Christian Checkbox Scenes

I watched the movie The Magic of Ordinary Days on YouTube the other day. It's been one of my favorites forever and is the reason I love slice-of-life stories. Rewatching it, I was pleased to see similarities in theme with Martin Hospitality, but some "obligatory scenes" stood out, too. It struck me for the first time like the director (writer) was just checking boxes. I guess it's been a while since I've watched something older and specifically Christian. ;P I mean, it was a Hallmark.

Here is a list of scenes that strike me as little checkboxes. Why? Because you can find them in almost any older Christian movie (and, yes, even some Christian books). Especially slice-of-life stories. There's absolutely nothing wrong with using them--you can find quite a few in Martin Hospitality. It's just a new discovery to me that they're so overused, almost like they're sitting on a list somewhere of must-use-scenes. ;) Beware of slight sarcasm and exaggeration below.

singing in church

Wow. I think this first stood out to me in the TV series  Little House on the Prairie. They had one hymn they'd sing several times a season while it showed all the horses and wagons outside. For what reason? I guess to show that they went to church and set up some theme or character interaction.

bonus: write out the lyrics

Obviously, this is a book feature. Yes, I've done this, and yes, I will skim this in every book. If it's a well-known hymn, there's no way I'm reading all twelve verses. :P It's almost like brownie points, though. Don't just talk about or show people singing. Provide the words. It makes your chapter longer!

double bonus: sermon snippet

Pollyanna is the movie comes to mind. The longwinded hellfire and brimstone sermons to show the pastor's character arc ... yeah, I'd skip those as a kid. Fast forward on my VHS player. xD These are good opportunities for more natural spiritual bits, so I did do this once or twice in my book.

holiday celebrations

This is one that I love. Think about it, though. Almost every family-centric story has this. Whether it's a kiddo's birthday party or a big family gathering for Christmas ... it's a really basic requirement. I mean, surely you can't have a sweet, fluffy story if there's not hot chocolate, cake, or presents at some point?

family meal

Sometimes this is included in the holiday scene and that's definitely extra points! It's often separate, though, just to draw out the family scenes. In all honesty, though, this is a good tool because it gets all your characters around the same table. If you need everyone to know something or want someone to embarrass themselves in front of everyone, this is the spot to do it. ;)

panoramic scenery shot

This doesn't have to be specifically Christian, I suppose, but it's a guarantee in little slice-of-life stories. Which means you're getting sunrises and wildflowers and cricket noises even though it's ten am. (You know, like the picture I used above.) These can be distracting in books if they take too long or take away from the story, but they're sneaky in movies! Goes to show the importance of setting.

reflection scenes

These get tricky. Modern writing is really picky about these, and I suppose modern movies, too. But older movies? Laden with these. You know, the ones where the movie starts and the character just stares out a window or whispers things to themselves for the first scene. It's not all bad because it sets the tone and gives backstory.

bonus: actual heads and voices appear

Yeah, by this point it's forced. xP Let's add the little cameo-shaped heads of a different scene above the character just so you really get the idea of how things went down. In books, this is where the character starts "thinking" about something and it takes three pages of an entirely different story before they're snapped back to the present. Definitely a pet peeve of mine. This goes to show how important it is to weave in backstory. All at once is always a little cumbersome. ;)

Thoughts on this? xD I promise I'm not actually mad at people who do any of things (because I do) so I hope I didn't step on any toes. There are plus sides to some of these. It's just funny to me how common and overused they are! Do you have any checkbox scenes to add?