If Steve Carell is to be believed, the people want collapse!

Visions of the Rewilding Renaissance Rewilding Mind & Heart
#1

(cross-posted from the Anthropik forums)

Don’t read this topic if you don’t want Evan Almighty spoilers. I’m giving you several dots’ worth of warning, k? If you spoil yourself, you have only yourself to blame.
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That seems like enough. Okay, so Jason and I just got back from seeing Evan Almighty and MY GOD… (no pun intended) It’s all about how God created this beautiful valley which a politician then worked to destroy and replace with a McMansion development. The river that used to flow through it is dammed up to create a lake.

We’ve all seen the commercials: God asks Evan (Steve Carell, who is hilarious, as usual) to build an ark, everyone thinks he’s crazy, animals are following him around… the really cool part is the ending: it rains, hard, for like two minutes, and then it stops. But that’s just enough to overflow the dam a tiny bit, and since it was cheaply built, that’s enough to destroy it. So this giant wall of water comes flowing down to engulf the whole community, knocking McMansions down and leaving Evan’s Hummer floating at the bottom of the old/new river. Derrick Jensen would be so proud.

The moral of the story is, of course, God hates suburbia. What strikes me as incredible is that this could be in a major motion picture, much less a hugely popular one. The complete destruction of an upscale suburban community is clearly meant to be greeted with applause, not horror as in The Day After Tomorrow. In What a Way to Go, Derrick Jensen suggests that people desperately want collapse, but I didn’t totally believe it until I saw this. What do you guys think? Am I over-analyzing?

#2

Giuli you godless commie pinko, how dareth thou blaspheme any biblical tale!

I think what is happening in Evan Almighty is different from what happens in collapse in various ways: the movie reflects the christian theme of God’s judgement, and then subsequent intervention in human affairs. Because the storms are God’s work, they attract applause ( after all, should respectable citizens boo God’s actions?). Evan is preparing an ark in advance of a spiritual cleansing, the destruction of suburbia is seen in this light. It is doubtful God hates suburbia per se, only that suburbia is where most (Western) people live, so if hummers get caught in the necessary religious rinse cycle, it’s considered all part of the process.

In collapse, the material culture of civilization isn’t going to be swept away in some single cataclysmic rapture, the structures will more likely just rot away over time. Collapse is also not usually seen in terms of purification, but of disintegration, where everything that stands and that is known unravels and dissolves in a disorganized, disjointed way.

#3

Well, yeah, but I agree that the movie almost requires a certain percentage of the populace to want collapse (not necessarily going “back to the Stone Age”, mind you…).

#4
I think what is happening in Evan Almighty is different from what happens in collapse in various ways: the movie reflects the christian theme of God's judgement, and then subsequent intervention in human affairs. Because the storms are God's work, they attract applause ( after all, should respectable citizens boo God's actions?). Evan is preparing an ark in advance of a spiritual cleansing, the destruction of suburbia is seen in this light. It is doubtful God hates suburbia per se, only that suburbia is where most (Western) people live, so if hummers get caught in the necessary religious rinse cycle, it's considered all part of the process.
In the Bible, yes, but [i]Evan Almighty[/i] puts a different spin on it. In the movie, the only thing that gets destroyed is that specific suburban development - which God makes very clear he is unhappy with. (When he's still trying to convince Evan to build the ark, he shows him a vision of this gorgeous valley. Evan asks where they are. God replies, "You don't recognize it? This is Prestige Crest - your home. I thought you'd like to see the original design.")

God knows that the dam was built badly, and was going to collapse, thereby flooding this entire community. He had Evan build the ark to get all the living creatures out in time. God actually does almost nothing to destroy it, aside from making it rain a little bit and giving the ark an extra shove so it’ll slam up against the Capital building at exactly the moment the Evil Politician is trying to pass a bill that will allow development in national forests.

Although the Biblical story on which the movie is based is indeed about God’s judgment, it’s clear in Evan Almighty that God does indeed hate suburbia.

#5

Shit. Now I have to see it.

#6

[quote=“The Prissiest Primitivist, post:4, topic:279”]In the Bible, yes, but Evan Almighty puts a different spin on it. In the movie, the only thing that gets destroyed is that specific suburban development - which God makes very clear he is unhappy with. (When he’s still trying to convince Evan to build the ark, he shows him a vision of this gorgeous valley. Evan asks where they are. God replies, “You don’t recognize it? This is Prestige Crest - your home. I thought you’d like to see the original design.”)

God knows that the dam was built badly, and was going to collapse, thereby flooding this entire community. He had Evan build the ark to get all the living creatures out in time. God actually does almost nothing to destroy it, aside from making it rain a little bit and giving the ark an extra shove so it’ll slam up against the Capital building at exactly the moment the Evil Politician is trying to pass a bill that will allow development in national forests.

Although the Biblical story on which the movie is based is indeed about God’s judgment, it’s clear in Evan Almighty that God does indeed hate suburbia.[/quote]

OK smarty pants, you got me; I haven’t seen the movie , only trailers. ;D
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Admin note: fixed a missing bracket

#7

W00t w00t I am teh smrt!! S-M-R-T smart!!!

#8

T3h Pri55y FTW!!!111one!!

#9

[quote=“Paleo Boy, post:2, topic:279”]Giuli you godless commie pinko, how dareth thou blaspheme any biblical tale!

I think what is happening in Evan Almighty is different from what happens in collapse in various ways: the movie reflects the christian theme of God’s judgement, and then subsequent intervention in human affairs. Because the storms are God’s work, they attract applause ( after all, should respectable citizens boo God’s actions?). Evan is preparing an ark in advance of a spiritual cleansing, the destruction of suburbia is seen in this light. It is doubtful God hates suburbia per se, only that suburbia is where most (Western) people live, so if hummers get caught in the necessary religious rinse cycle, it’s considered all part of the process.

In collapse, the material culture of civilization isn’t going to be swept away in some single cataclysmic rapture, the structures will more likely just rot away over time. Collapse is also not usually seen in terms of purification, but of disintegration, where everything that stands and that is known unravels and dissolves in a disorganized, disjointed way.[/quote]

I am under the pessimist position that civilization won’t end until the earth becomes a dead planet like that of Mars.

#10

Evan Almighty is not a popular movie, and in fact was almost not released. It was the biggest (most expensive) comedy in history, and grossed just under 250 million. It was viewed as a finacial flop (it lost over 350 mill) and was not advertised (as much as movies usually are) to cut costs.
Isanmuch as (srry I just wanted to use that word) far as the whole westren subarbia debate, I would think it was meant as god destroys sin. Not a single person was harmed in the actual flood (as far as I can remember), and yes the mansions were destroyed, but the main thing was god punished those who… well in my interpretation it almost seemed like those who wernt good americans…