ionainstitute.ie/thomas-more-thomas-cromwell-and-wolf-hall/ William Marshner, “Dignitatis Humanae and Traditional Teaching on Church and State” https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=8778 Thomas Pink, “Conscience and Coercion” https://www.firstthings.com/article/2012/08/conscience-and-coercion Louis W. Karlin and David R. Oakley, Inside the Mind of Thomas More: The Witness of His Writings https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Mind-Thomas-More-Writings/dp/1594173133 Karlin, Wegemer and Kelly, Thomas More’s Trial by Jury: A Procedural Legal Review with a Collection of Documents https://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Mores-Trial-Jury-Procedural/dp/1843838737/ Stephen Smith (ed.), For All Seasons: Selected Letters of Thomas More https://www.amazon.com/All-Seasons-Selected-Letters-Thomas/dp/1594171637 Wegemer and Smith (ed.), The Essential Works of Thomas More https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Works-Thomas-More/dp/0300223374/ St. Thomas More, The Sadness of Christ https://www.amazon.com/Sadness-Christ-Thomas-More/dp/1849020558 The Yale Edition of the Complete Works of St. Thomas More, Vol. 14, De Tristitia Christi https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Works-Thomas-Tristitia-Christi/dp/0300017936 Other podcasts on St. Thomas More Criteria film discussion https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/man-for-all-seasons-1966/ Audiobook of More's Dialogue on Conscience https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/st-thomas-more-dialogue-on-conscience/ Dekalog Of all the films on the Vatican list, Dekalog is one of the two most difficult to find. The only place it can be streamed online is with a subscription on https://easterneuropeanmovies.com/ (which is, surprisingly, legal). The best viewing experience will be the recent restored edition on Blu-Ray/DVD from Criterion (https://www.criterion.com/films/28661-dekalog), but it's pricey. Older editions on Blu-Ray and DVD are available for considerably cheaper on Amazon and elsewhere. But for many people, the most convenient way of seeing Dekalog may be to borrow it from your local library. Music is The Duskwhales, "Take It Back", used with permission.

The film adaptation of Robert Bolt's award-winning play about St. Thomas More, A Man for All Seasons, swept the floor at the Academy Awards, winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and Best Costume Design the year it was considered. In honor of St. Thomas More's upcoming feast day, June 22nd, James and Thomas discuss the film and the problem of adaptation with friend and filmmaker, Nathan Douglas. Next time, we discuss the first installment of Dekalog, the 10-part series of films directed by Polish auteur Krzysztof Kieślowski. (See below for info on how to watch these films.) Join the discussion in our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CatholicPods/ Links Nathan Douglas, Motet Films https://nwdouglas.com/ Interview with More scholar Louis Karlin https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/robert-bolts-man-for-all-seasons-christian-saint-or-hero-selfhood/ Audiobook of More's Dialogue on Conscience https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/st-thomas-more-dialogue-on-conscience/ Other films discussed Lawrence of Arabia – so many horses! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lChJz2DSpsE Mad Max: Fury Road – practical effects https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wD8jK7qyC9w Richard III (Olivier) – scene mentioned as example of conveying theatrical experience “subjectively" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDxnXgYPnKg Richard III (McKellen) – used as example of “cinematic” adaptation of a play https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjJEXkbeL-o A Hidden Life – prison scene with wife, as compared to More’s prison scene with family https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAubpnKP3CU 1964 Russian adaptation of Hamlet (full movie with subtitles) https://vimeo.com/337079580 Dekalog Of all the films on the Vatican list, Dekalog is one of the two most difficult to find. The only place it can be streamed online is with a subscription on https://easterneuropeanmovies.com/ (which is, surprisingly, legal). The best viewing experience will be the recent restored edition on Blu-Ray/DVD from Criterion (https://www.criterion.com/films/28661-dekalog), but it's pricey. Older editions on Blu-Ray and DVD are available for considerably cheaper on Amazon and elsewhere. But for many people, the most convenient way of seeing Dekalog may be to borrow it from your local library. Music is The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/

John Ford's Stagecoach is a classic of the American Western that both elevated the genre and catapulted the career of its breakout star, John Wayne. Well-known Catholic writer and cultural commentator, Anthony Esolen, joins James and Thomas this week to discuss the film against the backdrop of the civil unrest incited by the death of George Floyd. Of Ford, Tony observes: "He makes movies about the way people come together to form a real society with their common good in mind, and he shows how that can fall apart because of human stupidity or selfishness — their pride, their avarice, their hardheartedness.” Next time, we discuss A Man for All Seasons, the film adaptation of Robert Bolt's play about St. Thomas More. Join the discussion in our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CatholicPods/ Links Tag Gallagher on Stagecoach: https://vimeo.com/40092986 Anthony Esolen interview on The Catholic Culture Podcast: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/episode-55-hundredfold-anthony-esolen/ Jonathan Roumie interview on The Catholic Culture Podcast: https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/ep-76-playing-jesus-on-chosen-jonathan-roumie/ Sex and the Unreal City: https://www.amazon.com/Sex-Unreal-City-Demolition-Western/dp/1621643069/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=the+Unreal+city&qid=1591137583&s=books&sr=1-4&fbclid=IwAR3uI9d9Mdu_o9lMVSsqy_9QJsFJIWLdCaqP3YgROTiDG8MeqkJ5llescx4&pldnSite=1 The Hundredfold: https://www.ignatius.com/The-Hundredfold-P3358.aspx Music: The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/

James and Thomas discuss 2001: A Space Odyssey, the classic science fiction film directed by Stanley Kubrick. While Thomas thinks the film is a masterpiece and also very dumb, James embarrasses himself by suggesting that the monolith is sacramental. The film also brings out James' deep-seated rage at his car's seat belt indicator.  Next time, we discuss the 1939 film Stagecoach, directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne. Watch it, then join the discussion in our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CatholicPods/ Links Scene we discuss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wJQ5UrAsIY Match Cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2hjlA1rEfM&feature=youtu.be Music: The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/

James and Thomas discuss Babette's Feast, an Oscar-winning religious classic directed by Gabriel Axel. (This is apparently Pope Francis's favorite film.) Two elderly sisters in a small Danish village have spent their lives praying, caring for the poor, and tending to the small, quasi-Puritan sect founded by their late father. When their French cook, Babette, asks if she can make a feast in honor of their father's centenary, their faith is challenged and their souls are enlivened by the revelation that beauty too is a means by which God draws us closer to Him. Next time, we will be discussing Stanley Kubrick's 2001:A Space Odyssey. Go watch it, then join in the discussion in our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CatholicPods/ Links Painting mentioned, Caspar David Friedrich's Wanderer above the Sea of Fog https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wanderer_above_the_Sea_of_Fog Music: The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/

Introducing Criteria: The Catholic Film Podcast! This is a show dedicated to exploring films of significant artistic merit and Catholic interest, starting with the Vatican’s 1995 list of "Some Important Films". Your hosts are Thomas V. Mirus (The Catholic Culture Podcast) and actor James T. Majewski (Catholic Culture Audiobooks). In this introductory episode we explain what we hope to accomplish with this show, discuss the Vatican film list, and explain how you can participate in the discussion. St. John Paul II, pray for us! Links Join our Facebook group to participate in the film discussions! https://www.facebook.com/groups/CatholicPods/ “Some Important Films” (i.e., the Vatican film list) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican%27s_list_of_films Address of His Holiness John Paul II to the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Commission for Social Communications http://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/speeches/1995/march/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_19950317_plen-pccs.html “The Ideal Film”: Apostolic Exhortations of His Holiness Pius XII to Representatives of the Cinema World http://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_p-xii_exh_25101955_ideal-film.html James’s audiobook of Pope St. John Paul II’s Letter to Artists https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/st-john-paul-ii-letter-to-artists/ Steven Greydanus, “The Vatican Film List” http://www.decentfilms.com/articles/vaticanfilmlist Criterion Channel https://www.criterionchannel.com/ Music: The Duskwhales, “Take It Back”, used with permission. https://theduskwhales.bandcamp.com/