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Videos That Teach 3

Zondervan

Chapter One

Trailer Are you an island?

The movie comedy, PG-13

Will Lightman (Hugh Grant) takes pride in the fact that he is an island-no wife, no kids, no job, no problems. Will lives off the royalties of his late father's one-hit wonder Christmas song, and he divides his day into 30-minute increments because he doesn't want to commit to anything longer than that. Will dates a variety of women but is careful not to get too attached. Looking for a new way to pick up women, Will decides to pose as a single parent at a support group meeting and, unwittingly, steps into a world he is not prepared for. Will meets Marcus (Nicholas Hoault) who is tired of being an island-no dad, a suicidal mother, and no friends at school. Marcus decides that he wants Will to be a part of his family. Will is reluctant about about allowing Marcus into his island existence, but gradually the unlikely pair grows to care for and need each other.

This clip (about 3 minutes)

Start / 1:27:45 / "Excuse me? What is going on here?"

Stop / 1:33:00 / "Let's get off. Quick, get off."

Believing that he can help his mother out of her depression, Marcus decides to sing her favorite song, "Killing Him Softly," at the school talent show. When Will finds out his plan, he races to the school to stop Marcus and, he hopes, save the boy from further scorn from his peers. Will tries to explain to Marcus that nothing he does will be able to make his mom permanently happy and that he should concentrate on taking care of himself. Marcus disagrees with Will's self-protective philosophy and steps onstage, willing to be a fool in order to bring joy to his mother. Marcus starts getting heckled by his classmates, but before he can get too discouraged, Will follows his courageous example, taking a risk to help his friend.

comfort zones, family, isolation, reaching out, selfishness, serving one another

By the Book

Genesis 2:18; Psalm 133:1; Galatians 5:13; Philippians 2:4; Hebrews 3:13; Hebrews 10:25; 1 Peter 4:8

Where to take it

Even though the whole audience makes fun of Marcus, Will steps out of his comfort zone to help him sing a song. Have you ever done something like that for someone? Would you?

Describe a person you know who lives as an "island." Why do you think this person chooses to be so disconnected from others?

Watch the part of the scene before Marcus sings his song, and listen to what Will says to the boy. Is there anything that Will tells Marcus that you think holds true in life?

Read Galatians 5:13. What does it mean to serve another person?

Who is speaking into your life? Who is your "Will"?

Adaptation

Trailer Who's watching out for you?

The movie comedy/drama, R

Charlie Kaufman (Nicholas Cage) is an L.A. screenwriter who has been hindered all his life by feelings of inadequacy and self-loathing. When he accepts an offer to adapt a book about flowers into a screenplay for a movie, his feelings of incompetence overwhelm him, and he gets to the point of severe writer's block. He quickly realizes that he cannot make the script interesting. Charlie's twin brother, Donald (also played by Nicholas Cage), who couldn't be more different from Charlie, decides to write a movie of his own. Donald's script is typical Hollywood fluff, which further undermines Charlie's attempt to write something meaningful. Under pressure to produce something, Charlie makes two drastic decisions: He writes himself into the screenplay and takes a trip across the county to track down the author of the original book, Susan Orlean (Meryl Streep). Both of these choices change his life forever.

This clip (about 2 1/2 minutes)

Start / 1:35:40 / "I don't want to die, Donald. I've wasted my life. God, I've wasted it."

Stop / 1:38:00 / Scene can stop on Charlie crying.

Charlie and Donald discover far more than they bargained for when they trail Susan Orlean to Florida. When Susan learns that she is being followed and that Charlie has discovered her secret, she snaps and resolves to kill him. The two brothers get trapped in a swamp as they try to escape the crazed woman. With their lives in danger, Charlie begins to evaluate how he has lived his life. What Charlie has always viewed as weakness in his brother, he now realizes is wisdom in how to live unconstrained by self-doubt and the opinion of others.

confidence, feelings, friendship, high school, worrying what others think

By the Book

Psalm 71:5; 139:23-24; Ecclesiastes 7:10; Isaiah 43:18; Ecclesiastes 7:10; Galatians 1:10; 1 Timothy 4:12-16

Where to take it

Have you ever been so embarrassed by what others said about you that it corroded your confidence? Why?

Do you have a difficult story that made you into the person you are today?

Which brother are you more like: Charlie, the one who worries what others think, or Donald, the one who loves even if it means looking like a fool?

Donald's philosophy is "You are what you love, not what loves you." What does this quote mean to you? What is a Scripture you live by? How did it become so important to you?

Is there anything from school that haunts you? If you could go back and make it right, how would you change what happened?

1 Timothy 4:12-16 is a portion of the Apostle Paul's encouragement to a much younger Timothy. How can you apply this passage to your life daily?

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from Videos That Teach 3 by Doug Fields Eddie James Copyright © 2004 by Youth Specialties. Excerpted by permission.
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