Giver, The (11/25/2014)

Rated PG-13 for a mature thematic image and some sci-fi action/violence.

Starring Brenton Thwaites, Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep, Katie Holmes, Alexander Skarsgard, Cameron Monaghan, Odeya Rush and Emma Tremblay

Directed by Phillip Noyce (Salt, The Bone Collector, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger)

The Giver is clearly late to the teen dystopian films…and that’s unfortunate, because it is my favorite one.

The haunting story of THE GIVER centers on Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as The Receiver of Memory does he begin to understand the dark, complex secrets behind his fragile community. The film is based on Lois Lowry’s beloved young adult novel of the same name, which was the winner the 1994 Newbury Medal and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide.

I have not read the book, but my son has, and he was excited to see this story on the big screen.

So if you haven’t read the book either, let me bring you up to speed. The story picks up several generations after humanity has done something so awful that our descendants have wiped it from memory. But that decision to “forget” has come with a great price. Humanity has chosen to sacrifice so many pleasures of life in order to keep peace. So things like emotions, love, color and music have been removed to keep war, hate and violence from destroying them.

I loved how the film is shot in black and white, and we see color as Jonas begins to see it. And speaking of Jonas, Brenton Thwaites is making a name for himself in Hollywood with a role in Maleficent and the upcoming Gods of Egypt. Jeff Bridges is perfect as The Keeper of Memories, aka The Giver. And Meryl Streep played the creepy chief elder flawlessly.

Director Phillip Noyce has been making films for over 40 years and I have to admit I was blown away when I learned that he is 60 years old. He really captured the heart of this teen story, and stayed true to the source material.

So besides staying away from all the “teen drama” that other films emphasize, this movie leaves the audience wrestling with some very real, very significant questions. Alfred Lord Tennyson says, “’Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” But the elders would say, “Tis better to never have loved at all.” Do we “always choose wrong when given the choice”? Is it better to have the choice removed?

I love movies that make me think.

The Giver has a great cast, a great story, a great director and provided my son and I some great conversation on the way home. It was “Theater Worthy” for us.

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
This one is fine for most teenagers. There is no sex or nudity, no profanity and even the violence is mild.

CONVERSATION STARTER:

1. How did Jonas respond when The Giver first gave him some memories?


2. How do you think you would have responded?


3. Why do you think he was unable to keep what he experienced a secret?


4. How is what Jonas experienced similar to what Christians experience?


5. How did Jonas respond at the end of the film?


6. Why should we have a “whatever it takes” mentality with it comes to sharing the gospel of Jesus with everyone around us?


7. What can we do this week to do just that?