MovieChat Forums > The Spitfire Grill (1996) Discussion > Percy Christ?

Percy Christ?

posted 20 years ago by sjberke
13 replies | jump to latest

Having just seen 'Spitfire Grill' on HBO, it seems to me pretty obvious--especially considering who was behind the making of the movie--that Percy was intended as a Christ figure:

Percy of course died to save Eli. That in itself doesn't necessarily make her a Christ figure. But you consider several other things, including:

--Eli's laying of hands on her when they finally meet;

--Nahum's statement at her funeral (BTW, amazing how they were able to spruce up the long-abandoned church so quickly) that, having caused her death, he 'didn't really know her' ("...they know not what they do...");

--the final scene, on a springlike (Easterlike) day when Clare arrives. Clare is about as close as you can get (certainly as close as Gllead is going to get) to Percy come back to life--same age, same poor background, almost same voice--except even better because she has a baby and is fertile. To quote Shelby, "it doesn't take an Einstein" to see Joe and Clare getting together and having the kids Percy couldn't have--thus fulfilling Percy's prophecy to Joe that 'somewhere out there is a woman who's going to be your wife'. Joe and Clare--JC--get it?

That last is probably a bridge too far. And I don't want this comment to be seen as a putdown of the movie--I just am surprised no one else commented on what was so obvious to me. This movie was well made and VERY well acted. If the religious message was a little too blatant for my taste, it's still a lot better message than we've had in most movies made over the last ten years.

(PS--After posting this message I did see another poster refer to Percy as a 'Christ figure'. I didn't think I was the only one who caught that. But I didn't see any reference in any of the customer reviews on this site, or in any of the published reviews [of course, it would have been very difficult for a newspaper or magazine reviewer to comment on this aspect of the film without giving away much of its ending]).

[–] marc_mary_zahn 19 years ago

I've seen this movie (a fav of mine) many, many times and I never caught that. I'm not disagreeing. I just thought it was a beautiful story, well acted and resolved to the end. I liked your commentary; very thought provoking. Could be true.

[–] gonbaoji 19 years ago

I never really thought of Percy as the Christ figure either. Probably those who have seen this movie and like it pull different things out for different reasons.

Percy was starting her life over and in turn helped Eli do the same, through their "distant" contact, friendship, whatever you want to call it. Two people at odds with the world and society as a whole come together in the most peculiar way and help each other. Through this, we see in the movie what changes came about aftewards. Some much much needed changes in the lives of those people.

I used this movie in a English class I taught to teach about the negative effects of judging people, not giving people a fair chance, etc. The students responses were moving and thought provoking.

[–] ulht1 17 years ago

No offense - and I like your use - but there has never been a film not straight up story of Jesus as much the story of Jesus as this one. You can tie every major character in it clearly to one or a combination of the characters in the bible stories of Jesus (Lazarus, Mary Mag., Peter, Judas, etc.) so thoroughly that I tagged and bagged them on the way home with my wife after seeing the film - and I am a long time atheist.

Loved the film by the by!!! And, possible reason for any difficulty in seeing it that way is the story of Lazarus became much more of the film than it was in bible. (If unclear, Eli was Lazarus, his Mom part of the Peter duo (Harden's husband was the other half and Judas).

[–] egward37 19 years ago

I have one more, somewhat "cryptic" note to add to your Percey/Christ analogy (which I am in agreement with). While Christ hung on the cross he cried out, "My God, my God, why hast thou foresaken me?" However in Latin, which the Bible and Mass were laster transated to and used for centuries, that phrase becomes "Eli, Eli, lama sabch thani" (forgive my mispelling of the last portion). Those surrounding the cross said, "Looks he cries out for (the prophet) Elisha to save him!" to which someone else said, "No, he calls to his Father."

All in all, I loved this film.

Just a sidebar: Don't you think Jodie Foster could have also played the role of Percy?

[–] chana2 18 years ago

when i watched Spitfire again today i thought of Foster's voice in Silence of the Lambs - so yeah, i can imagine her in the role. but Elliott was fantastic!

[–] TesubCalle 17 years ago

Let's not forget being wrongly accused and misunderstood by her accusors. As well, Percy brought new life to people like Shelby. Shelby, who was meek and powerless in the shadow of her husband, Nahum, was totally transformed by Percy's friendship.

This one might be a stretch - since it takes place before she even arrives in Gilead - but she tells the astonished diners that first day in the Spitfire that while she was in prison, she only got sent to Solitary Confinement three times...Jesus fell three times on His way to Calvary to be crucified.

SPOILER

And something else - Percy foreshadows her own manner of dying. Jesus told His discples how He was going to die. Percy relates the story of the drunk sailors who capsized the Indian Squaw's canoe to Shelby. She tells how the Squaw's baby sank to the bottom of the river, in spite of the theory that Indian babies could swim from birth. Percy says that the story doesn't say what happened to the mother, but that she figured it was probably best if the mother just drowned, too. Percy, of course, drowns in the river while trying to save Eli from the authorities pursuing him.

While the thought of Percy as 'Christ figure' never entered my mind in such a clear sense, an argument could certainly be made for it.

(I'm sure Percy, herself, wouldn't think she was a Christ figure!)

But there are most definitely religious themes throughout this movie. Such a departure from writer/director Lee Zlotoff's usual fare, like Remington Steele and MacGyver!

Recall when Gary, the country Sheriff, asks Percy why it is she chose Gilead to start over. She asks if there's something wrong with the place, and then mumbles soemthing about the Indian legends about how beautiful the place is, and those ubiquitous Pegmatite rock formations being so bountiful in Gilead...

I found the real answer when she begins to sing 'There is a Balm' out in the meadow. Perhaps Percy thought in some shape or form, she'd find balm for her weary, wounded soul in that town. Her choosing Gilead wasn't random or happenstance - (even though ending up in Maine was.) She truly was looking for healing. She was looking for forgiveness, too, though it seems she doesn't realise she has done nothing that needs pardoning. 'After what I done, it don't matter where I go.' She thought God would never forgive her for breaking her promise to protect her unborn child 'Johnny B.' That tragic event was in no way her fault, since she was powerless to prevent it from happening. With the theme of redemption and innocent suffering bringing about new life and resurrection, Percy does save Johnny B. in the form of Eli. And as was also mentioned in an earlier post, Clare is the new Percy. The name 'Clare' or the alternate spelling, 'Claire' means 'shining light'. Jesus is the Light of the World.

And finally, with Joe's revelation about the research scientist sniffing around the bark of stump growth from trees regenerating after being clear-cut, there truly is a balm in Gilead, at least of a medical nature.

Here is where I start begging for a Director's Cut, if indeed one exists.

[–] pilotom 17 years ago

>As well, Percy brought new life to people like Shelby. Shelby, who was meek
>and powerless in the shadow of her husband, Nahum, was totally transformed by
>Percy's friendship.

Shelby brought new life to the entire town. If you're going to see the movie in religious terms - it's as if she resurrected the town. There's a pretty clear connection made in the movie between Shelby and that forest of trees on Joe's land. Joe and others in the town consider the forest worthless. Percy sees it and thinks it's beautiful. The forest is symbolic of Percy herself. When the people of the town first meet Percy most of them are suspicious and think of her as worthless. By the end of the movie - we've learned that the forest in fact is not worthless and the town of Gilead has learned the true worth of Percy as well - albeit too late for her but not too late to give another young woman a chance.

This is a wonderful, rich film with many levels of meaning. I saw it several times at the theatre and have it on DVD and I never get tired of watching it. Alison Elliot was spectacular. I wish she had done more films after this.

MP

[–] rexb-2 16 years ago

From TesubCalle on Sun Nov 5 2006 -- "She thought God would never forgive her for breaking her promise to protect her unborn child 'Johnny B.' That tragic event was in no way her fault"

Just like Christ who bore no responsibility for personal sin, He took on ALL sin as His own to go to the cross. Bearing the sin of others as His own, His blood was given to redeem others since He didn't need redemption Himself.

[–] c_moore_04 17 years ago

It is possible--anyone ever thought of Eli being Elijah? Who knows. Another thing: she starts out in prison, with what some consider "the lowest of the low", and Christ is often seen with those who were shunned by society.

Of course, some will see it, some won't. While there are lots of religious themes within the film, I don't think anyone could say for sure if Percy is to be a Christ figure.

[–] j8675309 16 years ago

I thought of Eli being Elijah as well. The prophecy of Elijah coming before the Christ is well known. It is also said in the New Testament that John the Baptist (Johnny B) was Christ's Elijah. Eli's first interaction with Percy was leading her to the river.

The balm of Gilead is referred to in the book of Jeremiah, by the prophet himself. "is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician? Why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?" Jer 8:22.

Likewise, the Ishmaelites who take Joseph to Egypt are delivering the balm of Gilead from the trees of that land to Egypt.

Since the character names were so carefully chosen in this story, I started to wonder about Percy. Why Percy? And Shelby? These names seem foreign in comparison to the others: Hannah, Nahum, Eli, etc... Percy is most often considered a masculine name, short for Percival. I started looking up history for the name and recalled Percival was the pure hearted knight from King Arthur's story; which is also laden with Biblical themes. Percival encounters the Fisher King in his quest for the Grail. In the story, the quest for the Grail was initiated to heal the land of Camelot. The Fisher King is a tragic figure who was wounded in battle and suffers lameness and infertility. Though he is the "guardian" of the Grail, he is unable to disclose this unless asked directly. Percy, at first does not ask the direct question, but later returns and asks, healing the king, thus healing his kingdom.

I'm still struggling with Shelby. She is the only visitor to the closed church. She is looked upon as lowly among the people, unable to help in times of hardship, and openly called stupid by her husband. Percy looks at her with the complete opposite opinion. I think I'm going to have to look closely at Nahum to learn more about Shelby, since the author ties them together so closely. Shelby calls Percy a God send.

The resurrection of Percy in the form of Claire on the day of the town's celebration is looking a lot like Easter, as mentioned by another post previously. I'm happy to have found this discussion, since I am attending a workshop discussing this movie next week. I'd love to hear any other thoughts on the subject. I've been looking at the prevailing themes of hope, reconciliation, healing, women, people estranged from their church, Old Testament names, regret, and failure to protect their sons.

Thanks,
Jen

[–] c_moore_04 14 years ago

This may have nothing to do with it, but I just thought of this. The "monogram" of Christ is typically seen as this: http://www.jesuswalk.com/christian-symbols/images/monogram-of-christ384x389vatican.jpg

The "P" certainly stands out. Once again, there may be absolutely nothing to it.

[–] cesca2 17 years ago

I love this movie. I don't see the connection of Percy to Christ, but the movie has a lot of messages that Christ would support. Generousity of spirit, love thy neighbor, redemption and hope.

[–] rexb-2 16 years ago

The truth is that story of Christ is the oldest of stories since the earth was created to accomplish the creation and redemption of man (after he fell to sin as the Lord knew he would). So any story of sacrifice and redemption can be paralleled to the "original" story. In other words, even without any specific connections or parallels to 'match' the Christ story, the very principles of sacrifice and redemption are well established. So a redemption story of any kind will have some of these fundamental elements simply because it must. The Spitfire Grill is a traditional type story so it follows this pattern. Albeit, TSG does a better job of it than most, I agree!! :^) I love this movie.