Ignace de Loyola

The most earnest moment in Ignacio De Loyola comes from a scene where the eponymous saint asks a prostitute to visualize God sat on an empty chair and think of the things that He would say to her. She replies with:, "He doesn't care who I was or where I've been, He only cares where I'm going." And in those words, the essence of the film is captured – no one is too far gone in God's eyes. Just like a sword forged in fire, St. Ignatius is hammered with blows of misfortunes that disguise as a trajectory towards his greatest achievement – The Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Paolo Dy's Ignacio De Loyola humanizes a saint's life beyond a piece of a holy statue. It works as an invitation to examine oneself, a challenge to "set the world on fire" with God's fervor.

Born into a regal and wealthy family, Iñigo López de Loyola (Andreas Muñoz) is a proud Spanish knight who draws chief delight in his military profession, a young man who pursuits a life of fame and vanity. Instead of earning his desire for a hero's death during a battle in Pamplona, he ends up crippled when a French cannonball shatters his right leg. Boredom and frustration starts to seep through his soul in a way pain does to one's body so he forces himself to read the books he has at hand: The Life of the Christ and The Lives of the Saints. After a spiritual calling compels him to live a life bound by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, he is faced with allegations of blasphemy, and plagued by his inner demons, which he has to conquest as he tries to listen to the voice of God.

Dy and his wife Cathy Azanza's script exudes some flashes of brilliant poetry. It even surprises with a handful moments of humor and some lines which I hope are inspired by Sun Tzu's Art of War. (one of which is "If your enemy is angry, then you have already won.") However, it has the tendency to oversell its message that at times the dialogues seem to be mere discussions of theology. The excessive third person narrations are also occasionally distracting. Narrations like "Iñigo dons his new armor, he opens the door…" assumes that the audience is blind to acknowledge what is happening on-screen. It is squandering Muñoz, who is already an excellent actor, for the script to spell out his every single emotion.

While it is a smart choice to focus on a certain phase in Iñigo's life – his conversion from being a sinner to a saint – the film is yearning for a more solid story. The first half has a slow pace and you can tell it as the days are evidently passing by. As the story trudges along Iñigo's early life as a soldier, his conversion, his Spiritual Exercises and his encounter with The Inquisition, the plot structure suddenly looks strange when it gets to the blood-curling climax which actually happens on a flashback (or is it a dream sequence? I'm confused up till now). The story doesn't really need to be that linear, however, the over-reliance on flashbacks breaks the emotional momentum when it gets back to the present.

While Dy's efforts to handle such a gargantuan religious biopic occasionally fall apart, Ignacio De Loyola manages to deliver its greatest gift to its audience – the deep understanding for discernment. Our souls are continually drawn into two directions: towards goodness and towards sinfulness but if we peel away the many layers of our desires, fears and ambitions, we'll find God there. Hence, every word and every action should be done for His greater glory. The analogy of the Ignatian spirituality and watching a movie is really not that hard to follow. In the cinemas, you will be faced to choose between the two: a mainstream film or a religious film full of philosophical and theological substance.

Full review: http://www.filmpolicereviews.com/reviews/ignacio-de- loyola

This is a Jesuit production on the life of their founder Ignatius of Loyola. As the son of a wealthy family, and after reading the Lives of the Saints, the young Ignatius decided to follow in the footsteps of S.t Francis of Assisi and travel from town to town as a beggar after giving away all of his possessions. The film is well made with good actors and depending on your particular religious background (I am a lapsed Catholic), your appreciation for this movie will vary from wonderment to disbelief. I am somewhere in between.

The Father and the Son are the Parents of the Holy Spirit, if many churches are correct. The Trinity is a Family-- two Parents and a Progeny, if many churches are correct. In the Book of Job which is part of the bible, the Lord is compared to a father and also a mother with a womb. "From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens"--Job 38:29. Saying that the "Father and the Son are the Parents of the Holy Spirit" is simply another way of saying that the Holy Spirit "proceeds from the Father and the Son" which has been official Catholic Church teaching for centuries. According to the Catholic Church, the Son is begotten from the Father. If this is true, the Father is the Father (Parent) of the Son. According to the Church, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. If this is true, the Father and the Son are the Parents of the Holy Spirit. Of course, the scriptures are vague if the Holy Spirit is the 3rd or 1st or 2nd Person of the Trinity--whichever of these is true, the First Person and the Second Person may be the Parents of the Third. Parent definition 1a from Merriam-Webster dictionary: one that begets or brings forth offspring.

If you're expecting a documentary that explains the life of St. Ignatius in detail, complete with direct quotes, references, and biblical passages, you will be disappointed. If you're expecting a film on how to be a perfect and holy Christian, you will be disappointed. Just as the filmmakers took many risks to create this film, watching it will be a risk to you... You risk crying a little, laughing a little... You risk asking questions you might not have asked in a long time... You risk remembering painful memories -- losing a job, a heartbreak, a serious illness, a humiliating moment, the death of a loved one... You risk spending time discussing and arguing with your friends afterwards over coffee... You might even risk putting down your phone and praying again. I strongly encourage everyone to see this film. At the very least, you risk having a good day. At best, you just might figure out how to live a good life.

Rich guys "leaving" their riches to "become poor" are all frauds: their self-inflicted poverty is a show they put on to get powet using the misery of the actual poor, who, unlike them, cannot switch off their poverty at will and return to a life of confort, freedom and influence.

What they should rather do is actually give away money and then use their power to enable others to be self-sufficient in business and politics, to find their voice and the strength to do something of value.

But, from Buddha to Loyola and to Bush, the fraud has been consistent and consistently told by corrupt prophets, media and film people. Don't be fooled you too.