Integral Movie Nights

Please join us every Tuesday for Integral Movie Night:
Tuesday’s 6:00 PM UTC (10:00 AM PT, 1:00 PM ET, 19:00 Central European Time)
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88549179610
José Soutelinho from Portugal gave us wonderful suggestions for movies for stage referencing. I (Martin) added the movies with an *. You also find other movies that fit our modules.
Some Movies are multi-level, some show characters at different levels clashing with each other, some show how characters are transforming from one level to the next over a longer period of time (e.g. “Groundhog Day” and “7 Years in Tibet”).
You may also recognize if characters do better integration by becoming healthier at their level, e.g. Jack Nicholson in “As Good As It Gets”, or if they truly go through a transformation which usually takes many years.
If you have additional suggestions, please share them with me in the format below (and say why you suggest them).
If you only watch two Movies I suggest “Cloud Atlas” (also a great book) and “American Beauty”.

Module 1 – her
The four dimensions of relating
“Who are you? What can you be? Where are you going? What’s out there? What are the possibilities?”
They then introduce the first artificially intelligent operating system, an intuitive entity that listens to you, understands you, and knows you. It’s not just an operating system, it’s a consciousness. It’s OS1.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1798709/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne6p6MfLBxc

Module 2 – Into the Wild
Survival, magic, and power in love relationships
After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 in savings to charity, and eventually hitchhikes to Alaska to “live off the land” in the wilderness where he eventually perishes.
Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters at different levels of first-tier consciousness that shape his perspectives, as he seemingly regresses from an arguably “egocentric” to a pure survival “archaic” level.

Module 3 – Same Time, Next Year
Mythic conformism and modern rationality in love relationships
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078199/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3U2LbkkkPM

Module 4 – Captain Fantastic
Postmodern pluralistic sensitivity in love relationships
This movie fits our exploration of the Green pluralistic “sensitive self” Stage 6 this week, with all its beauty and advancements, but also with its challenges, performative contradictions, and pre-trans fallacies.
In the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a postmodern father who escaped the Orange materialistic and Blue/Amber mythic law and order stages is devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education.
Eventually, he is forced to leave his paradise and face the world that he tried so hard to escape, while challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3553976/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1kH4OMIOMc

Module 5 – American Beauty
Integral and transpersonal love relationships
This is one of the most integral movies and highly recommended if you want to understand levels of consciousness development. On the surface, it is about the breakdown and disintegration of a middle-class American family. We will see how people with five different worldviews (magical, egocentric, conformist, rational, and pluralistic) get into irresolvable conflicts with each other, and how an Integral person critically embraces them all.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0169547/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly7rq5EsTC8

Module 6 – Gandhi
Compassionate communication
I sometimes say (half)-jokingly that if I would be King of the World, everyone would have to watch the movie Gandhi twice a year.
Steven Covey turned me on to Gandhi in the late 90’s. Reading his Biography “Gandhi: A Life” by Yogesh Chadha https://www.amazon.com/GANDHI-Life-Yogesh-Chadha/dp/0471350621 was instrumental for my transition into the Green Pluralistic stage of development. Winning eight Oscar’s, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Ben Kingsley), Best Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, and Best Film Editing, the life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest is a deeply inspiring movie and fitting for our Module #6: Non-Violent Communication.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083987/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7I6D3mSYTE

Module 7 – The Invention of Lying
Need-Based communication
As an Integral Relationship writer/author, and my primary Love Language being words, I am naturally interested in concepts such as belief, knowing, truth, honesty, truthfulness, rightness, validity, communication, understanding, agreement, intimacy (in-to-me-you-see) and how they impact our love relationships, and their opposites such as untruths and lying.
So “The Invention of Lying”, which is a painfully half-romantic comedy that touches on these and other subjects like the primary fantasies, is right down my alley.
Some of the questions we may explore after watching the movie include:
– What would happen if we would always truthfully share what we think and feel, and never lie or be untruthful?
– What happens if we truly believe things that are not true?
– What is truth anyway and how can we know it?
– Why do people believe different things to be true?
– Why do we lie?
– Are white lies OK?
– Does lying serve some purpose, such as being kind or not hurting others?
– Do we really want others to be totally honest?
– Is radical honesty the best way to go through life and creating a better world?
– Should we only say what is true, truthful, kind, and necessary?
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1058017
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhRnmyBjOLs

Module 8 – The Imitation Game
Integral and transpersonal communication
Join us to watch and discuss this fascinating movie about Alan Turing (1912 – 1954), a mathematical genius who is widely considered to be the father of theoretical computer science and artificial intelligence. In it, we see many examples of relational and communicational challenges.
During World War II, Turing tries to crack the German Enigma code with the help from fellow mathematicians by building what was later called “a computer”.
Considered by some to have been autistic (Asperger’s syndrome) he proposed an experiment that became known as the Turing test, an attempt to define a standard for a machine to be called “intelligent”. The idea was that a computer could be said to “think” if a human interrogator could not tell it apart, through conversation, from a human being.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2084970/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuPZUUED5uk

Module 9 – The Red Pill
Biological Differences and Learned Gender Roles
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3686998/
For a detailed article see: https://www.mercurynews.com/2016/11/08/bay-area-filmmakers-new-film-the-red-pill-is-a-bitter-one-for-feminists-to-swallow/

Module 10 – Little Miss Sunshine
Avoiding the Fear – Shame Downward Spiral
On one side, this is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. On the other side, it shows the struggle of the men, including their shame, to succeed professionally, and the fears of the two female characters in the movie around safety and beauty.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449059/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvwVkllXT80

Module 11 – The Tree Of Life
Feminine-Masculine Polarities
This is one of these slow and at times confusing movies that I could not get out of my head after I saw it the first time, and I have watched it several times since then.
After some thought, I decided to offer it for movie night, because it fits our Anima-Animus and other Modules.
The Tree of Life is a 2011 American experimental epic drama film written and directed by Terrence Malick and featuring Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, and Jessica Chastain. The film chronicles the origins and meaning of life by way of a middle-aged man’s childhood memories of his family living in 1950s Texas, interspersed with imagery of the origins of the known universe and the inception of life on Earth. The eldest son (Jack/Sean Penn) witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents’ conflicting teachings.
My biggest take-aways from the movie are how our childhood experiences, especially in relationship to our close family, forms who we are as adults and the existential questions that is raises.
It also shows conflicts between the Mythic Blue/Amber and Rational Orange stage, and a “patriarchal marriage”.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0478304/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrAz1YLh8nY

Module 12 – I Heart Huckabees
Spiritual Development
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0356721/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eOLOmCjRPY

Module 13 – Bliss
Sexual Development
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118742/

Module 14 – Marriage Story
Anima Animus Complex Development
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7653254/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHi-a1n8t7M

Module 15 – Love Actually
Love Languages
But it also painfully shows the misguided shallow notion that all it takes to enter into a happy relationship is to muster up the courage to say “I love you”. Similar to “He’s Just Not That Into You” and other similar movies, the protagonists have nothing visibly in common such as values, interests, or passions, beyond having a (hormonal) crush on each other and being in a rational stage of development. Other things that I more critically notice now are the objectification of women, sexist references to the people’s weight, suggestions and attempts to repress feelings, and the strange “relationship” between Peter and his best friend’s new wife. The movie is also subtly Anti-American.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0314331/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9Z3_ifFheQ

Module 16 – Winnie the Pooh
Enneagram Types
The Enneagram According to Pooh: https://theenneagraminbusiness.com/fascinating-or-fun/the-enneagram-according-to-pooh/
The Enneagram in the Movies (and a little TV): https://foldedandunfolding.wordpress.com/2016/01/11/the-enneagram-in-the-movies-and-a-little-tv/
Other Enneagram Movies: https://enneagrammaine.com/the-movie-list/

Module 17 – As Good As It Gets
Attachment Styles
See how bonding with his neighbor’s dog and falling in love with Carol transforms the obsessive-compulsive, egocentric, cynic, manipulative wordsmith Melvin to become more compassionate, let down his guard, and confess to Carol “you make me want to be a better man”. In turn, we see how she struggles with setting healthier boundaries and communicating her needs.
Let’s discuss the states (from lust/desire to commitment), forms (intimacy, passion, dependence), and capacity to love that they experience, and if we think their romance has the potential for a healthy love relationship.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119822/
https://youtu.be/rrRl2QQKkI8

Module 18 – Anger Management
The Unconscious

Module 19 – Good Will Hunting
Healing our Shadow
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119217/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaZVjZEFkRs

Module 20 – When Harry Met Sally
States of Falling in Love
Join Martin to watch and discuss this classic, beautiful, brainy, touching, and revealing romantic comedy. We will see college graduates Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) and Sally Albright (Meg Ryan) discuss whether men and women can ever truly be strictly platonic friends, and 10 years later trying to form a friendship without sex becoming an issue between them.

Module 21 – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Personality Disorders
Though she’s never given a mental health diagnosis in the movie, Clem is a good representation of a person with a borderline personality disorder. As the movie progresses, we see that some of the “free-spirited” behaviors she exhibits are indicative of some deeper issues.
The central conflict in the movie arises from the existence of a procedure that can erase memories — a procedure Clementine and Joel undergo to forget about each other.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338013/

Module 22 – Quest for Fire
Sharing your Biological Purpose

Module 23 – Cloud Atlas
Transcendental Purpose
In a more subtle way, we will also notice that Robert Frobisher’s Cloud Atlas composition will be heard as an (1) initial piano performance, (2) a symphony, (3) a rendition by a jazz sextet, (4) nursing-home Muzak, (5) futuristic Korean street music, (6) a solemn hymn sung by a hoard of clones.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1371111/?ref_=ttfc_fc_tt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWnAqFyaQ5s

Module 24 – Groundhog Day
Soulmates
Join us for new insights during, and discussions after the movie.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107048/

Module 25 – Inside Bill’s Brain
Co-Creation at the Seven Chakras
Let’s watch and discuss a Netflix documentary about passion, purpose, and making the world a better place in partnerships with others/with a partner. No matter what we may personally think about Bill Gates, I find this series utterly inspiring. We will see how Bill lived his calling early on (to solve problems or absent absences), how he co-created with others, how he seemingly became more compassionate, how he met his wife Melinda, how they co-create in their foundation, and how he is now driven to make the world a better place. We will see his triumphs and even more so his failures and how he deals with both. Utterly fascinating and inspiring (to me).
Join us for new insights during, and discussions after the movie.

Module 26 – Idiocracy
Path to Healthy Relationships and Why they Matter
In Idiocracy we see why co-creation and procreation in healthy Integral love relationships not only matter for our own well-being and development but even more so for a peaceful and sustainable future for humanity. Unfortunately, we now increasingly see that this movie is not a joke, but becomes reality in front of our very eyes. Let’s discuss the political, social, and ecological implications of people at post-conventional levels of consciousness procreating much less than people at earlier levels and how it impacts our future.
Stage 5 -> 1 – 127 Hours by Danny Boyle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlhLOWTnVoQ
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1542344/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 2 – Quest For Fire by Jean Jacques Annaud
https://youtu.be/EOtOkNgdZTU
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082484/?ref_=nm_ov_bio_lk1
(Netflix) * Stage 2/5 Room by Lenny Abrahamson (Cognitive Prison)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_Ci-pAL4eE
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3170832/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 3 – Natural Born Killers by Oliver Stone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVizhLGaEmk
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110632/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 4 – Rabbit Proof Fence by Phillip Noyce
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbnk8wSVMaM
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0252444/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
(Netflix) * 3 -> 4 – Seven Years in Tibet by Jean-Jacques Annaud
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSyr_vJ5t3k
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120102/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 5 – The Wolf of Wall Street by Martin Scorcese
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idAVRvQeYAE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pabEtIERlic
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0993846/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
(Netflix) Stage 6 – Into the Wild by Sean Penn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7ArZ7VD-QQ
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758758/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 6 – La Belle Verte by Coline Serreau
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiuVYBpeK-g
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115650/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Stage 7 – Ted talk
https://www.ted.com/talks/thordis_elva_and_tom_stranger_our_story_of_rape_and_reconciliation
Other suggestions from Participants
Stage 5 – The Beauty Inside by Jong-Yeol Baek
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly7rq5EsTC8
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0169547/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0