INTO THE WILD (2007) – tema: societate/natură, conformism, întoarcerea la

natură, sensul vieţii, fericirea; 

ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004) – tema: memorie şi

identitate, relaţii interpersonale, etică;

GATTACA (1997) – tema: liberul arbitru, inginerie genetică;

THE MAN FROM THE EARTH (2007) – tema: reflecţia asupra morţii,

credinţa religioasă;

THE MATRIX (1999) – tema: raportul dintre aparenţă şi realitate;

MEMENTO (2001) – tema: identitatea personală;

MINORITY REPORT (2002) - tema: tehnologia viitorului, determinism,

liberul arbitru, controlul criminalităţii şi drepturile civile;

PHENOMENON (1996) - tema: scepticism, relativism, religie;

THE TRUMAN SHOW (1998) – tema: liberul arbitru/determinism,

existenţialism/individualism, aparenţă/realitate;

THE BOX (2009) – liber arbitru, responsabilitate; etică;

1984 (1984) – tema: totalitarism; individ-autoritate;

EQUILIBRIUM (2002) – tema: totalitarism; control; individ-autoritate;

THE ISLAND (2005) – tema: clonarea umană, liber-arbitru, responsabilitate,

identitate;

YOU DON’T KNOW JACK (2010) – tema: eutanasie, liber-arbitru, drepturile

omului;

WAKING LIFE (2001) – tema: identitatea personală, liber-arbitru,

determinism, aparenţă/realitate. 

CHAPTER ONE: KNOWLEDGE AND REALITY

1. The Matrix (R)—Deals with themes of reality, how active our brain is in creating our perception, and free will.

2. Truman Show—Provides a close analogue to Plato’s Cave. Should Truman be happy living in a man-made utopia? Do you somehow feel that he’s missing out on something?

3. Waking Life (R)—Animated. The plot centers around the main character trying to determine his waking from his dreaming life. Along his journey he has numerous conversations that directly relate to issues in Ian’s Adventure.

4. Existenz (R)—About a futuristic virtual reality game. What level of the game is reality?

5. Rashomon—1950's film about 4 witnesses' versions of a crime. Is an objective view of reality possible? What might prevent us from seeing/remembering events as they "really" happened?

6. 12 Angry Men—A good example of critical thinking and talking through a topic thoroughly in order to come to a conclusion.

 

  CHAPTER TWO: SELF, MIND, SOUL

1. THEME: MEMORY—How important is a person’s memory to their identity?• Memento (R)

• Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind (R)

• Total Recall (R)

• Groundhog Day

• Fifty First Dates

2. THEME: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE—Are these robots persons? Do they have minds? Have they achieved consciousness? Should they have rights?

• I Robot

• Bicentennial Man 

• AI: Artificial Intelligence

• 2001: A Space Odyssey

3. Crash (R)—What role does race play in identity? More importantly, how does society affect the way you view others?

4. Being John Malkovich (R)—Does the main character “become” John Malkovich?

5. The Jerk (R)—How much does the main character’s identity affected by his material/monetary possessions? By his realization regarding his family history?

6. Heaven Can Wait—What does it mean to come back to life in another body? What is the meaning of death if our soul lives on?

7. Gattaca—How important is one’s body and physical composition to their identity?

 

What is the harm in using technology to create what we believe to be “more fit” people?

8. The Fountainhead—What does it mean to be an "authentic"person? Is this possible? Which architect do you admire more and why?

 

CHAPTER THREE and TEN: SCIENCE

1. What the Bleep Do We Know?—How do recent findings in physics affect your view of God and spirituality? Does knowing more about your world add to or subtract from its wonder?

2. Inherit the Wind—A film about the 1925 "Scopes Monkey Trial" involving creationism/evolution in schools. If creationism is not a science, should it be taught in a science course? Should it be taught in another course? What does it mean for evolution to be "only a theory"? Is teaching creationism (God created universe) in a public school a violation of church and state?

3. Mindwalk—Basically a conversation between a physicist, a politician, and a poet/philosopher. They apply a lot of scientific theory to their views of reality.

4. A Brief History of Time—Based on the ideas of one of the most influential contemporary physicists, Steven Hawking. Mostly topical instead of a movie with a plot.

 

 

CHAPTER FIVE: GOD

1. Bruce Almighty—A personification of God. What would you do if you were all-powerful?

2. Dogma (R)—Brings up many issues surrounding God including omniscience, omnipotence, salvation, and evil.

3. The Gods Must Be Crazy—How does the Coke bottle shed any light on creationism? Do they use the bottle "incorrectly"? What other issues arise from the outside influence of the Coke bottle?

4. Oh God!—God attempting to spread the word about Himself. Touches on God’s omnipotence, miracles, His being perfect, and a bit on the problem of pain and evil as well.

 

 

CHAPTER SIX: EVIL

1. The Devil’s Advocate (R)—A Hollywood version of the devil and antichrist at work. Explores notions of free will, fate, and the “force” of evil.

2. The Seventh Seal—A 1958 film that addresses issues of death and God.

3. Left Behind—Based on the novel (which is based on Biblical references), this movie looks at the times just before and after the rapture (end time). Is earth a testing ground of some sort?

 

 

CHAPTER SEVEN: GOING EAST

1. Gandhi—Depicts Gandhi’s application of non-violence. How much more successful is this method than other more aggressive methods? Could you use non-violence in your life, even at a less severe level than does Gandhi?

2. The Tao of Steve (R)—A comedy in which the main character applies his knowledge of Eastern Philosophy to attract women.

 

 

CHAPTER EIGHT: FAITH AND REASON

1. Contact—Involves issues of faith in both science and God. Also addresses the relevance of the arational in creating belief systems. What would it take for you to believe in extraterrestrial life? Is there any sort of proof for God?

2. THEME: Feelings & Knowledge—What is the role of emotion and intuition in framing your world-view? In what ways do emotion and passion get in the way of your ability to see the world clearly? In what ways do they help and add to your life and allow you to see even more clearly?

• Pleasantville

• The Passion of Ayn Rand (Not Rated)

• Equilibrium (R)

 

 

  CHAPTER NINE: FREE WILL

1. Sliding Doors (R)—How much do the “little things” matter? Is it true that everything happens for a reason? Do you believe in fate? (R)

2. THEME: How can we be held morally responsible if our actions are out of our control?• A Clockwork Orange (R)

• Dead Man Walking (R)

• Liar Liar

3. Minority Report—Are our actions determined ahead of time? What is the purpose of

 

punishment—to keep people from doing bad things or because they deserve it?

4. I Heart Huckabees—How does the "consultants'" view of life differ from yours?

 

CHAPTERS FOUR, TEN and ELEVEN: LANGUAGE

1. Alice in Wonderland—Portrays Lewis Carroll’s playful use of language and logic.

2. Catch 22 (R)—Based on the novel, it contains numerous paradoxical, catch 22 situations and has many clever uses of language. 

3. Pi (R)—One disturbed man’s view of a reality totally driven by mathematics. To what extent does math depict reality?

 

 

CHAPTER TWELVE: POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

1. THEME: Individual in Society—How can one be a true individual while part of society? Do you have to give up part of yourself to participate in a community? What is your view of a utopia?

• Antz

• 1984 (R)

• Modern Times

2. Fahrenheit 9/11 (R)—What is the duty of the media and government to share/portray the news objectively and truthfully?

3. Fahrenheit 451—If you can control what people know then is knowledge relative?

4. The People vs. Larry Flint (R)—Even if you disagree with what he does, would you want to prevent him from doing so? Would that infringe upon the right to free speech? How might you be justified in censoring him?

5. The Fog of War—When, if ever, is war justified?

6. Lord of the Flies—How would you set up a government if there was none? Do you think it is fair to restrict people's rights for the good of the whole?

7. The Corporation—What virtues and vices do you see in a capitalistic society? What alternatives would be better?

 

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN: ETHICS AND MORALITY

1. THEME: Death Penalty—what are the important factors regarding the death penalty? If it kills innocent people, is that outweighed by the potential good it does? Would good does the death penalty provide?

• The Life of David Gale

 

• Dead Man Walking (R)

2. An Inconvenient Truth—What duty do we have to the environment and to future generations?

3. Kinsey (R)—How much of our sexual behavior is based on our nature versus our nurture? Does it matter? Should this behavior have a moral status--i.e. in what ways, if any, are sexual acts considered immoral?

4. Return to Paradise—What duty do you have to a friend? What would you do in this situation and why? What if the sentence were half as short? Twice as long?

5. Enter the Void—Could it be right, in certain instances, to kill one or a few people in order to save others?

6. Million Dollar Baby—How do we determine if what he did in the end is morally permissible? Should it be up to the patient? Should it be up to the lawmakers?

7. The Fisher King (R)—What is the role of redemption in relation to sin? Can you truly forgive someone for serious wrongs if they repent?

8. Boys from Brazil—How does this movie affect your views on cloning? Is cloning immoral in itself or is it just immoral if used for immoral purposes?