Christ-Figure in Movies/Books: Grace or Redemption?

In one of my previous posts (Fertility--Infertility & the Environment) I got into a rather lively discussion with a fellow blogger, Erik Hare, about the tendency in Western Culture mythos (in literature and in movies, particularly) to portray the main character in fiction as Christ figure and the ramifications of this choice. Erik lamented the separation that has occurred between Jesus the Teacher and Christ the Redeemer. I hadn’t really given this much thought until he brought it up. But his examples (e.g., Matrix and Harry Potter) and his discourse were so compelling, I've had to give it considerable thought. And here are my thoughts…

A Wizard of Earthsea

When my boys were gone on holiday and I had to stay home to work, my good friends down the street took pity on me in my solitude and invited me to supper and a movie at their house. I gladly accepted, always ready for company and to mooch... :) ... The movie turned out to be a wonderful fantasy they rented from the video store that had been made in 2004 by the U.S. based Sci-Fi Channel: A Wizard of Earthsea.

When they announced the title of the movie, I recognized Ursula le Guin's masterpiece of some time ago. What struck me with surprise was that my friends not only didn't know the writer, but they had introduced this 2004 movie as a Harry Potter clone! "It's got dragons and wizards and even a wizard school, like Hogwarts in it!" they claimed. And so it did. But what they didn't realize was that A Wizard from Earthsea came long before J.K. Rowling even began to think of Harry Potter.

What Form would Your Patronus Take?

In the Harry Potter fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling, a Patronus is an insubstantial animal form protector created by the advanced Patronus Charm spell, and one way to defend against Dementors and certain other dark creatures (Wikipedia).

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

I just saw the latest movie of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series (Order of the Phoenix) and with the 7th and final book pending days from now, I couldn't help revisiting my review of the 5th book, "The Order of the Phoenix". Here is my review (which first appeared in Aoife's Kiss):