David Godwin - The Jacket - (In-class Movie #4)

When we watched The Jacket in class, we discussed the main character, Jack, as a Christ-like figure. Although Jack’s story does not perfectly coincide with that of Christ’s, I think His journey presents an overall message of unconditional love and self-sacrifice. The Bible discusses Christ as a bridegroom, and the church as his wife. Christ’s interaction with His followers then is like a love story. Just as Jack sacrifices His life for Jackie, so did Christ sacrifice His life for the world. Thus, His walk on the earth is much like Jack’s life in real-time. When Christ lived on earth with his disciples, he saw them the same way that Jack saw Jackie as a child. They were to Christ, as she was to Jack, young and immature. However, in both situations, a sacrifice allowed them to grow and become beautiful new creations. After Christ died, according to His promise, He waited in heaven and prepared a room for them there. Imagine too Christ’s ability to be able to look into the hearts of men He was ministering to. He would have been able to look into the future and see who these people would have become without his sacrifice. In the same way, Jack travels in the drawer to see the older Jackie who is ruined by the neglect and abuse in her childhood. In both cases, I think, these men were moved with compassion to sacrifice themselves so that the future would change for these people. I saw Jack’s last entrance into the drawer as his entrance into heaven as well. When he gets there he sees the new Jackie, the way that she appears after his sacrifice helped to change her life. Just as Jack enters into this other dimension to have a love relationship with the woman he’s helped to change, so did Christ get to enjoy heaven with the disciples who became beautiful because of His sacrifice.