Christmas on the Screen by John A. Zukowski

Author:John A. Zukowski [Zukowski, John A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Performing Arts, Film, Guides & Reviews, Religion, Holidays, Christmas & Advent, Social Science, Sociology of Religion
ISBN: 9780829821222
Google: Fj-LzgEACAAJ
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: PILGRIM Press
Published: 2021-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY AND REVELATION IN THE DESERT

Although set in the ancient world, The Little Drummer Boy (1968) shows similar concerns expressed in modern Christmas movies. That includes commercial exploitation, the idolization of money, and business forces that endanger community and family. However, there’s an intense brutality in The Little Drummer Boy, with merciless Roman soldiers, murderous marauders, and dangerous thieves. But there also is the redeeming figure of a newborn messiah who draws the disenfranchised to himself, senses the purity of love, and heals and corrects acts of violence. Mostly set in the barren and hostile desert at the time of the birth of Jesus, The Little Drummer Boy shows a world stripped to its most basic elements of both savage cruelty and redemptive unselfish love.

The central figure is Aaron, an orphan shepherd boy who roams the desert wilderness with his three animal friends. The devious entrepreneur Ben Haramed, like Professor Hinkle in Frosty the Snowman, views others only for financial benefit. He spots Aaron playing a drum as the animals dance and sees the commercial potential. He tries to coax Aaron with promises of making money if he performs for people. But Aaron feels no desire to make other people happy. “I hate people, all people,” Aaron says. “And you think I love people?” Haramed answers him. “What a beautiful world it would be without people.”

The ancient world in Little Drummer Boy (1968) is brutal and makes Aaron misanthropic, with only animals for friends. However, the Christ child reviving his dying lamb restores his faith. Photo courtesy Rankin-Bass/Everett Collection.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.