The Most Spiritually Literate Films of 2008

This year we have added a new category to our annual film awards: The Five Most Spiritually Literate Animated Films. Some amazing things are happening in this genre, and it is no longer limited to children's fare. Adults will enjoy and be challenged by the themes of this year's animated films. Here are powerful spiritual messages conveyed through the story of a robot who falls in love, the tale of a caring elephant on a mission of mercy, an adventure story about a kind-hearted mouse, a chilling account of a massacre in Lebanon, and a defense of protesters of the Vietnam.

We were impressed with the variety of characters in our Ten Most Spiritually Literate Films of 2008. They model different aspects of a fully realized life: a sister whose troubles are assuaged by the compassion that comes her way, two poor women who realize their connection with life, an enthusiastic woman, a professor whose closed-off heart is opened, a charismatic gay activist, a young girl who experiences the healing power of love, two religious leaders struggling with their faith, an angry old man whose heart is softened, an oddball outsider who gives all he's got, and a vagabond from India whose love remains true.

Many of our choices for The Ten Most Spiritually Literate Foreign Language Films did not open widely in the United States. That is why you should keep up with our weekly batch of DVD reviews so you don't miss seeing them. Some of the themes covered in this crop of excellent films include friendship, grace, hospitality, devotion to God, personal transformation, the Sufi path of the heart, and others.

Each year, it is harder and harder to choose the best documentaries since there are so many top-drawer releases. This year's selections covered such serious topics as the values of community and self-sacrifice, the global war over water, and Church-sanctioned violence against the Jews throughout history. Some of the truly remarkable people profiled include Liberian women nonviolent activists, an African-American topiary artist, prison inmates who meditate, elderly singers who tour as a choir, survivors of Hurricane Katrina, a highwire walker, and a 13-year-old boy with Down Syndrome preparing for his bar mitzvah.

Our look back at the best spiritual films of 2008 concludes with Ten More Spiritually Literate Films and more characters worth your time and interest: a man who experiences a miracle, a lonely wrestler, an idealistic Jiu-Jitsu teacher, a young woman who plunges into poverty, a woman from Bangladesh living in England, a former President and his interviewer, and a loser whose life is transformed by a simple practice. Rounding out the list are a story about beauty in everyday life, a black comedy about our crazy times, and an old-fashioned adventure story and romance.

COMPASSION
Rachel Getting Married (Sony Pictures Classics) is a powerful family drama that reveals when forgiveness is hard, compassion is a healing balm.

CONNECTIONS
Frozen River (Sony Pictures Classics) is a memorable story about the power of synchronicity to change peoples lives by helping them realize their connection to the great web of life.

ENTHUSIASM
Happy-Go-Lucky (Miramax) is one of the best portraits of an enthusiastic person ever put on the screen.

HOSPITALITY
The Visitor (Starz/Anchor Bay) is a touching and impressive drama that depicts the way a professor's closed-off heart is opened by music, friendship, and love.

JUSTICE
Milk (Focus Features) is a superlative biopicture about the gay activist who spoke truth to power and worked around the clock for the rights of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender individuals.

LOVE
The Secret Life of Bees (Fox Searchlight) is a heart-affecting screen version of a deeply spiritual novel about the healing and transforming power of love.

OPENNESS
Doubt (Miramax) is a brilliantly acted and thought-provoking drama about faith, openness, certainty, and not knowing.

TRANSFORMATION
Gran Torino (Warner Bros.) centers around an angry, lonely, bigoted old man whose his heart is softened through his relationships with members of a Hmong immigrant family who live next door.

YOU
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Paramount Pictures) depicts the wild and wonderful adventures of an oddball outsider with a strange physical condition who makes the most out of his journey through life.

YEARNING
Slumdog Millionaire (Fox Searchlight) is a phantasmagorical movie directed filled with dazzling and varied sights of India, characters we can identify with and cheer for, and a jubilant message about destiny and love.

BEAUTY
Caramel (Lion's Gate) is about five women in a beauty salon in Beirut struggling to find their small share of happiness as they buckle under societal and religious pressures.

FAITH
My Father My Lord (Kino Video) is a parabolic Israeli film which speaks volumes about the nature of devotion to God.

GRACE
Stellet Lichte (Silent Light) (Mantarraya Productions) is a deeply spiritual drama set in rural Mexico about Mennonite farmers, adultery, and the grace of God.

HOSPITALITY
The Year My Parents Went on Vacation (Gullane Films) is an touching Brazilian film about the spiritual rewards of hospitality experienced by an abandoned and lonely young boy.

LOVE
4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days (IFC Films) is a riveting and realistic Romanian film about an abortion and a young woman who proves that friendship is the crown of life.

MEANING
I Served the King of England (Sony Pictures Classics) is a robust and ribald picaresque tale told with comic élan and philosophical panache.

OPENNESS
The Edge of Heaven (Anka Film) depicts the messy and complicated feelings connected with familial love, commitments, and dealing with strangers.

TEACHERS
The Class (Sony Pictures Classics) is a rounded and revealing portrait of a French teacher in a multiracial Parisian school and the challenges he faces in the classroom.

TRANSFORMATION
I've Loved You For So Long (Sony Pictures Classics) is a literate and lithe French drama about the spiritual transformation of a woman who has spent 15 years in prison.

YEARNING
Bab'Aziz - The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul (Typecast Films) is an enchanting and parabolic film by Tunisian director Nacer Khemir about the beauty, grace, humility, and love of the Sufi path of the heart.

JUSTICE
Chicago 10 (Paramount Pictures) is an unusual documentary about protesters against the Vietnam War with an important message about defending dissent and free speech.

KINDNESS
Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! (20th Century Fox) is a joyous and kind-hearted romp with Horton the caring elephant who is on a mission of mercy for the small ones.

QUESTING
The Tale of Despereaux (Universal Pictures) is an absolutely wonderful screen version of a Newbery Award-winning children's book about courage, love, light, and forgiveness.

SHADOW
Waltz with Bashir (Sony Pictures Classics) is a chilling Israeli animated documentary that revolves around the 1982 massacre of 3000 unarmed Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.

TEACHERS
WALL.E (Pixar Animation Studios) is the tender and touching story of a lonely robot on Earth who falls in love and becomes a spiritual teacher to all who encounter him.

ATTENTION
Man on Wire (Magnolia) is a compelling documentary about Philippe Petit's sensational walk on a wire between the World Trade Center Twin Towers in 1974 and the missteps he made on earth afterwards.

BEAUTY
A Man Named Pearl (Tentmakers Entertainment) is an extraordinary documentary about a African-American topiary gardener and a community that has been brought to life by his artistry, enthusiasm, and generosity.

DEVOTION
Praying with Lior (First Run Features) is an emotionally rich documentary about the bar mitzvah of a spiritually vibrant 13-year-old boy with Down Syndrome.

HOSPITALITY
Constantine's Sword (First Run Features) is a poignant and passionately presented depiction of church-sanctioned violence against Jews throughout history.

JUSTICE
Flow (Oscilloscope Pictures) explores the global war over water and the progress being made by activists against multinational corporations seeking to exploit and privatize this precious resource.

JUSTICE
Trouble the Water (Elsewhere Films) is a riveting documentary about some African-American survivors of Hurricane Katrina.

NURTURING
Young@Heart (20th Century Fox) a very entertaining documentary about a senior citizen chorus that reveals singing as a spiritual practice that opens our hearts, provides fresh energy, and connects us with others.

PEACE
The Dhamma Brothers (Balcony Releasing) focuses on inmates at an Alabama prison who do a 10-day silent meditation retreat which opens them to the experience of inner peace and compassion.

PEACE
Pray the Devil Back to Hell (Balcony Releasing) is the stirring and hopeful account of Liberian women who as creative and nonviolent activists brought peace to their country in 2003.

UNITY
Stranded: I've Come from a Plane that Crashed on the Mountains (Zeitgeist Films) is an impressive meditation on the values of community, self-sacrifice, and loving cooperation needed for survival.

HOPE
Henry Poole Is Here (Freestyle Releasing) is a deeply spiritual movie about miracles, hope, love, and living in the present.

LOVE
August Evening (Maya Entertainment Group) is a shooting star of a movie that stirs us with its many different textures of beauty — in its characters, in their words and deeds, and in the natural world.

LOVE
The Wrestler (Fox Searchlight) is a compelling and poignant anatomy of one over-the-hill man's encounter with the excruciating pain and isolation of loneliness.

MEANING
Redbelt (Sony Pictures) is a riveting drama in which the ethics and rigorous idealism of a gifted Jiu-Jitsu teacher are challenged.

QUESTING
Wendy and Lucy (Oscilloscope Pictures) is a compassionate account of an enterprising young woman on her way to Alaska to find work who falls into peril due to a series of unforeseen circumstances beyond her control.

SHADOW
Burn After Reading (Focus Features) is a clever black comedy by the Coen brothers that pokes fun at some of the obsessions of our frantic times including surveillance, cosmetic surgery, physical fitness, and adultery.

TRANSFORMATION
Australia (20th Century Fox) is a spellbinding, old-fashioned adventure story and romantic drama with many magical moments of high drama, emotional catharsis, and awesome cinematic beauty.

YOU
Brick Lane (Sony Pictures Classics) is a poetic and sensitive drama about a Bangladesh village girl's life in England and her valiant struggle to stand on her own in the world with a full and grateful heart.

YOU
Frost/Nixon (Universal Pictures) is a fascinating and riveting film about a television personality and a former President who share a dependence on others for respect.

ZEAL
Yes Man (Warner Bros.) is a frolicsome spiritual comedy about a loser whose life is turned around by opening himself up to a new world of wild possibilities by saying yes to what presents itself.