Blue Like Jazz

Last week I had the opportunity to watch a sneak preview of Blue Like Jazz the movie with some fellow co-workers (If you were running around Christian circles about 8 or so years ago, the book was all the rage).

It was odd seeing a movie in it's rough cut and strange to be able to offer the director feedback on the movie.

Overall, I liked it. It's not your typical Christian movie and that was super refreshing. It was raw (it will probably be rated PG13 and reminded me more of The Social Network in terms of how college is portrayed), it was honest (it showcases Christian hypocrisy and the world that many 20 year olds face when they head to college), and it had a sense of being unresolved while still being resolved (the struggle with God is resolved but how that plays out in the main character's life is not).

Maybe it's because I'm a little bit more on the post-modern side, but I was drawn into the oddities of the movie, the internal spiritual conflicts, and found the last scene of the movie quite powerful. The last scene focuses on humility and the power of an apology.

And it left me wanting to see it again.

It also left me wanting to read the book again. I think I last read it 6 or 7 years ago and actually didn't remember much of the book. What I did remember was that the book was more like a compilation of a bunch of thoughts/short stories. So I was impressed they were able to weave that together into a narrative.

Oh and they did manage to pay homage to the Sexy Carrot...if any of you read the book, you'll know what I'm referring too.