International Day of Charity is September 5th and if you’ve ever watched a movie that’s made you feel as though you have everything and kind of need to give a little more in your life then you are not alone. Movies are after all made to play on our sensibilities and our responsibility as humans and in many ways they manage to find out just how to hit you right in the feelings where you tend to live for those two hours that you’re in the theater. A lot of times that feeling probably passes the moment you leave the building and head on home, but it might last for a while just because the movie was that great. Honestly it’s not a bad thing to feel charitable since the act of giving to others in need is something quite positive that can change a life and make someone’s day if you just give whatever you can.
Here are a few movies that might make those feelings of charity warm up a bit.
5. Money Monster
Charity and money seem to go hand in hand sometimes since in this movie when a big company promises to be a multi-billion dollar winner it crashes suddenly when someone tampers with it and everyone that invested in it loses everything. One man decides to take his anger out on the host of the show that promoted the company and in doing so attempts to recoup his losses. When the culprit is finally found however the gunman is still fatally shot and the story ends on a rather mixed note since the man responsible for the crash is brought up on charges while the company is put under investigation.
4. Schindler’s List
This movie is a sad, sad story that is still inspiring since Schindler did what he could to save as many Jews during war time as he possibly could and still felt that he didn’t do enough. When his business was good and things were going well everything was fine and he didn’t think a thing about it. But when the Jews were being slaughtered he finally realized just what was at stake and started taking measures to insure that as many people as he could help save would be ferried to safety in any way possible. Yet for all that he still felt that he didn’t do enough. Yet the point of it is that if you save one life, you save the world.
3. The Help
The women in this film cooked, cleaned, took care of the children of the women they worked for, and were still regarded as second-class citizens by most. Only one among them seemed to feel the need to stand up and tell their story, and she did in such a way that the city of Jackson was likely never the same again since the dirty underbelly of the city was revealed in all its hideous glory. Skeeter, along with Aibileen, Minny, and all the maids they managed to convince to help write the book, turned a corner in Jackson that ruffled a lot of feathers but made a great point, that these women were more than just the help, they were human beings that deserved their recognition.
2. Forrest Gump
Ever notice how Forrest just kind of glided along in life like that feather you see in the opening credits? He didn’t have a singular purpose it seemed, though he did more in a single lifetime than many would ever think of doing in two or three. He made his way into the lives of so many and created so many great moments in his own life that one could hardly imagine a richer, more full existence. And yet he was so oblivious to so much of it. He wasn’t stupid to be honest, but he didn’t want much and he could make do with very little if he had to. He just didn’t want to be called stupid.
1. Field of Dreams
It’s tough when you have a goal in mind, a drive that you need to follow, but no one else seems to see it. People might say they understand and try to follow it, but still a lot of them might be there in spirit but not in the way that’s needed. That driving echo that a lot of us feel in the depths of our heart is maddening at times since it tells us things that we don’t fully understand but still try to act on. What it’s telling is hard to know at times, but if you sit still and listen long enough you might actually get an inkling of what needs to happen. Then you might have an idea of how Ray was feeling throughout the movie.
Being charitable is more than just giving what’s in your wallet, it’s giving yourself to whatever cause or purpose that might be calling to you.
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