Quantum Physics and Mysticism Meet at the Movies:
Review of What the #$*! Do We Know? A Quantum Fable

Starring: Marlee Matlin, Barry Newman, Elaine Hendrix, Armin Shimerman, Robert Bailey, Jr., John Ross Bowie.

William Arntz, Producer, Director, Screenwriter; Betsy Chasse, Producer, Director, Screenwriter; Mark Vicente Director, Director of Photography.

review

by Sylvana Silverwitch

As we go to press, the movie What the #$*! Do We Know? A Quantum Fable has been held over for four weeks in Seattle. Theaters in other cities are seeing similar attendance, though according to the Hollywood movie-making machine, this film was not supposed to have an audience. News of it has been spread mostly by a grassroots effort.

This film got me excited, and I rarely get excited about movies. It's not about pagans or witchcraft exactly, but it has everything to do with magick. It is about possibility, perception and creating your reality consciously.

What the #$*! is certainly very different from the typical Hollywood product. The film uses the advances in quantum physics to investigate human psychology and its role in the creation of reality, which is a great deal more dynamic and participatory than formerly assumed. Quantum physics is described as the "science of possibilities," a subject that begins to blend into an authentic and humbling mysticism the further the film pursues it.

Early in the film, the main question is presented, "How can we continue to see the world as real if the self that is determining it as real is intangible?" This movie goes on to ask some of the world's most important questions: "What are we doing here?" "What is the meaning of life?" "Can science and religion really be on the same path?" "What is quantum physics?" "What is spirituality?" In raising the questions, the movie shines a bright light on possibilities rather than focusing on risks. In examining the questions, you may well find some astonishing answers.

In form, it is a movie inside a movie, a story punctuated by short interviews of academics, mystics, physicists and doctors. The filmmakers put in the forefront some leading scientists (and others) who have looked at the spiritual implications of quantum physics. This dialogue with scientists and mystics establishes the new concepts that then occur in an progressively more abnormal world in the narrative storyline. The film demonstrates the peculiar quantum world and the cellular life of the body in a way that is engaging and thought-provoking. It causes you to think about many of the things that we've all been programmed in our culture to perceive as invisible!

The filmmakers have done an incredible job not only in making quantum physics fascinating and accessible to us common folk but also in showing the very real and down-to-earth connotations this mysterious, magickal science has for us humans. I applaud their bravery, commitment, vision and skill in presenting this enlightening piece of film.

I loved the music, effects, cinematography and the use of dramatic special effects. All in all, it was marvelous!

I am also glad that I brought friends. All three times I went, we had a wonderful discussion afterward. I generally don't recommend that everyone I know have a particular experience, but I am adamant that people should see this movie. I feel strongly that this is an important film, a revolutionary work both in structure and substance.

The reason I recommend it so highly is not only because it brought a lot of interesting information together in one cohesive package, but also because it presents principles I have taught for many years. Science is beginning to catch up with metaphysics, finally. I knew it would eventually, but I didn't think I'd see it in my lifetime. It's nice to see that connection made in a fairly mainstream context.

The movie was not without flaws. I thought part of the narrative storyline a bit simplistic, though I do understand a simple storyline was needed to use as a foundation for the scientific material being presented. I was also less than thrilled by the inclusion of the channeler J.Z. Knight and her channeled entity Ramtha. The channeler thing has been dragged through the mud here in the Northwest, and I for one could do without it.

I also have mixed feelings about the fact that the speakers' credentials were not presented until the end of the movie, though it is interesting when you find out at the end that the scientists and the mystics are saying the same thing -- even in the same language.

Not everyone who went with me liked it as much as I did. Some thought it a simplistic self-help movie; some found the ditzy blonde roommate character cliché; some had issues with the qualifications of the interviewees.

Most of my friends who attended thought it was amazing, though, and we shared a few "ah ha!" moments during the film. To anyone considering seeing it, I say go with an open mind and be willing to suspend disbelief for an hour and a half, as witches do in circle when making magick. It is worth going if you gain even one tiny insight into the way you perceive reality.

The fact that this movie is a success with audiences says that intelligent entertainment may be the way of the future. If you haven't seen it, don't miss your chance to dive into the rabbit hole!

See the movie at the Uptown Cinemas, 511 Queen Anne Ave. N., Seattle. For more information, see www.whatthebleep.com.