If you’re in North America, as of May 28 you will be able to buy the DVD directly through our web site or through Amazon.com. Hellbound?will also be available to rent or buy on iTunes, Netflix, Amazon, Vudu, CinemaNow, FilmFresh, YouTube Movies, Google Play and Hoopla. We are still weighing our options for international DVD distribution, however, we have a plan to make the DVD available in Europe at least starting May 28. Anyone outside of North America will also... Read more
I’ve always had a fascination with horror movies. In fact, one of the first things that piqued my interest in filmmaking was reading about legendary makeup artist Jack Pierce, Lon Chaney, Jr., Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and the Universal monster movies. (The book pictured here was one of my favorites.) Long before I’d seen any of the films, I knew far more about movie monster makeup and effects than any six-year-old probably should. That’s one of the many reasons why... Read more
1) It’s tough to embrace both the parable of the Prodigal Son and a theology of limited atonement. That’s because this parable seems to suggest that sooner or later those who wander away from God will eventually hit rock bottom, realize the error of their ways and return “home.” And rather than be met by a father with a book detailing their sins, the wayward will be met by a father who couldn’t be happier they’ve finally found their way... Read more
Over the past several months Hellbound? has kept me more than busy with screenings, DVD/VOD preparations (Available May 28!), delivery to broadcasters and an endless stream of other details you never fully anticipate when setting out to produce, market and distribute an independent film. But when you lead the kind of life I do, you can never stay focused on a single project for long, because unless you hit the jackpot, eventually you have to go out and make another.... Read more
Recently I was asked to contribute to an upcoming book on Marshall McLuhan and philosophy. My role is to write on McLuhan and film narrative. It just so happened that shortly before I received this request, I watched Quentin Tarantino’s latest film Django Unchained. Like his previous film, Inglourious Basterds, I was so struck by his effort at subversion on a massive level (and virtually every critics’ inability to appreciate it as such) that I simply had to write something... Read more
Sorry, when I saw this photo, I couldn’t resist. Read more
One of my major discoveries during the production of Hellbound? was the work of existential psychologist Ernest Becker. Tragically, he succumbed to lung cancer when he was just 50 years old. But thankfully he was afforded enough time on earth to write The Denial of Death, in which the following quote appears. Becker ranks as one of my top five meta-theorists, the others being Rene Girard, Charles Darwin, Joseph Campbell and Marshall McLuhan. When we are young we are often... Read more
Strong hate, the hate that takes joy in hating, is strong because it does not believe itself to be unworthy and alone. It feels the support of a justifying God, of an idol of war, an avenging and destroying spirit. From such blood-drinking gods the human race was once liberated, with great toil and terrible sorrow, by the death of a God Who delivered Himself to the Cross and suffered pathological cruelty of His own creatures out of pity for... Read more
These all come from David Congdon’s excellent response to Calvin College professor James K. A. Smith’s critique of the new universalism: Lay bare your hermeneutical presuppositions. When you confront the conflict between universalist and dualist texts in scripture, what drives your interpretive conclusions? Explain the relation between Christ and salvation. Is there a difference between reconciliation, salvation, redemption, and other concepts? In what sense is Jesus our savior? What is the relation between past, present, and future? Is salvation finally... Read more
I began this series several weeks ago, inspired in part by some responses to my cheat sheet on hell. Since then, we’ve looked at truth, freedom and justice to see how our understanding of these terms affects our view of hell. Today we come to our final “fortress”: love. And what better way to begin a conversation about love than a tweet from Mark Driscoll? God is love, but love is not God. Mark has been on this kick for... Read more
Hellbound
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