The Pugnacious Irishman

***Warning: Spoilers ahead***

Wow! What a movie. You need to go see it if you haven’t already.

This is not an action-packed thriller, nor will it garner Oscars for its special effects. Seven Pounds does not spell everything out for you; you will have to really be paying attention at times to follow it, because certain key parts are subtle. If you are the ADD movie-going type, you might be easily bored.

It’s not a feel good movie either.

Why am I still going ga-ga about it, then? It makes you think, that’s why. Even though I called the ending pretty quickly, it kept throwing me curve balls to make me doubt my guess.

While watching Ben Thomas make the ultimate sacrifice, I wondered: would I have the courage to do the same for someone I love? At first glance, I thought “of course!” After it really sunk in, though, the question really gave me pause: would I really? I won’t ultimately know until and unless I’m confronted with such a choice. Cowardice and self-centeredness often lurks in hidden corners until just the right time.

Thinking about that question really made me take stock of my character and backbone.

There are other questions the movie addresses that it leaves unanswered. Why, ultimately, did Ben give so much for seven strangers? Was it guilt? Or, in the end, was it love? Just how much redemption does Ben achieve? Does his own sacrifice bring him emotional peace? The answers are quite ambiguous.

The movie is a true gut-wrencher. Seeing Ben (Tim) constantly sacrifice his well being for the sake of others he doesn’t know stirred my soul. Even though his efforts are awkward and stalker-esque at times, I shed tears, which doesn’t happen too often at the movies. Even though you won’t walk out of the theater gushing with joy, Ben Thomas’ sacrifice, on some level, is truly beautiful and inspiring.

Many reviewers have knocked the film for its unrealistic nature. My thoughts: meh. As one commenter noted, unrealistic is the currency of Hollywood. We buy a vigilante billionaire disguised as a gigantic bat, but we can’t buy Ben Thomas’ quest? Need we be so fickle?

I’m not that hard to please. Just have some decent acting, avoid pounding me with an uber-liberal sermon, and avoid setting fire to straw men in said sermonizing, and I’m satisfied.

Ben is a man wrestling with demons. I mean this guy is in torment. In the end, as a way to find freedom (or, as I alluded to earlier, was he acting out of love at the end?), he willingly lays down his life so that another can live. He literally gave his heart to a woman in need. I couldn’t help but think of Christ in this. He, too, laid down His life so that His beloved can live in eternity. We have bad hearts in need of replacement. Not just repair, mind you: our hearts are dead. Only heart replacement surgery will do. In the act of faith, His heart becomes ours.

The analogy is imperfect, yes (Ben: sinner looking for redemption. Jesus: sinless, only giver 0f redemption. Ben: gives based on merit. Christ: while we were yet sinners, He died for us. And there’s that whole resurrection-defeat-of-death-and-sin thing.), but a likeness is there.

Another question the film brought up is, “how do you react to loss and trauma?” Ben and Emily react to the trauma in their lives in very different ways. Unlike Ben, Emily still has joy. Thus, in their relationship, even though Ben gives the ultimate sacrifice, Emily enriches Ben’s life in a subtle, yet significant way. She, too, has a gift to give.

At bottom, Ben is searching for two things: redemption, and goodness in others. Is he successful in his twofold mission?

That depends. Ultimately and eternally, of course, he doesn’t redeem himself. In God’s court, no good deed, no matter how big, can erase our debt. We already owe God goodness, and you can’t pay for your rap sheet with what you already owe. Only Christ can eradicate our debt.

But was Ben searching for salvation? No. I didn’t get the sense that he was searching for divine forgiveness. He was merely trying to find peace with himself. The guilt he carried from literally wrecking seven lives drove his mission to give back.

Still, though, first things first: peace with oneself and with others starts vertically, not horizontally. Thus, there would be no better place for Ben than the foot of the cross.

Ben was also searching for some good in others. This is something he ultimately found in the likes of Emily and Ezra. One need not embrace the idea that we are born good in order to see this. Were we to ask Ben, for instance, I’m sure he would readily acknowledge that humans are quite flawed.

The divine spark, though dimmed by sin, still resides in us, though. We steep to such great depths, but we are also capable of so much good. That is part of the imago dei. Even in a dark, fallen, and evil universe, it still shines brightly. Ben found that in a unexpected and unassuming place.

Lots of questions. Few answers. Go see it anyway. We need that sometimes.

Check out these other related posts:

The Gospel of Will Smith

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