Date Night: "As It Is In Heaven"

04/28/10

My husband and I have been back from vacation for about two weeks now and have had the opportunity to resume our Friday/Saturday night "date nights." What does our typical date night look like? It usually starts around 9 p.m. so, if we babysit one of those nights for our daughter and her husband to go out for their own date night, we can still enjoy our time together when we return home. Our grandson is also playing soccer on his high school varsity team again this year and, since he's a senior, we don't want to miss any games. That means some date nights start after his games end.

We put on comfortable clothes and grab our individual blankets or afghans for warmth and get cozy on the recliner together. Microwave popcorn is a must and depending on the weather we may fix some hot chocolate and fruit or cheese and crackers. Dessert usually follows -- most often ice cream.

We vary the type of films we watch taking turns choosing a film from our personal DVD library or finding one at our public library. We also subscribe to Gaiam's Spiritual Cinema Circle (https://www.spiritualcinemacircle.com)which sends out a monthly DVD that consists of 3-4 shorts as well as a feature length film or documentary and/or interviews. Sometimes we watch these over a couple of evenings and at other times we watch the whole Spiritual Cinema Circle DVD in an evening. We also spend some time talking about the discussion questions after each short or film.

This month I chose a film that had been recommended in a regular e-mail I receive that highlights films I probably wouldn't hear about otherwise. I learned that our city library had a copy of "As It Is In Heaven" and requested it. Kay Pollak directed this Swedish film (with subtitles) and it was nominated for the Best Foreign Film at the 2005 Academy Awards. It's the story of Daniel, a successful international conductor, who, for personal reasons, decides to return to his small childhood village in Sweden -- not particularly a place of pleasant memories for him. Since he was a child prodigy and has spent his adult life conducting orchestras, his relationship skills appear to be a little challenged. When he returns to the village, he seems to me to be quite shy and reluctant to become too involved in village life. However, the local church choir eventually prevails on him to direct their choir. A little romance also comes into his life and I'd guess it's his first one. Daniel's interaction with the villagers and theirs with him change all their lives and it's wonderful to watch it unfold. I highly recommend this film not only for its story but for its music. I know some of my family are a little put off by subtitles but I'd still recommend giving this one a try. My husband and I have discovered that it is helpful to turn the subtitles on when we're watching any film in case we miss the dialogue -- or it's too soft to hear.

If you watch this DVD, I'd love to hear your thoughts about it, too.

Happy Viewing!

pazt