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Film Forum took a holiday last week in order to relax, enjoy a Thanksgiving feast, and count many blessings.

This week, as a direct result of taking time off, Film Forum is buried under piles of freshly fallen movie reviews. Yes, winter is here, and this your super-sized, post-Thanksgiving edition, featuring reviews of seventeen movies.

When Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden on account of their sin, they lost access to the Tree of Life. And things have been tough all over ever since. But what would happen if we gained access to the Tree of Life again?

The Fountain , a new film by Darren Aronofsky, tells three love stories—all of them starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz—in which lovers struggle with the reality of death. And while the movie avoids the subject of sin—and, in fact, barely even acknowledges God's part in all of this—it does offer us a rare big-screen example of a romantic, happy marriage and some thought-provoking portrayals of how we react when reminded of our mortality.

Fans of thought-provoking science fiction, dazzling visuals, and stories of passionate love may find themselves transported by Darren Aronofsky's film. Some Christian film critics are rating it among their favorites for the year. One Christian media personality has hastily written it off as a "New Age piece of propaganda," but that's far from the case. No, Aronofsky's storytelling demonstrates what C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien knew so well—that myths and religions around the world exhibit traces of the truth, revealing that all of us have the same longing for redemption, and all of us have eternity "written in our hearts." Further, it encourages us not to spend our lives in a frantic attempt to escape death, but to instead respond with love.

My full review is at Christianity Today Movies, as is my interview with director Darren Aronofsky.

Adam R. Holz (Plugged In) writes, "Genesis references notwithstanding, The Fountain is a syncretistic mishmash that never addresses core biblical teaching about humanity's sin and our need for a Savior." He concludes that "violent imagery, harsh profanity and a sexually suggestive scene may well render The Fountain's confusing spiritual and philosophical meandering moot."

Greg Wright (Past the Popcorn) says that viewers might find it "baffling, pompous, and preposterous," or they might find it "stunning and spellbinding." Nevertheless, he was mightily impressed. "Ultimately, The Fountain analyzes our perceptions of death, and our perceptions of life. … [It's] a brilliantly conceived and executed artistic vision."

"Is The Fountain a movie worth the time and effort that Aronofsky put into it? Absolutely," raves Matt Wiggins (Relevant). "This isn't a movie that everyone will love, however. It requires engagement and patience by the viewer. … For those prepared for a brilliantly profound mixture of story and visual, The Fountain will undoubtedly be the best film of 2006."

David DiCerto (Catholic News Service) says the film is "poignant and confusing, but the visuals are striking and the unifying themes of love and mortality provide for some thoughtful reflection on the way death helps delineate our humanity and give our lives meaning."

Mainstream critics are divided, some thrilled and inspired, others shaking their heads in bewilderment.

The last time Tony Scott directed Denzel Washington, moviegoers got the violent revenge thriller Man on Fire, in which an American hero captures and tortures the foreign villains with reckless abandon.

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November (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50