Brothers

"No one can have greater love than to lay down his life for his friends" John 15:13

To a certain extent human beings are born to be selfish, I think. It's a natural instinct to protect yourself in order to survive. If there's a situation that puts you in danger, you avoid it. It's self-preservation. But human beings are not JUST animals. We don't just act on instinct, we also act on emotions, we act on knowledge. We don't just think about ourselves when we make decisions. We also think about the impact on other people.
But what about choosing between living or dying? What about killing someone to save yourself when the alternative is to save someone's life by dying? Jesus makes the decision to die for all of us to give us a new life. But what about the rest of us who are not prepared for this loving and heroic act?
In Brothers, Sam, a US Marine who has been captured, has to choose between killing his friend to live and getting killed himself. He is a soldier at war. He needs to survive. He has a family that needs him. So he chooses to live. Not that it is in any way an easy decision. It is his friend. He is someone's father, someone's husband, someone's son. His life, too, is a gift from God. And none of us has the right to take that away from anybody, no matter for what reason. It is against his passionate nature. But the chances are that both of them would get killed if Sam chose not to kill his friend. It is cruel but it is also the reality (well, the reality in a fictional film). So he takes the selfish alternative to live. And for the rest of his life he has to live with the consequence. He gets to live because he has taken someone's life. He struggles to connect with people again. He has lost a sense of who he is. He thinks himself undeserving.
It's unbearable to think what we would do if we were him. Death itself is not scary. It's how you die and more importantly how it affects people who love you that is. We don't just want to protect ourselves, but also our loved ones from the grief and getting hurt. Sam is prepared to die once being captured but he loves his wife enough to kill his friend. I don't think I have what it takes to take someone's life like that. But at the same time the alternative seems equally cruel.
I wonder how many people in the world are truly capable of sacrificing their lives for someone else. Very, very few I am guessing. But the rest of us can probably start with something smaller. Be generous with what you have. Be kind to other people. Give without expecting any rewards. Put other people's needs before yours. And one day when we have to choose between living and dying, maybe we'll make the right decision.
And if you are wondering whether the film is good or not, the answer is ABSOLUTELY. The acting is terrific, especially by Toby Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal. The kid who plays Isabelle (Sam's daughter) is amazing. The film is emotional, powerful and touching. It is a good story, that has left me a few messages to think about.