Movies You Might Have Missed Monday

You’ve heard of the Man Who Knew Too Much, but have you heard of The Man Who Knew Too Little? Well, that’s Bill Murray in a movie of the same name from 1997. And it’s hilarious.

Bill plays Wallace Ritchie, an average Joe from Des Moines, IA who flies to London, England on his birthday in order to surprise his brother, an up-and-coming finance banker, living there. Problem is, brother James, played by Peter Gallagher, has important investors coming over for dinner and having Wally around just wouldn’t be a wise idea, as we soon find out why. So, figuring out a way to get Wally out of the house for a few hours, James signs his brother up for the Theatre of Life, a reality television program that plunges the ‘contestant’ into a dramatic situation that expects them to ad lib through a virtual adventure. It starts with a phone call. Instructions are given to get the ball rolling, then the rest is a glorified evening of Improv.

James takes Wallace to the prescribed public phone booth and waits with him to get the phone call. But a group of spies and assassins happen to be using the same phone booth, and their call comes in first. James and Wallace believe that’s the Theatre of Life call they’ve been waiting for. So Wally dives into a world of murder and mayhem, all the while believing everything is an act. His unintentional ignorance creates laugh after laugh.

With the help of Alfred Molina, Joanne Whalley, and other satellite characters, Bill Murray follies his way to saving the world without even realizing it.

I like this movie mostly because I laugh every time I watch it. But it also gets me thinking. Wally’s able to accomplish what he does because all his actions are free of fear due to the fact that he believes it is all make-believe. Short of ignoring the realness of real life (we shouldn’t be ostriches with our heads in the sand), how different would life be if we lived it without fear? Throughout Scripture, God is encouraging us, imploring us, not to fear. Maybe that’s because He knows how potential blossoms when freed of fear.

So in a way, Wally’s an inspiration. He’s also a great source of entertainment.

Check out The Man Who Knew Too Little! And Happy Movie Watching, Dry Ground friends.

(photo by photobucket.com)