“We broke the world — we did this. Man did this. Everything that was beautiful, everything that was good, we shattered. Now, it begins again.” (Noah’s words, from the film)
In this article we interprate the film Noah (2014), and identify various cultural/ spiritual/ religious worldviews that clash in the contemporary western society: a hedonistic-materialistic approach, religious and enviromental fundamentalism, and eco-feminism.
We show how the film maker, Daren Aronofsli, express through the protagonist, Noah, the problematicalness in the various cultural stances, when the plot leads its hero thorugh a transformational process.
The article (about 8500 words) was published in a journal published by University of Toronto Press in Canada – The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture.
Another article by Marianna Ruah-midbar and Lila Moore deal with this movie, and one more article by them is dedicated to the deluge theme in cinema. See links below.
Abstract
The article proposes an interpretative study of Darren Aronofsky’s film Noah. The film draws inspiration from various spiritual traditions ranging from shamanism to Buddhism, whilst relying heavily on Jewish midrash, and adds a layer of innovation.
Our main assertion is that the film attempts to present three viewpoints on issues of religion, humanity, nature, and God—while negating two of them and preferring one. Each of the various characters and groups in the film represents one of the three stances, as the film’s protagonist must cope with the problematic nature of his worldview and revisit it.
The film engages with current pivotal issues: climate change, the depletion of natural resources, materialism and hedonism, fundamentalism in both religious and environmental trends, suspicion of religious institutionalized interpretations, and gendered spiritual religious beliefs.
Thus, the film Noah is a cultural product that disseminates spiritual ideas and values within mainstream culture.
Authors
Marianna Ruah-Midbar Shapiro
Lila Moore
Links
For the website of The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture – click here.
For the volume’s page on the journal’s website – click here.
For the article’s page on the journal’s website – click here.
For a trailer of the film Noah, click here.
For the official Facebook page of the film Noah, click here.
Date
October, 2020
Language
English
Academic/Non-academic
Academic item
Bibliographical citation
Ruah-Midbar Shapiro, Marianna, and Lila Moore, “Three Religious-Cultural Worldviews in Noah (2014) – Hedonism, Fundamentalism, and Ecofeminism”, in The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture 32.2 (2020): 144-158.
