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Posted on 07/17/2011 10:33:24 AM PDT by doug from upland
ANN’S BEST MOVIE PICK: ‘I AM’
There is a movie that Oprah, Rosie and Ellen all say is a must see...and I agree. This film is transformational. It is trendsetting like no other this year.
I AM is a documentary from acclaimed director Tom Shadyac that will make you look at your life and make you think like you have never done before.
So memorable for me, parts of it come into my head daily and seem to teach me daily.
I really connected with the message and two questions posed: What is wrong with our world and what can we do about it? Share kindness. Give and take only what you need.
It's about real life and our journey through it.
The ultra-grounded Shadyac interviewed a variety of significant thinkers and doers – from the worlds of science, philosophy, academia, and faith – including such luminaries as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and David Suzuki.
He interviewed and asked about what we can do to make our world a better place - thus finding more happiness.
Oprah did an entire show on Tom, its millionaire director who has now sold most of his possessions since he realized money did ‘not’ buy happiness.
Shadyac, is one of Hollywood’s leading comedic directors and the creative force behind blockbusters Ace Ventura, Liar Liar, The Nutty Professor, Patch Adams and Bruce Almighty and the list goes on and on…
His films have grossed nearly TWO BILLION dollars and afforded Tom the glamorous and extravagant A-List lifestyle of a Hollywood blockbuster filmmaker - BUT - after all the acquiring and living the so-called ‘good life’ our culture tells us we have to have - Shadyac turned most of it in. Gave it up. Sold it and gave it to those who needed it more.
He kept just enough for him to live happily and simply.
In that simplicity, he found true happiness.
I sat down with Tom recently in his Malibu home, now a modest (and yet beautiful) 1000 square foot mobile unit perched on the Pacific Ocean.
The place was so relaxing, I could see why someone would prefer the life in the community of a nice Malibu mobile home unit rather than a mega house in the one-upmanship community of Beverly Hills where you do not connect with neighbors at a real level.
His home felt real and warm.
I liked that it felt unencumbered by “stuff.” (as a result, I am planning a huge yard sale to get rid of most of my stuff now. “’Stuff” does NOT a happy life make feels Tom.
It’s all about love.
I too believe there is a feeling of lightness and a sort of freedom when the superficial excess “stuff” is removed and not longer the pinnacle.
I could have spoken to Tom for days exchanging ideas and experiences. He captivated and moved me, as much, in person as in his Oprah appearance and with his movie. I have the screener and each time I view it I come away with more food for thought.
A few years ago, Tom had a cycling accident that left him incapacitated possibly for good. He had Post Concussion Syndrome, a condition where the symptoms of the original concussion don’t go away and that really got him to think, he said, “I want to do a movie that examines what’s wrong with our world these days.”
Symptoms of his ailment included intense and painful reactions to light and sound, severe mood swings, and a constant ringing sound in the head.
He suffered months of isolation and pain and finally reached a point where he welcomed death as a release. I so related to this in my own life.
“I simply didn’t think I was going to make it,” he admitted but he finally recovered and came out with a new sense of purpose.
What Tom discovered was: the world he was living in was a “lie.”
Something wasn't right with his life – so he set out on a quest for enlightenment and to hare his findings. He says he has never been happier.
For me and many others, I AM is the best film this year so far and will likely stay as my favorite documentary for years to come, that’s how much I enjoyed it.
(I have now seen it five times)
Since you're always writing me asking for movie recommendations – this is on the top of my 2011 list.
In the film, Tom examined the questions –
How much is enough and what do we need to live a purposeful life?
He wanted to investigate how he - and we - could improve the way we live in the world - that we "are" our brothers keeper - that selfishness is not going to make you happy and that we are all connected and should assist on another rather then having our culture enforce striving ahead of others on a fast unconscious-to-those-around-us course.
Tom found: the basis of nature is in corporation and democracy.
Shadyac is very specific about what he was after, wanting I AM to identify the underlying cause of the world’s ills – “I didn’t want to hear the usual answers, like war, hunger, poverty, the environmental crisis, or even greed. These are not the problems. They are the symptoms of a larger endemic problem.”
He goes on to say, “In I AM, I wanted to talk about the root cause of the ills of the world, because if there is a common cause, and we can talk about it, air it out in a public forum, then we have a chance to solve it.”
Shadyac’s transformation remains a work in process. He still lives simply, is back on his bicycle and riding to work or as much as he can to keep a car off the road. He does still drive at times but it is always a very aware logical decision on his part.
Reflecting Shadyac’s philosophy is the economic structure of the film’s release:
ALL proceeds from I AM will go to ‘The Foundation’ for I AM, a non-profit established by Shadyac to fund various worthy causes and to educate the next generation about the issues and challenges explored in the film.
When he directs another Hollywood movie, the bulk of his usual eight-figure fee will be deposited into a charitable account, as well. I love this man!
Tom wraps up saying: “St. Augustine said, ‘determine what God has given you, and take from it what you need; the remainder is needed by others.’
That philosophy - Tom Shadyac now ‘happily’ lives by.
Tom, you’ve got it all right.
Thank you.
Ann
Interestingly, to me, is that, “I Am”, is God’s name.
Giving of one’s own free will is laudable and much better than confiscation of waelth by a rapcious state.
“There is a movie that Oprah, Rosie and Ellen all say is a must see...and I agree”
No red flags there.
yes, but he managed to stay in an apartment perched over
the pacific ocean.
No red flags there, right? Actually, I saw the piece back in May... it's put together like a documentary and while there are a few redeeming features, it has a very strong mainly new age socialist pushing agenda to it that was totally against anything that I believe in.
He’s in a trailer park.
David Suzuki?
You mean the commie statist POS who's trying to redistribute wealth by doggedly promoting and defending man-made global warming?!
That David Suzuki?
I'll pass on this one...
Oprah, Rosie and Ellen all say is a must see..——————
Means I certainly will not see.
Cost of “modest” home on the Pacific in Malibu? Try 1.5 million or more. Someone had to produce a lot of “stuff” or services to pay for that.
I believe in liberty, not collectivism. Do whatever pleases your God. If accumulating clutter is your mission in life, go for it. Don’t allow anti-capitalist leftists to engage the government in enforcement of their personal piques. Whether they advocate government to get involved or not, that is always where they want to take it.
Yeah, if Oprah, Rosie, and Ellen like it so much, why don’t they go and do likewise.
“They Won’t” (Rosie, Oprah & Ellen) be giving up half of their fortunes for the less fortunate, right?
oh, that’s right. i did read that. but he does have
a beautiful view so that helps with transition
as opposed to washing machine box near city dump.
does california tax you for ocean views?
Ace Ventura...4 out of 10
Liar Liar...5 out of 10
The Nutty Professor...didn't see but its a remake
Patch Adams...7 out of 10
Bruce Almighty...didn't see but the reviews I read were awful
If you give away 20 million and keep one million, is that a sacrifice? Give me 20 million and I'll be happy to keep only one million, and give the rest away.
He realized that stuff doesn't make you happy. He was searching for something more. His life had a hole in it that his money and the stuff it would buy, didn't fill. Now he's trying to fill it with his fake charity work. He'll soon see that it also isn't the answer. Only Jesus can fill that void. I saw no mention of Him in the article.
Don't be suckered in by this “feel good”, new age, Gaia spirituality crap. That's just what it is, crap. You are being deceived.
He (Jesus) is the (only) Way, He is the (only) Truth, He is the (only) Life.
John 14:6 New International Version (NIV)
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Not Oprah, Rosie, Ellen, Ann, or Tom Shadyac.
This entire article, including endorsements from Oprah, Rosie and Ellen says why I would rather watch the grass grow on my lawn.
gak
Preach it brother. Just more New Age atheistic cult of Oprah to take people away from Jesus. Any one of those people could give 10 times what he gave so why don’t they?
Pray for America
America is a great country because property rights have always been respected. Everything didn’t belong to the king. You could own your house and make it as good as your industry allowed. In America, everyone had running water while the rest of the world was still dying of cholera from community wells.
And now there’s poor Tom. Living in a house doesn’t make him happy. He wants to live in a trailer.
And he keeps riding his bikey to work on the dangerous LA roads that nearly killed him. Some might call that breathtaking hubris or colossal stupidity. But the more enlightened know that people who ride bikes and reject the internal combustion engine are better,
I suspect his real problem is survivor guilt over succeeding in a really tough business where others just as talented have failed. Maybe he feels guilt over Daddy being a friend of Bob Hope’s, which got him his first job as “his youngest joke writer ever.” He might be talented, but nepotism launched young Tommy.
I wonder if he’ll ditch his “less is more, things don’t make you happy” philosophy the next time he needs trauma care at a state-of-the-art medical center.
And I love that he quotes Augustine, while ignoring biblical admonitions to keep quiet about the charity you do.
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