Testosterone, Divorce and a Triathlon

In this post I'll be discussing "Iron Man," a recent movie release and an old book from C.S. Lewis titled, "The Great Divorce." If you hate spoilers, get off my cyber-space real-estate before you hurt yourself.

Iron Man - Everything you have heard is true. This is a great movie and IMHO (I just love text talk), it should be seen in the theater to be appreciated. I'm not a big fan of breaking the bank at the box office, but some movies are just better in the theater.

For example, Jurassic Park. At the theater, I forgot to breathe watching that movie. Remember the booming sound of the T-Rex approaching? The screams of the Dinosaurs, seeing a head and teeth on screen that really looked big enough to eat you? At home, this movie is still good, but not even close the feeling of the theater. Iron Man is a movie with lots of explosions and deals with heavy equipment that makes loud sounds. Another layer of depth in the film is missed without that sound. And the visuals are always more impressive when they consume most of your field of vision. Those items won't be the same at home unless you are one of those crazy people that owns a projector and a really powerful sub woofer.

ILM (Industrial Lights & Magic) is a special effects company created by George Lucas that did the effects for this film. Star Wars is their calling card, but check out the other great projects they have done:

1. Indiana Jones (all 4)

2. Harry Potter and The Eight Long Films about Him

3. Jurassic Park trilogy

4. Several of the Star Trek movies

5. Back to the Future Trilogy

6. Ghost Busters

7. Transformers

Not to mention a department from ILM was spun off and became PIXAR, which has changed animated movies for ever.

Alright. I'll talk about the movie. Obviously the special effects are great. But what makes this movie work? Simply Robert Downey Jr. I think he may have beaten Will Smith (Hancock) to the punch on presenting a reasonably believable superhero with no innate super-powers. He was funny, quick, charming, and yet very serious and dramatic when need be. All good qualities to have when you are wearing an iron suit. Truth be told, the suit is around enough, but not all the time. Downey/Stark embodies every man's dream of what they would do if they were brilliant, single, mechanically gifted and full of charisma: Hook up with supermodels, have a high-tech house overlooking the ocean, have Gwyneth Paltrow as a "Personal" assistant, drive awesome cars, build weapons, fly in a high-tech suit, and blow-stuff up. Yes, a true testosterone dream.

Guys - my best friend saw this with me said she loved it so this will fly as a date movie. Don't cop out on that excuse.

The movie is very much rooted in the problems of today. It deals with terrorists, patriotism, weapons companies, war and what would you do if you could set some things straight? The first 30 minutes of the film are engrossing but there is no let-up on comedy, or action till the end. This movie will look dated in 10 years, so I'm glad I saw it in its prime. If only the technology in this film existed today. It would be AWESOME.

Yes, awesome. Once they get the suit going in this movie, you find yourself saying, "awesome" "sweet" "cool" "rad" "wicked" etc. over and over under your breath. I think that just about sums it up. Have a good time and if you do see it in the theater, your money will be well spent.

The Great Divorce - Two days ago, I was handed a copy of this book with an odd disco design on the cover. Despite the cover, I know the author and was looking for something new. I'm familiar with C.S. Lewis, not like some people in the religious department at BYU, but this was a book of his I'd only heard of once or twice. Usually we think of Mere Christianity, Screwtape Letters, Narnia, Problem of Pain, A Grief Observed - my personal favorite... until this one.

The Great Divorce is is a mere 127 pages and I finished over the course of one round-trip flight to Gillette WY. Good times. It started quick, never let-up and was provocative and enlightening.

The book is a work of fiction and fantasy and is not intended to be entirely doctrinally accurate. In the Preface Lewis made this point emphatically and says he is just trying to stir up thought on the after-life. What if dammed soul from hell could take a bus ride to the outskirts of heaven, talk to a few people there and decide to leave hell behind and go into heaven? Lewis is a Catholic and this would represent souls moving from Purgatory to Heaven, not exactly and LDS doctrine but we do believe in a somewhat similar concept of missionary work on the other side. I have a personal conviction this is what my father, Gary Fletcher is doing right now. So naturally, I found this to be very interesting.

In order to leave hell, what do these people have to do? Give up all attachments to it. This book covers the main character watching several "Ghosts" or damned spirits conversing with Angles, or resurrected "Solid People." What I love about this book is that the Ghosts think they have been good people and are blinded by serious flaws that developed in their characters that make them incompatible with Heaven. The root of all their problems is selfishness. Hence the book focuses on what would these Ghosts need to give up in order to receive Heaven.

A particular scripture from the Book of Mormon came to me several times while reading. It is from the book of Alma in Chapter 22, verses 17-18, when Aaron is teaching the King of the Lamanites and the king is ready to believe: "the king did bow down before the Lord, upon his knees; yea, even he did prostrate himself upon the earth, and cried mightily, saying: O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day."

C.S Lewis gives a quote from Milton that sums the problems of these Ghosts nicely: "Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven." Until we turn everything over to God, it will be hard to endure his presence and that is why many of these Ghosts refused to enter heaven.

The book starts in Hell and give a very different view of it. Then the bus ride to heaven occurs and finally the discussion with the Spirits on the outskirts of heaven. The imagery in the book is sublime. I found my self painting wonderful landscapes and images in my head while reading. To be short, this would make a fantastic movie. The resurrected people are fascinating to read. You really get a sense they are beyond the pain of this life. It was both wonderful see such joy and sad to read of the misery of these Ghosts. Each Ghost and their problems could be studied for several days and we could ask ourselves "is there any of that in me?" And if so, how with God's help can I overcome it?

Maybe you have guessed this book is not about marital divorce and speaks little of it; although one conversation does involve a couple that was married on earth. If you are looking for a book to give you a fresh sense of wonder, curiosity and urgency about life after death, I very highly recommend this book.

Triathlete - Yes, I've become one of the elite Sprint Triathlon doers of the modern era. This last Saturday I engaged in my own triathlon at 24 hr fitness. Of course I am in no condition (or ever will be) to do an actual Triathlon, which consists of swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles and running 26.2 miles (marathon) consecutively. No, my Jello-frame can only do the Sprint version, which is a 0.5 mile swim (35 laps in a yard pool), 12.4 miles biking and a 3.1 mile run.

Sprint is not a appropriate way to describe how I performed. Rather, it was like watching a pasty-white, has-been jock flail around in the pool, ride a stationary bike like a maniac, followed by a pathetic attempt to keep a 6 mph pace on the treadmill for 3.1 miles. So I officially rename this event to: THE DESK-JOCKEY TRIATHLON! Perfect for any dude that is out of shape, but willing to spend enough time a gym to do something that sounds cool. Not counting the changing in between, I was at an 1:27. Not bad in my estimation, but not great either. Hopefully I can best it next month.