One of the sizable challenges I have with Creation of the Week is just the multiplicities of genre we get to tackle with it. This week we're entering into the Vblogosphere with Steven Lewis's review of Silence.
I've been following Steve since encountering his awesomeness on the group WAY back in 2016, and y'all, he cracks me up.
To vlog well, one does not necessarily need to offer high production value with lots of editing and effects. The goal of the vlog is to compress thought provoking messages into a condensed and engaging 4-5 minute short. Come to think of it, I think all priests should have to start a successful vlog before they are allowed to give any homilies, but I digress.
This community isn't just about promoting good art, but about moving the conversations at large in the Church into new territory of engagement. Steve's thoughts here do just that.
When discussing or reviewing art, our Catholic community has a tendancy to be satisfied simply by answering the question "was its message positive?" In the case of Silence, if you leave off there, the answer is a resounding no. But the best art is often times the art that is difficult to palate, hard to digest. Silence is the type of art that tends to need more chewing before it's lessons can be swallowed, and Steve gets that.
He helped push me beyond my initial responses and moved me to ask deeper questions both of the movie and of myself. I for one am grateful for his contribution to the conversation at large about this movie. And since all I'm doing is reviewing a review of silence, which is itself a review of the reviews, I will refrain from further commentary on the movie itself. Keep up the good work, Steve!
