Reel Parables: Life Lessons from Popular Films

We go to movies to be entertained, but also to be inspired; to see our common humanity in a new light. Popular movies stand the test of time because they reveal timeless truths. In REEL PARABLES, James Hogan articulates the spiritual message inside stories that catch our hearts and capture our imaginations―movies that are talked about in the classroom, at the water cooler or the kitchen table, movies that make us want to be better persons, movies that symbolically proclaim godly values. REEL PARABLES examines twenty popular films that have withstood the test of time, including Star Wars, Rain Man, Amadeus, Shawshank Redemption, Groundhog Day, The Truman Show, Forrest Gump, and others. James Hogan discusses each one with a view toward drawing parallels with the life of Jesus (where appropriate) and extracting the moral lessons implicit in each. Each film ends with a set of reflection/discussion questions to make the book suitable for group use. But this intriguing book is by no means a set of lesson plans; nor is it a movie critic’s handbook; it goes right where angels never fear to tread, into the hearts and minds of ordinary people. †