Religion and Film

This course is as much about the use of film to study religion as it is about the use of religion to study film. In other words, we will use different films to facilitate discussion about various dimensions of and issues in religion. And conversely, we will use images, metaphors, and teachings found in religion to discuss the layers and elements visually and audibly portrayed on screen. Through different critical approaches, this course will examine how religion, as variously defined, pervades the modern cinema and how one may engage in dialogue with this phenomenon. Goals for students enrolled in this course include:
-To think and discuss critically about film from a religious studies perspective;
-To broaden understanding of the term “religious” and then to realize its significant role in film plot, narrative, and imagery;
-To foster insight into other perspectives through a careful examination of one’s own thinking.