The film The Blues Brothers has ideological underpinnings of redemption and the importance of family. The film follows Jake and Elwood Blues as they try and save the orphanage where they were raised. In Jake and Elwood’s early adult years they stole and broke many laws, ultimately resulting in one of them going to prison for three years. After the prison sentence the brothers are reunited and find that their orphanage will be shut down if they don’t raise money in time. The brother’s first hear this news from a nun they call, “The Penguin.” It is obvious that the nun harbors love for the two brothers, and believes that even after all of their wrong doings they can find redemption and help save the orphanage. The brothers are quick to offer help and money. After talking to The Penguin, the duo goes and talks to their friend Curtis who resides in the basement of the orphanage. Curtis is the one that introduced them to blue music and helped teach them how to perform. Without the orphanage Curtis will have nowhere to live.
The brothers have love for the orphanage, The Penguin, and Curtis because they are their family. They helped raised them and taught them everything that they know. The brothers do everything and anything in their power to reunite their band to raise money to help save their family. The brothers could very easily go and steal the money and retreat to their old ways, but they are also on the path to redemption and respect the wishes of The Penguin and the church. Throughout the movie we hear the brother’s repeat the line “we are on a mission from God.” The orphanage is directly related to the church and that once again shows their devotion to family and redemption. Even when their own lives are one the line, and they are being chased to their demise, their main focus is the orphanage. The love and importance the brothers hold for their family results in them being successful and saving the orphanage. They are able to redeem themselves and be unselfish.
Another ideological underpinning that could be seen in The Blues Brothers is the idea of returning to your “roots.” We see the brothers go straight back to the orphanage after being reunited. That is where they grew up, where it all started, and they immediately return. This can directly corollate with the city of Chicago where the movie was film. Chicago is a blues town and it is where a lot of famous blues musicians got their start. It is the city where Blues music started, it is the root of blues music. The film and cinematography did a great job in showcasing the city of Chicago because of how important it is to blues music. In the movie we can see how much respect the brothers have for the musicians they meet and the different people that help them on their journey. They understand the importance of their beginnings and the people that started it all. On the ideological continuum the film would fall in the middle leaning towards the left. The film falls more in the middle because it is a light-hearted comedy and there is not that much of a deeper meaning. It is simply a movie about family, and redeeming yourself. When analyzing the ideology, we can see that the film deals with the conflict of democratic vs. hierarchical. In the movie we see the brother’s running from the police and the authorities. Another important part of the movie is that the brothers are trying to save the orphanage from the government. The government is trying to take the orphanage away but the brothers are trying to save it with their donation. The movie also shares the importance of bringing all people together through music.
