1. The Seventh Seal
People either fear, worship, or despise death. Butchess(literally) with death seems to be a different, very strange "attitude". And that is the most famous scene of the movieThe Seventh Seal: play chess with Death.
LIVEThe Seventh Seal, the personified death appears before the knight Antonius Block. Death agrees to play chess with him and let him live until he loses. With the cloudy sky over the land being ravaged by the plague, Antonius Block's way home looks dim and desolate. From the beginning of the film, both the knight and the audience can feel the presence of death surrounding and approaching.
Throughout the film are metaphors about death and faith. The nameThe Seventh Seal, orThe Seventh Seal, which is borrowed from the book of Revelation, symbolizes the last day, the end of the world, the day of judgment. Behind that judgment could be God, the devil, nothingness or simply death? That is the question that Antonius Block has searched for all his life but still has no answer. God is silent, instead, Death appears.
"Needless to say, he couldn't win the game—no one could—but winning wasn't the goal."
In the end, Block completed his “meaningful work” - which was playing chess. This game was not for Block to avoid death, but for him to learn to live without fear and without regret before it came. The end will always come as an inevitable thing, the important thing is that we act and make the remaining moments of our lives meaningful. Whether it is asking God forever without getting an answer, challenging death in a game of chess, or being optimistic like Jof and Mia - Block's two friends, whatever it is, it is an act of giving life hope, and a state of mind to hold one's head high when death comes to take one away.
2. Meet Joe Black
What if Death learned how to... live?
It is the story of Joe Black, the god of Death in the body of a young man, who decides to try living a human life. It turns out that the god of Death knows very well about death, and that's all. This god knows nothing about life. The 3 hours of the film are Joe Black's journey of slowly learning how to live, from simple things like dressing, grooming, holding a spoon and fork, "licking" Nutella, to going to work, meetings..., and finally falling in love.
Joe Black, the god of Death, a tough, dark, quiet man, all that was just a facade. He gingerly touched his lips to the lips of the girl he loved, feeling a strange sweetness, feeling his knees tremble, his mind filled with the sound of fireworks. What was special was that he did not hide all those worldly and sentimental emotions, instead, the god of Death joyfully and happily accepted them with all his senses.
It doesn't take long for viewers to realize that this character of Death entered life with... empty hands, nothing, knowing nothing, except a pure soul - as pristine as a child, like Adam in the Garden of Eden.
Clearly, director Martin Brest was full of mischievous hidden meaning when using the image of Death to depict the miracle of life. No matter who you are - old, young or a thousand years old - it is never too late to feel the fountain of youth inside and outside of you. The only important thing is to open all your senses to receive, to be aware that your presence today, right now, is already a gift.
If you doubt this, you need to see more.Meet Joe Black, let the journey of the Grim Reaper convince you.
One more reason toMeet Joe Blackis the movie you need to see - if you want to see about "death": this innocent god of death is played by the talented Brad Pitt.
3. Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds
Based on the comic series by Joo Ho-min, the film opens with the death of firefighter Kim Ja-hong when he sacrificed himself to rescue a little girl from a fire. After leaving his body, Ja-hong's soul is immediately escorted to the Underworld by the Guardians.
In fact, the journey of the deceased in the afterlife is not a new topic in the film industry. The unique highlight of this Korean film lies in the setting of Hell, which is close to Eastern beliefs. Based on Buddhist concepts, the film frankly conveys the message: no matter who you are when you live, when you die, you cannot escape the cycle of reincarnation and the law of cause and effect.
Viewers follow Ja-hong and the Guardians as they approach the seven levels of judgment, representing the seven cardinal sins of humanity: deceit, sloth, injustice, betrayal, violence, murder, and disloyalty. Like the firefighter, other souls who descend to Hell must undergo all sorts of trials, competing for the chance to be reincarnated. If found guilty, they will suffer punishment commensurate with the sins they committed in the mortal world.
InAlong with the Gods, The underworld is like the human world, the order of seniority and the way of thinking of the dead are no different from the living. Even the Judge, the one who oversees the levels of hell, seems to be willing to punish Kim Ja-hong based on his sketchy confession: indirectly killing his co-workers, working only for money, impersonating the deceased, etc. It was only when the Guardians proved that everything Ja-hong did had a reason that he was pardoned. Does that make you think of human subjectivity and bias?
We often judge the people we meet every day by their gestures, actions, and deeds, but perhaps behind that is a whole life story that we never see. No one is perfect, no one can live a life without making any mistakes, nor does anyone have a truly “pure soul”. The character Kim Ja-hong probably represents the image that people want to aspire to: even if they do wrong, make mistakes, even if they have a difficult life, but after closing their eyes, they are still forgiven and judged “innocent”.
4. Soul (The Magical Life)
Even though it is an animated film, the philosophies and messages ofSoulseems more suitable for adults. The people who wrote the storySoulbelieve that, before entering into life, every soul must determine its purpose in life.
The film opens with the bustling sounds of a middle school music class, with teacher Joe Gadner in charge. Joe is a black guy who is passionate about piano and jazz, however, even though he is middle-aged, his passion for music has remained stagnant. When Joe - finally - is invited to try out for a famous talented band, he has an accident and suddenly ends his life. Joe's "spiritual journey" begins here, when his soul is moved to another space, where all souls after death reside.
In the world of spirits, Joe tries to find a way to quickly return to life, in order to attend a performance with a famous band. So, Joe cooperates with spirit "number 22", and the two escape to the mortal world. But while Joe knows clearly that his purpose in life is to play music, spirit number 22 does not know what his purpose in life is.
Following the journey back to earth of Joe and soul number 22, the audience will be excited, hold their breath and then laugh many times. Until near the end of the film, Joe finally makes it to the performance. He gets to play music, he shines, the audience is ecstatic with praise.
What next?
The movie continues. Joe is disappointed.
What Joe believed was his purpose in life and his happiness, that performance, turned out to be short-lived. Like soul number 22, Joe began to wonder what the true purpose and meaning of life was, and where the most sublime emotions in life came from?
Of course, the movie has a happy ending when both Joe and soul number 22 find the answer - who they are, what they want and why they live. But this article will keep that answer a secret, so that readers can find the answer for themselves through the movie. Because, 99% of "adults" when watchingSoulWe all realize that Joe's concerns are also the concerns deep within each of us.
5. COCO
"Mexicans pursue death, mock it, welcome it, embrace it, and sleep with it" - Octavio Paz.
Cocois Pixar's most famous animated film about the Day of the Dead (Día de os Muertos) - an occasion for Mexicans to remember their grandparents, ancestors and deceased relatives. The clearest message of the film is family love, attachment, and mutual respect. But at the same time,Cocore-enacts a colorful cultural tradition and opens up a completely different perspective on death, from the Mexican perspective.
Day of the Dead is one of the most important holidays in Mexico, taking place at the end of October every year. People in this country believe that life is just a dream and death is a continuation, so instead of fearing death, they accept it as a natural thing. After leaving the body, the souls will gather in an eternal place and wait to visit their relatives on Day of the Dead.
The movieCocoNot only does it introduce the audience to a unique Mexican tradition, but it also makes us believe that this is a cultural belief filled with... joy and beauty. From the elderly ladies to the little boys, they do not avoid or grieve over death and loss, instead, the deceased always remind the living to aim for a life of sharing and preserving love. As long as there is love, there is life.
In particular, this is a film that children can watch with adults, thereby forming new perspectives on "death". With vibrant Latin music, sweet and eye-catching images and stunningly gorgeous settings, children will have a clear, fearless, and realistic image of the world of the dead.
