Often, the great commemorations of Catholicism create an inevitable climate of recollection and spirituality. One, which even includes a good deal of pop culture. It is already traditional that a good part of television and in certain countries of the world, the cinema is full of names of great religious films. Successes that tell, for better or for worse, the connotation of the divine in our lives. Streaming is open ground for another point of view. Especially one that can be shocking and shocking. Netflix movies and series are perfect for this content.
What if you want to see profanity or heretical content? It is a curious decision which also has a complicated, strange and singular relationship with a certain subversive thought. And what better place to find something similar than on the big online platforms? It’s a tour of the best and weirdest of how to understand cinematic language about faith. Also, his way of diving into the human and the divine.
We leave you with five suggestions of blasphemous content that you can see on Netflix at Easter. From films that poke fun at the biggest names in religion, to a series that uses religion for surprising purposes. You will be intrigued by all that the Netflix catalog can show you about this dark side of religion, which you may not yet know enough about.
the warrior nun
Ava (Alba Batista) has a mission. Or at least he stumbled upon her after her death and was resurrected in the midst of an apocalyptic conflict. The series, based on the comic book of the same name by Ben Dunn, tells the story of the eternal struggle between good and evil. But he does it from a different angle, hooligan and, yes, mostly blasphemous.
Much of the Netflix series’ effectiveness lies in the way it uses the symbols of Catholicism in fight and death scenes. Also, in his ability to turn them into a weird combination of weapon versions, defense methods, and a singular version of good.
As if all of the above weren’t enough, even religious orders and heaven itself are badly damaged in the program’s imagination. Angels are more than just celestial envoys and halos are symbols of divinity. In the end, everything about faith ends up being a combination of psychedelic, singular and violent.
Brian’s life
Classic British comedians Monty Python made fun of just about anything. And of course, also religion. Brian’s life, available on the Netflix movie catalog, is a cynically and brutally honest parody of the origins of religion. It also demonstrates the infallible element that made Monty Python famous: his ability to find jokes even in dramatic situations.
Yes Brian’s life it stops for nothing. The story of the other messiah, Brian, runs through the main passages of the Fool and Sarcasm gospels. From a Maria who is notoriously played by a man, to the crucifixion transformed into a musical number. Brian’s life encompasses a sense of profanity that is as brilliant as it is twisted. There are times for all tastes. Pontius Pilate making a mocking crowd laugh with his way of speaking, graffiti with grammar (and Latin) mistakes on the walls. Long discussions of Brian’s divinity and even the Sermon on the Mount, with a line of puzzled listeners in the background.
If Monty Python are known for their ability to make people laugh, this time they use their ingenuity to turn Catholic history into a collection of absurdities. Heretics? Without a doubt. funny? Sure.
The “Da Vinci Code”
Too harmless to appear blasphemous? You might be surprised to learn that the adaptation of the literary bestseller has had a long trip to theaters. One embroiled in controversy, protests from the Vatican and Opus Dei, in addition to claims by Catholic historians for its inaccuracy. The reason for so much scandal? The blasphemous idea about the possibility that Jesus married Mary Magdalene to spawn a long line of divine blood.
The film available in the Netflix catalog, like the book, explores the premises and also reflects on religion from a perspective that a good part of the church considered heretical. Mostly thanks to its characters which included a member of the Vatican establishment capable of dispatching a hitman. Beyond that, the argument dared to show a supposed descendant of Christ walking the path to understand his origin.
Maybe right now the movie doesn’t seem so outrageous. But at the time of its release, it was a battle between titans. The Vatican versus pop culture. One of those rare occasions when the story of a film is even more interesting than the one it tells.
Noah
The Old Testament is reimagined from a blasphemous point of view thanks to the staging of Darren Aronofsky. It was a monumental risk that went wrong, but left a bewildering dark saga for history. When Noah (Russell Crowe) receives a divine mandate to save part of creation from impending doom, he finds it impossible.
How to carry out a mission of such magnitude? The film, available on the Netflix catalog, reflects on a blasphemous level on the disturbing idea of great biblical trials and their obstacles. But beyond that, about the figure of Noah, who from a generous patriarch arrives in the cinema as impatient, almost violent and obsessed.
As if that wasn’t enoughthe film takes the lines of a horror movie at its weirdest moments. From the transformation of angels into fearsome creatures to the doubts of Noah’s family about the supernatural enterprise to carry out. Little by little, the film turns into a combination of very rare versions of good and evil. Also, a long succession of singular glances on human darkness. All along a monstrous scale.
the scary cabin
Grace (Riley Keough) has a dark past in tow. One, moreover, which left him with deep emotional wounds. But as if that were not enough, also a distorted and violent notion about religion. When her stepsons Aidan (Jaeden Martell) and Mia (Lia McHugh) play a malicious game, the horrors in Grace’s mind become monstrous. And all linked to a blasphemous and dreadful view of religion.
The film available on Netflix is disturbing, uncomfortable and with a confusing ending that takes your breath away, is a terrifying version of religion. Also, an eloquent passage on how distortions of faith can create their own monsters. The film, which sometimes even uses humor to tell terrifying moments, is a subtle critique of dogma. At the same time, the ways religion can manifest and how fear is a form of religious control.
Dark, fearsome and violent, the blasphemy in the scary cabin it is also a rare vision of human nature in the face of the impossible.