Man on Fire

LINKS
—Overview
—Trailers, Photos
—About this Film
—Spiritual Connections

My husband loved this movie, but I found myself confused by its theme development. The movie held my attention for sure, with only a few minor lulls in the plot (lulls that were ultimately saved by switchbacks in the story). Dakota Fanning gives an incredibly believable performance, and Denzel delivers the goods as expected. There are also a surprising number of Biblical references throughout the movie.

Thematically, this movie jumps around. Like TV courtroom dramas, it exposes the realities surrounding a concept without making any particular judgment call. Ultimately, viewers must decide what they think about the subject matter. So what is the subject matter? Professional murder. In this movie, murder is a business, both for the good guys and the bad guys. The only difference is that the good guys have a conscience . . . sometimes.

When the bad guys murder…it is clearly wrong. Every bit of our moral fiber screams out against the injustice of using people as financial bargaining chips. Furthermore, the senseless murder of children whose parents can’t or don’t deliver forces us to cry out for justice against the evildoers. Forget mercy, “kill ‘em all,� as Pita’s mother puts it.

When the good guys murder…it’s gray area. Vengeance seems acceptable given the circumstances, but it doesn’t quite balance the fact that Creasy mercilessly kills people even after they cooperate. Furthermore, the bad guys of La Hermandad and the ring leader, La Voz, refer to themselves as professionals. They make this comment enough times to clue the viewer in to the fact that Creasy also considers himself a “professional� assassin. After Pita’s abduction/murder, he vows to do what he does best, kill everyone who participated or profited from the transaction. His best friend refers to him as an artist whose talent is death. But, still he suffers from guilt and depression because of what he does. So . . . is it wrong? The movie doesn’t tell you what to think.

Creasy as a Lost Sheep – The story plays with several Biblical images, including the parable of the lost sheep. In Matthew 15:13, Jesus refers to himself as the shepherd and to believers as the sheep in his fold. Jesus makes it clear that if a sheep wanders away from the fold, he will leave the rest of the flock to find the lost sheep. When we first meet Creasy, he drinks heavily, wanders from job to job, and seeks peace in Mexico where his friend lives. After accepting the job as Pita’s bodyguard, he rejects her attempts to get close to him, admits to the school Madre that he is “the sheep that got lost,� and even tries to commit suicide. In a way, Pita becomes the Christ figure for a time by seeking him out and touching his soul. Her vulnerability and childlike love awaken new life in Creasy, and she gives him a pendant of St. Jude, the patron saint of lost causes. After receiving the pendant, he reaches for the Bible instead of the whiskey bottle.

Creasy as the Hand of Justice – Much like The Punisher, this movie takes off into pure vengeance at the close of the first act (when Pita is kidnapped). With Pita presumed dead, only judgment remains. Creasy becomes the hand of justice for all the kidnapping victims by putting an end to the regime. He starts at the bottom with La Hermandad (the “brotherhood� of dirty cops) and works his way up to the top (La Voz, “The Voice,� the ring leader whose face is never seen). With the help of a courageous reporter and an AFI agent, he utilizes his assassin training to punish and destroy the entire organization. Much like the Angel of Death (see more on this in The Punisher review), Creasy executes judgment on evildoers.

Spoiler Warning—skip to the end if you haven’t seen the movie!!

Creasy as the Christ Figure – Creasy’s journey follows the path of the verse he quotes in Romans 12:21, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.� The Madre asks him if he ever sees the hand of God in the work that he does. He initially claims that he doesn’t, but then he does come to understand his “calling� to protect people as the movie progresses. Much like Christ as deliverer, he destroys the kidnapping organization and liberates the people from fear and abuse. Later, he makes a more personal sacrifice for Pita. He literally exchanges his own life for hers. Some simple visual connections include: Creasy walks uphill to save Pita (Christ walked up the hill of Calvary to the cross), he stumbles as he approaches the car (Christ supposedly stumbled under the weight of the cross, causing the Romans to force Simon of Cyrene to help – Matt. 27:33), Pita is set free (Christ forever set free sinners across the earth and throughout time – Rom. 8:1-2), Creasy looks up to a mountain just before he dies (Christ is transfigured, or changed, on a mountain before his death – Mark 9:23), Creasy dies in the car without being shot by the bad guys (Christ said that no one took his life from him, but he gave it up of his own free will – John 10:18), and when talking to Pita, he refers to his destination as “home� (Christ sits at the right hand of the Father in heaven today – Matt. 26:64).

Although this movie was entertaining, the message is extracted only after further thought and analysis. I had to review my notes to make any sense of it. Overall though, I could say that I enjoyed this movie.

LINKS
—Overview
—Trailers, Photos
—About this Film
—Spiritual Connections