Levels of Greed

In the Spanish film The Platform (directed by Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, Netflix, 2020), prisoners are held captive in a massive underground penitentiary comprising a seemingly limitless number of levels. Every day, a platform filled with food progressively descends to each level for two minutes, giving famished inmates an opportunity to eat. Those on the higher levels naturally consume the majority of the food on the platform, while those on the lower levels are left with scraps. The film provides a scathing critique of human greed and selfishness. We so easily disregard those who, at least from our vantage point, are beneath us—whether literally or figuratively. The privileged and affluent in the Corinthian church blatantly disregarded the poor and needy at the Communion table, displaying the same greed, callousness, and neglect that we observe in The Platform.