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Picture Source: http://www.imdb.com

Main Cast:
Ewan McGregor - Lincoln Six Echo/Tom Lincoln

Scarlett Johansson - Jordan Two Delta/Sarah

The Island Trailer

Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, mild language, and a scene of sexuality towards the end which you can anticipate and turn away from like I did!

Plot Synopsis:

The movie, “The Island” is about thousands of people who reside in an underground bunker and are told to fear the outside because of global contamination where everyone has died. They are told that they are the only survivors left and can go to a beautiful island based on a lottery pick. Lincoln Six Echo (played by Ewan McGregor) questions things around him and becomes very curious and stumbles across a plot where people’s organs are being harvested to save people from the real world including the danger to Jordan Two Delta (played by Scarlett Johansson). The movie revolves around him trying save her, himself, and thousands of people he came to know.

Content Review:

“The Island” is an excellent action-packed thriller and sci-fi adventure that makes you think about a lot of things in your own life. McGregor and Johansson were fit to play the role and did an excellent job in their roles. It is a movie that can be watched over and over. It is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, mild language, and a scene of sexuality towards the end which you can anticipate and turn away from. The movie addresses issues such as sacrifice, friendship, love, curiosity, creation, and the sanctity of life.

Spiritual Insights: SPOILER ALERT

In the movie, ‘The Island’ we see people so excited for other people when they are picked to go to ‘The Island’, which they see as paradise. Everyone waits in anticipation hoping they would be picked to go to ‘The Island.’

The concept of how ‘The Island’ is described reminded me of people who hope to go to Heaven when they die. They hope that God will grant them access to Heaven. It is wishful thinking on their part when it does not have to be. There is no lottery for those who want to go to Heaven. There is only an absolute guideline to remember and follow. It is Jesus Christ and based on God’s grace.

“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6, NIV)

“Then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is “’the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:10-12, NIV)

^“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10, NIV)

^“I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelations 21:2-4, NIV)

Good works follow because of our relationship with God here on earth. When we are in a relationship with someone, we want to make them happy and love them so we will act accordingly taking the help needed. In the same way, when people are saved because of God’s grace, those people out of gratitude and love want to make God happy by their lifestyle. In essence, they take the help of the Holy Spirit to guide them and lead them through Jesus Christ.

In the movie, thousands of people were exposed to false teaching and believed it. They all believed in something that did not exist which cost lives.

In the same way, Scripture reminds us to beware of false teachers who come in sheep’s clothing and distort the truth. Instead, they spread lies to be the truth endangering people’s souls.

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” (Matthew 23:13, NIV)

“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith.” (1 Timothy 1:3-4, NIV)

^“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4, NIV)

“But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.” (2 Peter 2:1, NIV)

Lincoln Six Echo stumbles across a medical center where they are killing lottery winners to give life to people on the outside. He realizes that Jordan Two Delta will be next and takes her away from the center asking her to believe in him. He knows what they were doing was wrong when they were taking life to give life.

I am reminded of the commandment from Exodus 20, “Thou shalt not kill”

There is director of the center Merrick (played by Sean Bean) who clones human beings and considers them products to be disposed of when necessary. He thinks of himself as God to give life and take life. What he is doing is discovered and he dies and all the clones that are being made. He even realizes that clones are not human because they have no soul but manufactured.

It is not the same with the Lord God. This made me think about how I was put together by the Lord.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.” (Psalm 139:13-18, NIV)

In the movie, sacrifices had to be made to give life to other human beings. Those sacrifices were forced and not willing sacrifices.

This reminded me of what Jesus went through becoming our donor to give us life.

“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.” (Ephesians 1:7-8, NIV)

“When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Hebrews 9:11-12, NIV)

In the movie there is a lot of caring for each other.

^“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:3-4, NIV)

In one scene, a friend dies trying to save Lincoln and Jordan.

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13, NIV)

In a continuance action-packed sequence in LA, both of them fall from a 70 story building but are able to hold on to a net close to the ground. A worker there looks at both of them and makes the statement, “Jesus must really love you”. Then he looks at Jordan Two Delta who was beautiful and says, “I know Jesus definitely loves you.”

I was very happy to hear the mention of Jesus and His love. Jesus does love humanity no matter how many imperfections they have. Jesus loves us so much that He was willing to be sent to die for us on the cross.

“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:14-17, NIV)

We see in one scene how a worker thought Jesus definitely loved her because she was so beautiful. However Jesus' love is not based on appearances and Jesus wants us to know that too.

"The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV)

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised." (Proverbs 31:30, NIV)

The movie also shows how environment shapes us and can introduce vices into our life. Both of them who escaped from the underground bunker did not know anything about kissing or sex. Once they came out into the real world, they found out about sex and had sex even though they were not married. This is sad!

“Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:18-20, NIV)

The climax of the movie was wonderful where there was white clothed people walking everywhere. This reminded me of the Book of Revelation and what happens to those who are in Christ.

^”Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:4-6, NIV)

“And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.” (Revelation 7:14b-17, NIV)

Questions to Ponder:

What do you think about cloning to save lives?
What is the difference between cloned beings and created beings?
If God were to ask you why should He let you into heaven what would your response be?
Why do you think God is against sex outside of marriage?
How can you be sure you can go to heaven?
Why does Jesus love you?
What can you do to love Jesus back?