Mia Staub, content manager at Christianity Today, wrote in a recent column that the new Netflix movie Leo allows viewers to see “a fresh new perspective” from an older point of view.
The movie is about a class pet lizard named Leo, voiced by Adam Sandler, who learns he has one year left to live. He dreams of a bucket list of adventures to complete before then, but the classroom teacher decides Leo will be sent home every weekend with a different student.
In time, Leo begins to counsel the young students, and many find friendship with him.
“What’s also unusual is the decision not to make the main character a child or young adult. There are exceptions—most notably Pixar’s Up—but children’s films often allow kids to see themselves in the protagonist … But centering the film on the aging Leo pushes even young children to consider a fresh perspective: How are we spending our limited time? And how are we relating across generational lines in our own lives?”
Staub, who says she is part of Gen Z, writes that the movie is a welcome encouragement to others to seek advice and counsel from older generations instead of battling each other over culture.
She cited 1 Peter 5:5, which says we owe respect to elders, and Titus 2:4-8, which says we need to listen to their wisdom.
“Young and old alike need real friendship in which each side can graciously help and learn from the other, like Naomi and Ruth, Moses and Joshua, Paul and Timothy,” she wrote.
Staub admits that seeking friendship or counsel across generational lines can be challenging, but “that difficulty shouldn’t discourage us.”
“Like every generation of young people before us, Gen Z wants to hear our elders’ stories. We want to be discipled by you.
“There are tensions in those differences, but believers of older generations have also discipled and prayed for us.”
Photo Courtesy: @Getty Images/Tommaso Boddi / Stringer
Video Courtesy: Netflix via YouTube
Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.
