In 1996, the journal *CinémAction* published a special issue entitled ‘Christianity and Cinema’, which, through some twenty contributions, outlined the ‘possible connections’ between Christianity – in the broadest sense, both historical and denominational – and cinema, again across a wide range of genres and approaches. Since then, the bibliography has certainly expanded, with works such as Jean Collet and Michel Cazenave’s *Petite théologie du cinéma* on the Catholic side and Bernard Reymond’s *Le protestantisme et le cinéma* on the Protestant side, but rarely from such a broad perspective as in this collective work produced by the Pro-Fil association and edited by Jacques Champeaux and Waltraud Verlaguet.
Indeed, the numerous contributions are written in a resolutely non-denominational spirit and even from a strictly non-religious perspective. In other words, and in keeping with the history of this association—which, whilst Protestant, is open to all regardless of affiliation—the authors approach their subject first and foremost from a cinephile’s perspective: what does a particular film mean? And how does it tell its story to us? Only subsequently do they consider what anthropological, societal or political significance the film or filmmaker conveys. Then, taking a synthetic approach, they examine which theological, biblical or religious references the director employs, whether explicitly or as an underlying theme in their narrative.
It is precisely this originality of Pro-Fil’s approach – as demonstrated here through the themes explored – that lies in starting not from a preconceived theological judgement but from the ‘discourse rendered in images’ that a film, by definition, is. The major themes explored by cinema – such as creation, redemption, forgiveness and even atonement, or the figure of Jesus and key figures in the history of the Church – are treated differently depending on the genre. Thus, the tension between redemption, vengeance and forgiveness will be explored through the conventions of the Western (‘The Bible and the Gun’, Arielle Domon) or through the depiction of convents (‘Within the Convent Walls’, Nic Diament). These are examples of the book’s overarching approach, which allows for a multi-layered reading—whether thematic or genre-based—with delightful surprises such as the notion of grace in Jean-Jacques Annaud’s *The Bear* (‘Grace and Cinema’, Christophe Singer).
A grace that is present where one least expects it and absent where one would expect it—an image that encapsulates the very purpose of the book, which, alongside these analyses—both cinematic and theological—does not fail to set out a method for interpreting films (“Cinema as a Tool of Theology”, Waltraud Verlaguet) and to broaden the scope by revisiting the history of the association or by presenting its European outlook within the ecumenical juries of major festivals (‘Interfilm and Ecumenical Juries’, Julia Helmke), where the reader discovers a network extended to European churches within an ecumenical framework.
The Pro-Fil association thus helps the widest possible audience—far beyond church circles—to understand the religious or theological undertones that cinema employs to move, challenge or entertain its audience. As a work of art and the intellect, as well as an industrial and commercial product, a film always conveys a message, a form of representation of the world and of relationships with transcendence or immanence, which can be questioned just as much as it, in turn, questions institutions or individuals regarding their own relationship to existential questions. Every film-goer has their own religious or simply existential story, and directors and producers draw on this because they know how to strike a chord – even whilst remaining implicit in their references – at the very heart of what makes their audience human. This is an existential question which they may address intelligently or exploit unscrupulously. The very purpose of this book is to shed light on these mechanisms and to cultivate the critical thinking of any self-respecting film lover.
- « christianisme et cinéma » (Christianity and Cinema), edited by Guy Hennebelle, CinémAction, revue de cinéma et de télévision, Corlet-Télérama, no. 80, 3rd quarter 1996.
- Petite théologie du cinéma (A Brief Theology of Cinema), Jean Collet, Michel Cazenave, Le Cerf, Paris, 2014.
- Le protestantisme et le cinéma. Les enjeux d’une rencontre tardive et stimulante (Protestantism and Cinema: The Challenges of a Belated and Stimulating Encounter), Bernard Reymo, Labor et Fides, Geneva, 2010