 | The Matrix
Buy used from: $0.01 Raises a question that many people ask when starting on their spiritual quest: have you ever had the feeling that the 'reality' you've believed in up til now isn't real? Darker and more paranoid than most of the other movies on this list.
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 | The Lathe of Heaven
Buy new: $21.99 / Used from: $9.72 If it's true that we create our own reality, the next question is -- can you handle it?
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 | Seven Faces of Dr. Lao
Buy new: $5.79 / Used from: $9.99 A magical circus shows people who they really are -- whether they want to know or not.
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 | The Chronicles of Narnia - The Silver Chair
Buy used from: $1.96 An evil enchantment keeps a prince from remembering his own true nature, and he becomes a pawn of the same power that stole his kingdom from him in the first place. C. S. Lewis always insisted his works were not allegorical, but I can't imagine a better illustration of the snares the soul can fall into.
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 | Forbidden Planet (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Buy new: $13.99 / Used from: $7.98 A cautionary tale about the dangers of increasing humanity's power to manipulate and control the environment without increasing awareness. That ol' monster from the Id, it'll getcha every time...
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 | Simon of the Desert - Criterion Collection
Buy new: $23.49 / Used from: $13.50 A fanatical ascetic shuts out the world -- but can't shut off his own desires and ego trips (which in his case are highly Catholic, highly misogynist, and hilarious). If you have experienced any of the pitfalls of meditation, you will groan in recognition.
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 | The Dark Crystal
Buy new: $7.49 / Used from: $2.60 Explores the theme that 'good' and 'evil' are but two halves of one whole.
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 | A Christmas Carol
Buy used from: $13.98 This version of the Dickens classic shows that Scrooge isn't simply greedy; he is a man who has shut himself off from Love. Guided by spirits, he releases the pain of the past, learns to live and love in the present, and creates a better future. If that isn't spiritual, what is?
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 | Peaceful Warrior (Widescreen)
Buy new: $17.49 / Used from: $4.79 A young athlete suffers a shattering injury that turns his life upside down and inside out. Guided by a mysterious mentor, he discovers what real power is. I thought this movie was way funnier, more gripping, and more profound than the book it was based on.
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 | The Celestine Prophecy
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $4.35 An ordinary clod stumbles across a conspiracy to suppress an ancient secret, and winds up undergoing a crash course in New Age consciousness-raising. The main character failed to hold my interest, but there are some cool scenes, like the one where people experience 'heaven on earth.'
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 | Perceval
Buy used from: $24.36 This highly stylized (and rather stiff) retelling of a fool's quest for the Holy Grail has the look and feel of a medieval manuscript brought to life. Definitely a 'high art' film, you will either love this or be unable to sit through it.
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 | Wagner - Parsifal
Buy used from: $58.00 The quest for the Holy Grail depicted in mind-blowing imagery, with some of Wagner's most magnificent music. Another 'high art' film that people either love or hate.
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 | The Wizard of Oz
Buy used from: $6.90 In this female version of the Hero's Quest, the heroine starts out thinking she needs the help of somebody powerful, but ultimately discovers that she herself has the power she seeks, she only has to recognize it and use it. :)
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 | Donkey Skin
Buy new: $22.49 / Used from: $12.00 A beautiful princess (Catherine Deneuve) disguises herself as a donkey to escape sexual abuse. Packed with symbolic meaning, this fairytale may lead you to ask: Am I concealing the beauty of my soul under a degraded self-image? And is it now safe for me to let my light shine and be seen?
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 | Rachel Portman - The Little Prince / Rhodes, Garrett, Randle, White, McManners, Carlin, Jones, Zambello, Abell, BBC Concert Opera
Buy new: $11.98 / Used from: $7.89 A child of the stars comes to the Earth, and both learns and teaches that what is essential is invisible to the eye; what is essential can only be seen by the heart. Gorgeous music and settings.
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 | Peter Brook's The Mahabharata
Buy used from: $94.20 Stunning retelling of the great Hindu epic myth.
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 | Spiritual Cinema by Gay Hendricks
Buy new: $12.95 / Used from: $4.00 Written by the founders of the Spiritual Cinema Circle, this book tends to praise movies extravagantly without necessarily giving you a clear idea of what the movie is about. But a few reviews do contain major spoilers.
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 | Reel Spirit: A Guide to Movies That Inspire, Explore and Empower by Raymond Teague
Buy used from: $0.33 Short essays exploring the spiritual themes of 150 movies, plus 2-or-3 line summaries of a couple hundred more. The movies covered are mostly mainstream Hollywood productions, and many of them strike me as more sentimental than spiritual. But maybe that's just me. :) All in all, a valuable resource for finding movies with themes that speak to you.
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