GREGG BRADEN GREGG BRADEN - Earthstar

The Movie MysticSong of SongsSince the wild success of TheSecret, dozens, if not hundreds,of filmmakers have beenapproaching investors and producers,claiming to have the “next” version ofThe Secret. At the Spiritual CinemaCircle, we have seen the filmed resultsof some of these attempts. Trying to imitatesomeone else’s success, however, iswhere Hollywood itself has gone soawry in the last decade or so. There willbe no “next” version of The Secret, anymore than The Secret itself was the“next” version of What The Bleep Do WeKnow? The next wonderful SpiritualCinema documentary about the humancondition can only come from a filmmaker’sunique vision and passion, havingnothing whatsoever to do with precedent.Enter Song of Songs, film makerChris Brickler’s debut film. Passionate,mesmerizing, humorous, and touching,Song of Songs is a paean to love in all itswonderful, messy, and complex glory. Inaddition, film maker Brickler’s backgroundas a musician serves the filmbeautifully, as the music throughout isboth haunting and utterly romantic.Members of the Spiritual Cinema Circlewill receive this film as part of theFebruary 2008 Spiritual Cinema CircleDVD collection (www.spiritualcinemacircle.com).What distinguishes Songs from somany other films is its compassion, love,and empathy for those who FALL inlove and then find themselves“bewitched, bothered, and bewildered”by the every day challenges of BEINGin love.The delights at the center ofthe film are the filmmaker’sgrandparents, who have beenmarried for sixty-five years, afeat utterly unthinkable evenfifty or so years ago. Heck, peopledidn’t even live that longuntil very recently, let alone bemarried for almost sevendecades. Put another way, the seniorBricklers got hitched just after Americaentered World War II and three yearsbefore the first atomic bomb wasdropped. How do you manage to staymarried, and, by the way, very happilymarried, through all the changes thatsixty-five years can bring? Well, just askthe Bricklers and they’ll tell you, withinsight, compassion, and a healthy doseof humor. One of the most touchingmoments in the film occurs when Mrs.Brickler (now in her late eighties) gets avery loving kiss from Mr. Brickler, aftergently chiding him to do so.Most of the people interviewed forthe film are folks just like all of us whoare either in various stages of relationships,or are alone and looking for theirnext partner. The film gently underscoresthe point that love is, to all of us,an enduring mystery that reveals more ofitself every day both in our interactionswith others and also in our solitarymoments of reflection. As revealed inthe film, we are always searching forthose answers, knowing full well thateach answer inevitably leads to the nextquestion. Interspersed amidst the variouslove relationships that are explored arethe loving, wise, and insightful observationsof relationship guru HarvilleHendrix, whose understanding of thehuman search for love is nothing lessthan inspiring. One of the most movingmoments in the film is when Hendrixobserves that many people run awayfrom relationships when they get challenging,when the going gets very tough.Ironically, Hendrix says, it’s the peopleBy Stephen Simonwho persevere during those dark timeswho later discover that things get verydark just before they’re about to get somuch better.It is that sense of optimism andhope that permeates the entire film.Made by a filmmaker who obviouslyfeels a great sense of both camaraderieand compassion with the people in hisfilm, Song of Songs comes along just aswe celebrate Valentine’s Day and we atthe Spiritual Cinema Circle are honoredto present its world premiere in ourFebruary collection of films. See it withsomeone you love…or want to love…orhave loved. And save a special place inyour heart for Grandmother andGrandfather Brickler. If there were acontest for America’s grandparents, Ithink the Bricklers might win in a landslide….andI for one would love to seetheir victory speech.Stephen Simon co-founded www.Spiritualcinemacircle.com and producedsuch films as Somewhere In Time and WhatDreams May Come. He also directed andproduced both Conversations With Godand Indigo and is the author of The ForceIs With You: Mystical Movies MessagesThat Inspire Our Lives.50 EARTH STAR FEBRUARY / MARCH 2008 www.earthstarmag.com