The Best Years of Our Lives, while not an “inspirational” film (and though it treats the whole matter of infidelity and divorce altogether too neatly), always brings a tear to my eyes. My personal favorite.
The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima, from the 1950s, is a sweet, sincerely-told story, which I first saw as a 16mm print in the gymnasium of our grade school (American Movie Classics – AMC – used to run it from time to time, but seems to have changed their format somewhat).
Chariots of Fire was one of the rare films of that era that portrayed Christians and Christian belief in an even-handed manner; kudos to all concerned for avoiding the harsh-judgmental-Biblethumper stereotypes to which filmmakers often resort when they run out of ideas.
A couple of “Guy Movies”: 1)
Ben-Hur: rising above the Cast Of Thousands is an inspiring story of Faith, Love and Honor – and the beuatiful Haya Harareet proves that Purity can be
quite attractive

2)
The Magnificent Seven (from Kurasawa’s
Seven Samurai) Okay, not an “inspirational picture” as such but, along with the swagger and shoot-em-up, one finds a story of Faith (of a sort), Loyalty, Courage (beautifully encapsulated in a speech by a young Charles Bronson to local village boys), Devotion, Love, Racial Tolerance – and a peculiarly masculine form of Honor. All of this is accomplished in an entertaining two-hours or so – and it never once sounds like a lecture.
Books? I’m halfway through the Durant’s series on European history, and still loving it. *Mere Christianity * by C S Lewis is the one I would
definitely recommend for anyone curious about the Christian faith: Lewis’ approach is completely logical and succinct – how one could reach the end and
not want to jump
immediately into the nearest baptismal font is beyond me
