Mad Max — Crashes and compassion on the Fury Road

Last updated on: January 31, 2016 at 10:41 pm By Chris Williams

The continuation of our discussion about this year’s best picture nominees. Mad Max: Fury Road Nominations: 10 (Best picture, director, cinematography, editing, production design, costume design, makeup and hairstyling,sound mixing, sound editing, and visual effects) NOTE: SPOILERS FOR MAD MAX: FURY ROAD I’ll start by posing the same question that’s been running through my mind ever since I walked out of the press screening for “Mad Max: Fury Road” last May: Can you believe this movie exists? There was absolutely... Read more

Weekend Read: Movies and mourning, Netflix, and ‘Hamilton’

Last updated on: January 29, 2016 at 3:15 pm By Chris Williams

First, thank you all for the comments, shares and support during my first week at Patheos! When I moved my blog over here, I hoped that in time I might generate an audience, but I’ve been extremely encouraged to see just how much of a response these first few posts have gotten. It was a busy first week; I can’t remember the last time I posted blog entries for five straight days. But it’s been fun to get such a... Read more

The Revenant — A frozen doughnut

Last updated on: January 29, 2016 at 9:23 am By Chris Williams

We’re officially less than a month away from the Oscars. And while there’s definitely controversy this year that must be addressed, I find that I’m still excited for a month of talking about movies. So over the next few weeks, I’m going to take some time to talk about each of the nominees for Best Picture. As a reminder, the nominees are: The Revenant, Mad Max: Fury Road, Spotlight, The Martian, Bridge of Spies, Room, The Big Short and Brooklyn. ... Read more

He-Man, Simpsons and things the church banned

Last updated on: January 28, 2016 at 10:01 am By Chris Williams

When it was announced last week that McG would direct a film adaptation of the beloved ’80s cartoon “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe,” my reaction was fairly muted. Part of the reason for that is that I’m almost 40; I’d be worried if I was overly excited about yet another cartoon from my childhood being resurrected. My 4-year-old son has recently discovered the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — which I was obsessed with as a kid — and... Read more

My Essentials: My 20 Favorite Films

Last updated on: March 22, 2016 at 9:43 am By Chris Williams

It’s long been cliché for a critic to lament that lists are meaningless, but I think they may have some benefits. Ranking “bests” might be silly, but I think knowing a person’s favorites gives us insight into who they are and helps establish a sort of “critic DNA” for the reviewers you follow. Plus, I really like to make lists. So as we start this journey, I thought the best way to help you know a bit more about my... Read more

The church must pay attention to the Oscars’ diversity problem

Last updated on: January 26, 2016 at 11:40 am By Chris Williams

It’s old news by now that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a diversity problem. The pasty-white nominations for this year’s Oscar ceremony have been the non-blizzard, non-Trump talk of the nation for the past few weeks. Will Smith and Spike Lee are boycotting the ceremony, Chris Rock is rewriting his monologue, and the Academy has announced changes to begin righting this wrong. I’ve been party to many conversations recently where people can’t grasp why an all-white... Read more

Welcome to Chrisicisms!

Last updated on: January 25, 2016 at 12:02 pm By Chris Williams

This is the first entry in what I hope will be a long, engaging conversation. The Internet is crowded with amateur critics and armchair theologians — thanks for welcoming another. I hope that this particular combination of writing about film, faith and the areas in which they intersect is able to stay fresh. Your time is valuable, and I hope to honor that with every post. Despite my ten-year history of writing in print and online, I decided not to... Read more