In the last week I’ve watched, let’s see, four movies on DVD. That’s a lot more than I would normally do in a week’s span but I’m not at home and am indulging myself, getting caught up on my list. I brought two Netflix movies from home; Transamerica and Vera Drake, both of which I liked, especially Transamerica. The acting in both was superb and there were no flashy actors or big production scenes, very much story and character driven. Last night I watched The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada with Tommy Lee Jones. Whew, that was intense and sometimes funny and what was so wonderful was how the two main characters influenced each other and changed each other during their odyssey across the Texas/Mexico desert. Just now I finished watch Duma, a movie about a young boy, a cheetah and an African man all finding their way home, with wonderful scenes of Africa and super music. It’s funny how three of the four movies involve traveling long distances–the hero’s journey, facing hardships and conquering fear and finding friendship and love and acceptance and yet do it so differently and deftly.

Movies have always been a source of inspiration and emotional revelation for me and when I wrote my MOVIES I LOVE list it was amazing to see how many showed up on that list. I know there are still even more that will come to mind and be added as time goes on. It is not easy to get films made these days (was it ever?) and I have the utmost respect for those artists who endeavor to make a film that awakens the viewer to themselves, to history, to cultures and civilizations, to alternate paradigms of perception and that seek to open the heart and further peace.

One good source for great movies that you may never see in a theater is the Spiritual Cinema Circle, a subscripiton based movie-a-month club. There are feature length films, as well as shorts and animated films. I’m always looking for good movies so email me with any recommendations you might have.