In what might be described as the Catholic equivalent of being chosen one of the best movies of all-time by the American Film Institute, the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano has announced that The Blues Brothers, the1980 slapstick comedy starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd has been named a “Catholic classic.”
The designation reportedly places it alongside more traditionally “religious” films such as Cecil B. DeMille’s The 10 Commandments, Victor Fleming’s Joan of Arc, Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ and, my personal favorite Jesus biopic, Franco Zeffirelli’s Jesus of Nazareth.
While I’m probably one of the few guys of my generation who never actually caught The Blues Brothers in its entirety, the plot follows Belushi and Aykroyd as Jake and Elwood Blues, blues-performing siblings they originally portrayed on Saturday Night Live, on a “mission from God” to save the Catholic orphanage that raised them from foreclosure — while somehow running afoul of a band of neo-Nazis.
BTW, lest you think I spent all my time studying in college, I did see Belushi in his other iconic movie Animal House, which has been honored by the AFI as one of the 100 funniest American films of all time and is credited by Wikipedia with launching the gross-out comedy sub-genre. If I were to guess, that one probably won’t be nailing the Vatican’s “classic” designation any time soon.
But The Blues Brothers isn’t as out of place as it may seem. The Vatican’s list of best movies also includes such mainstream classics as Gandhi, Chariots of Fire, It’s a Wonderful Life, Schindler’s List and On the Waterfront. Also, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Citizen Kane, Stagecoach, Fantasia and The Wizard of Oz.
Okay, maybe it is a bit out of place. But I actually applaud the Vatican for opening up the box with regard to what constitutes valuable entertainment. A genuinely funny comedy with an undertone of heart that has been embraced by audiences through generations (I feel old) probably does deserve to be on the list. It’s also a good idea for the Church to enunciate the kind of entertainment it’s for rather than seeming to be always being in the position of denouncing things.
So, in that spirit, I’d like to also nominate a few of comedies for the Vatican’s list that I actually have seen:
Joe Versus the Volcano – Written and directed by John Patrick Shanley, who also gave us the excellent Catholic-themed Doubt, it was not a huge hit (though it does have a following). The fantasy/comedy follows the exploits of Joe Banks (Tom Hanks) who, after being diagnosed as having contracted a terminal “brain cloud,” quits his hellish job and is hired by a mysterious rich man (Lloyd Bridges) to travel to a remote island and jump into a volcano which its inhabitants believe must be appeased with a human sacrifice once every 100 years. Needless to say, no one on the island actually wants to do that, so the locals have agreed to turn over valuable mineral rights to the businessman if he can provide a willing leaper. Enter Joe who figures he has nothing to lose but ends up learning to appreciate his life along the way. It really is a great tale of faith and gratitude.
Planes, Trains & Automobiles – From the late writer/director John Hughes, PT&A stars Steve Martin as an advertising executive racing to get home from business in New York City in time to have Thanksgiving dinner with his family in Chicago. His plans are disrupted every step of the way when fate pairs him with a calamity-prone shower curtain ring salesman portrayed by John Candy. It’s literally one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen and it’s ending actually does say something simple, yet profoundly touching, about the meaning of Thanksgiving.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Also from Hughes, Matthew Broderick’s iconic character provides a very funny — and true — lesson in the genuine importance of smelling the roses and, occasionally, taking some time to just have some fun.
As co-star Ben Stein is quoted as saying by Wikipedia, “It will never die, because it responds to and calls forth such human
emotions. It isn’t dirty. There’s nothing mean-spirited about it.
There’s nothing sneering or sniggering about it. It’s just wholesome.
We want to be free. We want to have a good time. We know we’re not
going to be able to all our lives. We know we’re going to have to
buckle down and work. We know we’re going to have to eventually become
family men and women, and have responsibilities and pay our bills. But
just give us a couple of good days that we can look back on.”
So, if you’re of a mind to and have the time today, I’d recommend renting or downloading (or whatever the latest viewing method is) one of these movies. I would myself — if I didn’t have so much work to do.
