Post by Rob W. Case on Nov 18, 2021 17:29:01 GMT -6
Today C.S. Lewis, the man whose literary works such as The Chonicles of Narnia book series is known as a titan of the Christian faith. When he was alive, Lewis’s deep insights, wisdom, words of comfort, and reason were all sought after, particularly during World War II, when he addressed the people of Great Britain on the BBC, and thereafter. After he passed away in 1963, C.S. Lewis’s writings would continue to bring valuable insight, wisdom, words of comfort, and reason to generations looking for serious answers about God, life experience, the fractured world around us, pain, suffering, and how everything works together having Jesus Christ in one’s heart and life. These elements did not always exist, however. Everything that C.S. Lewis became was a result of having the world that he once knew, had his security in, and the ideas that were established within that, all torn down around him. This led to Lewis being a stubborn willed atheist. Though ever inquisitive about truth, logic, and reason, outside of everything having to do with God, Lewis’s search for truth would reach a point where God would reveal himself…. to him.
The Story:
The story of Clive Staples Lewis is an interesting one. Clive and his brother Warren (known as “Warnie”) had an ideally happy and comfortable childhood. Lewis’s sense of faith and imagination in his childhood years were instilled in him by his mother Florence, whom he greatly adored and admired. As Clive and his brother enjoyed their childhood years, a sense of security, joy, and happiness was established, and served as the foundation of Clive’s “world”. It was not until Lewis’s mother fell ill with cancer that Lewis’s “world” was shaken.
“When my mother’s case was pronounced hopeless, I had remembered what I had been taught; that prayers offered in faith would be granted. Accordingly, I set myself to produce in prayer, a firm belief in her recovery. When she died, I shifted ground, I worked myself into belief that there was to be a miracle. Oh, I approached God. Oh, I’m not his savior or his judge, but as magician, I simply wanted him to restore the status quo, and when he had done what was required of him, he would simply go away. The thing hadn’t worked, but I was used to things not working….” -C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy
When his mother died, Lewis’s “world” lost its “light”. What once was a happy and blissful life, turned dark and bleak really fast. When the boys fell under their father Albert’s care, he added fuel to the fire. Albert was never the same after his wife passed away, and it affected him. His personal deficiencies rose to the forefront, and his prior experience at being a public prosecutor became more prevalent, making him a sort of crass and overbearing disciplinarian. All of this led to a deep and ingrained pessimism about life for Clive, and one that would shut out all meaning of God. Puberty, life, and everything with it influenced Clive (who liked to be referred to as “Jack”) to be disillusioned and disenchanted by God. By the time he was 14, Lewis ceased to be a Christian, but he dared not mention it to his father. After Warnie was sent away to Siri England to his father’s teacher, William Kirkpatrick (known as “The Great Knock”), and came back with a prized army cadetship, Lewis asked his father if he could send him there too, and his father granted his request.
A New Foundation Established:
Professor William Kirkpatrick was a severe logician. He taught Lewis how to think and think hard. Kirkpatrick loved to argue…. A lot! And as Lewis’s critical mind developed, he became sort of a “sparring partner” for Kirkpatrick. Lewis loved it! To him, it was like “red beef and strong beer.”
Lewis would recall:
He was the very man who taught me to think. A hard, satirical atheist. A man as honest as daylight. His attitude to Christianity was for me the beginning of adult thinking. The impression I got was that religion in general, though utterly false, was a natural growth, a kind of endemic nonsense into which humanity tended to blunder.
–C.S. Lewis, Miracles
Lewis’s atheism solidified with his education, and in that, he felt sure, confident, and above the fray. Lewis would later recall, “I passed into the cool evening twilight of Higher Thought, where there was nothing to be obeyed, and nothing to be believed except what was either comforting or exciting.” After Lewis’s time with his tutor, he entered Oxford University in England. Lewis also enlisted in the army, of which he served in World War I. It was there, on the front lines, that Lewis would experience evil, death all around him, suffering, etc. Lewis would have trouble with this as his soul searching continued.
God Shows Up:
When Lewis returned to Oxford, he had already started reading good, intellectually challenging, books. Lewis had read G.K. Chesterton’s The Everlasting Man, and was surprised by his strong display of joy. At Oxford, Lewis formulated friendships with some of the brightest people in the school… both Christians, who would challenge Lewis on his atheism. The ones that most challenged him were Hugo Dyson and J.R.R. Tolkien. Lewis already had a problem digesting the form of evil, but Tolkien and Dyson added another element. Jesus! How could Jesus have said the things that he said and did the things that he did if he weren’t, in fact, who he said he was. Lewis wrestled profusely with that challenge. While trying to put God in a “box” so to speak, the “box” wouldn’t close. And God, according to Lewis, “closed in on him.” C.S. Lewis, as stubborn willed atheist, to “the most dejected and reluctant convert in all of England” is in fact a very potent and resonating story. And there is so much more to it than that.
My Take:
In 2008, I saw Max McClean at the Mercury Theater in Chicago in a live play production of C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, where a highly experienced demon was teaching his nephew Wormwood how to tempt people and keep them away from “the enemy” (i.e. God). He was superb and thought provoking. Several years later, Max McClean decided to put to a play David C. Downing’s 2002 book The Most Reluctant Convert which compiled C.S. Lewis’s life story, both from his autobiography Surprised by Joy, and a number of other books where he explained details of his life and placed all of those elements in chronological order for a more definitive biography. Needless to say, it was a hit. It was not only performed on stage, but the play was put to video to be sold on DVD and streamed. The success of that stage play is what led to the production of this movie.
If you are not familiar with C.S. Lewis’s story in any way, this would be an excellent movie to see. It is well done, engaging, challenging, appealing, deep, insightful, and thought provoking. Everybody has their own journey to faith, or lack of faith, and it is impossible for something to not resonate with the viewer in some way. The format of the film consists of Max McClean as an older C.S. Lewis, narrating his own story. In some cases, as events play out concerning the younger Lewis, the older Lewis is right there setting the scene, explaining thought processes and feelings, and moving the story forward. It is a unique approach, but a useful one at that. The only criticism that I would say about the film is that I did not care much for how the story did what they call in show business “breaking the fourth wall.” The film starts out with Max McClean about to play C.S. Lewis, and when the director yells “action” McClean becomes C.S. Lewis and the movie begins. When the film ends, the director shows up on set and yells “cut”, the screen play is over. Other than that, it is a movie that I urge you to see.
This movie’s release started out as a special one-night event. Now, due to popular demand, it has been extended twice, now through November 25th, 2021.
A Word about this event:
One of the things that I found encouraging when I went to see it, is that everyone in the line I was in at the movie theater was going to see this movie, and as people were leaving the show, I heard people talking about this movie. The event is a limited release, and has been a huge success with sold out showings.
Out of 4 stars, I would have to give this movie 3 and a half.
The film runs 1 hour and 13 minutes, though there is a behind the scenes featurette that they include to make it longer, so you’re not feeling like you’re getting ripped off for the ticket price.
To view a trailer for the movie, please click on the “play button” below.
"The Most Reluctant Convert: The Untold Story of C.S. Lewis" is available on Blu-Ray, DVD, & on multiple streaming services. To access all available streaming options, please click HERE.
For all other inquiries, options, and information regarding this movie, visit cslewismovie.com.
The Story:
The story of Clive Staples Lewis is an interesting one. Clive and his brother Warren (known as “Warnie”) had an ideally happy and comfortable childhood. Lewis’s sense of faith and imagination in his childhood years were instilled in him by his mother Florence, whom he greatly adored and admired. As Clive and his brother enjoyed their childhood years, a sense of security, joy, and happiness was established, and served as the foundation of Clive’s “world”. It was not until Lewis’s mother fell ill with cancer that Lewis’s “world” was shaken.
“When my mother’s case was pronounced hopeless, I had remembered what I had been taught; that prayers offered in faith would be granted. Accordingly, I set myself to produce in prayer, a firm belief in her recovery. When she died, I shifted ground, I worked myself into belief that there was to be a miracle. Oh, I approached God. Oh, I’m not his savior or his judge, but as magician, I simply wanted him to restore the status quo, and when he had done what was required of him, he would simply go away. The thing hadn’t worked, but I was used to things not working….” -C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy
When his mother died, Lewis’s “world” lost its “light”. What once was a happy and blissful life, turned dark and bleak really fast. When the boys fell under their father Albert’s care, he added fuel to the fire. Albert was never the same after his wife passed away, and it affected him. His personal deficiencies rose to the forefront, and his prior experience at being a public prosecutor became more prevalent, making him a sort of crass and overbearing disciplinarian. All of this led to a deep and ingrained pessimism about life for Clive, and one that would shut out all meaning of God. Puberty, life, and everything with it influenced Clive (who liked to be referred to as “Jack”) to be disillusioned and disenchanted by God. By the time he was 14, Lewis ceased to be a Christian, but he dared not mention it to his father. After Warnie was sent away to Siri England to his father’s teacher, William Kirkpatrick (known as “The Great Knock”), and came back with a prized army cadetship, Lewis asked his father if he could send him there too, and his father granted his request.
A New Foundation Established:
Professor William Kirkpatrick was a severe logician. He taught Lewis how to think and think hard. Kirkpatrick loved to argue…. A lot! And as Lewis’s critical mind developed, he became sort of a “sparring partner” for Kirkpatrick. Lewis loved it! To him, it was like “red beef and strong beer.”
Lewis would recall:
He was the very man who taught me to think. A hard, satirical atheist. A man as honest as daylight. His attitude to Christianity was for me the beginning of adult thinking. The impression I got was that religion in general, though utterly false, was a natural growth, a kind of endemic nonsense into which humanity tended to blunder.
–C.S. Lewis, Miracles
Lewis’s atheism solidified with his education, and in that, he felt sure, confident, and above the fray. Lewis would later recall, “I passed into the cool evening twilight of Higher Thought, where there was nothing to be obeyed, and nothing to be believed except what was either comforting or exciting.” After Lewis’s time with his tutor, he entered Oxford University in England. Lewis also enlisted in the army, of which he served in World War I. It was there, on the front lines, that Lewis would experience evil, death all around him, suffering, etc. Lewis would have trouble with this as his soul searching continued.
God Shows Up:
When Lewis returned to Oxford, he had already started reading good, intellectually challenging, books. Lewis had read G.K. Chesterton’s The Everlasting Man, and was surprised by his strong display of joy. At Oxford, Lewis formulated friendships with some of the brightest people in the school… both Christians, who would challenge Lewis on his atheism. The ones that most challenged him were Hugo Dyson and J.R.R. Tolkien. Lewis already had a problem digesting the form of evil, but Tolkien and Dyson added another element. Jesus! How could Jesus have said the things that he said and did the things that he did if he weren’t, in fact, who he said he was. Lewis wrestled profusely with that challenge. While trying to put God in a “box” so to speak, the “box” wouldn’t close. And God, according to Lewis, “closed in on him.” C.S. Lewis, as stubborn willed atheist, to “the most dejected and reluctant convert in all of England” is in fact a very potent and resonating story. And there is so much more to it than that.
My Take:
In 2008, I saw Max McClean at the Mercury Theater in Chicago in a live play production of C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, where a highly experienced demon was teaching his nephew Wormwood how to tempt people and keep them away from “the enemy” (i.e. God). He was superb and thought provoking. Several years later, Max McClean decided to put to a play David C. Downing’s 2002 book The Most Reluctant Convert which compiled C.S. Lewis’s life story, both from his autobiography Surprised by Joy, and a number of other books where he explained details of his life and placed all of those elements in chronological order for a more definitive biography. Needless to say, it was a hit. It was not only performed on stage, but the play was put to video to be sold on DVD and streamed. The success of that stage play is what led to the production of this movie.
If you are not familiar with C.S. Lewis’s story in any way, this would be an excellent movie to see. It is well done, engaging, challenging, appealing, deep, insightful, and thought provoking. Everybody has their own journey to faith, or lack of faith, and it is impossible for something to not resonate with the viewer in some way. The format of the film consists of Max McClean as an older C.S. Lewis, narrating his own story. In some cases, as events play out concerning the younger Lewis, the older Lewis is right there setting the scene, explaining thought processes and feelings, and moving the story forward. It is a unique approach, but a useful one at that. The only criticism that I would say about the film is that I did not care much for how the story did what they call in show business “breaking the fourth wall.” The film starts out with Max McClean about to play C.S. Lewis, and when the director yells “action” McClean becomes C.S. Lewis and the movie begins. When the film ends, the director shows up on set and yells “cut”, the screen play is over. Other than that, it is a movie that I urge you to see.
This movie’s release started out as a special one-night event. Now, due to popular demand, it has been extended twice, now through November 25th, 2021.
A Word about this event:
One of the things that I found encouraging when I went to see it, is that everyone in the line I was in at the movie theater was going to see this movie, and as people were leaving the show, I heard people talking about this movie. The event is a limited release, and has been a huge success with sold out showings.
Out of 4 stars, I would have to give this movie 3 and a half.
The film runs 1 hour and 13 minutes, though there is a behind the scenes featurette that they include to make it longer, so you’re not feeling like you’re getting ripped off for the ticket price.
To view a trailer for the movie, please click on the “play button” below.
"The Most Reluctant Convert: The Untold Story of C.S. Lewis" is available on Blu-Ray, DVD, & on multiple streaming services. To access all available streaming options, please click HERE.
For all other inquiries, options, and information regarding this movie, visit cslewismovie.com.