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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Rivers
and Tides
Hollywood has never been terribly concerned about God's creation. The great movies of the '30s and '40s were shot entirely on soundstages, which gave the outdoor scenes a strangely surrealistic effect. When movies discovered location shooting in the late '50s and '60s, the effect wasn't naturalistic as much as it was touristic, showing off the vistas of Rome, Paris, and the great desert southwest. Now, of course, many landscape shots are created on someone's computer, and nature often has a malevolent air when it appears at all (The Core is a good example). Which is why Rivers and Tides is so refreshing. Focusing on the outdoor art of Andy Goldsworthy, this documentary treats God's creation with the care and awe that it deserves. Goldsworthy's art focuses on its own transience. An icicle sculpture lasts only long enough for the sun to strike it. A string of leaves, beautifully sewn together, floats down a winding river until it sinks. The crushed red dust of iron-flecked rock mixes with a tiny waterfall to create a stunning, ethereal beauty before disappearing into the river. All of it forces us to appreciate God's divine way with colors, as well as the awesome contrast between his permanence and nature's impermanence, which is a healthy reminder of our own mortality. The documentary, with stunning cinematography from director Thomas Riedelsheimer, makes no Christian or even theistic claims. In fact, some audiences might find Goldsworthy's ruminations on his own art uncomfortably New Age-ish and the talking-head moments rarely enhance the art itself. Yet, I couldn't help gasp at numerous times throughout the film; the art is spectacular, and the way it interacts with nature is often breathtaking. Though I love living in one of the largest cities in America, I felt an incredible urge to find a river, a forest, or a single tree and contemplate what God did with a formless, shapeless void. If you need an antidote to the tripe Hollywood's feeding us lately, I can't recommend Rivers and Tides highly enough. It is truly a breath of fresh air. By J. Robert Parks 4/13/2003
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