Arken

Last night, I saw the new documentary Spellbound (not to be confused with the classic Hitchcock film of the same name) about nine of the competitors in the U.S. National Spelling Bee finals. It's a terrific film, one which had more suspense than any of the so-called action films this year too... but I didn't plan on discussing the merits of the film here since I know this is not the right forum... however, I will be giving spoilers about the film, so if you haven't seen it and you're worried about me revealing what I think might actually spoil the film for some people, please do not continue reading.

What is interesting about the film from a religious standpoint is that several of the kids represented were very religious... there are two Indian kids, one a Hindu and one a Christian and a black girl from the inner city who is some sort of Christian denomination (I assume from the way she talked). The Indian boy who is a Christian was the expected winner of the Spelling Bee. He was a homeschooled kid who was such a fundie that he signed autographs with 'Trust in Jesus.' Unfortunately for him, he only came in fourth place.

The Hindu boy both prayed and meditated constantly and we were told that his grandfather had paid 1000 people back in India to pray for him to win. He got into the top 20, but lost.

The Christian girl, who I admit I was rooting for simply because she was the most disadvantaged and had the most to gain, described herself as a 'prayer machine' and said she prayed constantly. She only made it through the first few rounds.

It was very interesting how the idea of prayer came up again and again in the film only to show that prayer does not let you succeed. The girl who does end up winning is also Indian but shows no clear religious interest, nor do her parents. There are no religious symbols in the house and at the end when talking to reporters, she says that she wants to go on to be a neurosurgeon or physicist. I suppose you could say that the 'power of prayer' was defeated by rational thought.

Has anyone else seen this film? Do you have any comments on the religious aspects of it?