Looking Closer
NarniaWeb breaks the best news I’ve heard all year!! Read more
NarniaWeb breaks the best news I’ve heard all year!! Read more
I have three new articles in the latest issue of SPU’ s Response Magazine: By the Book For an alumni couple living above a bookstore in La Conner, Washington, “The Next Chapter” is the best one yet. Soundtrack to Saving a Marriage The singer-songwriter, husband-and-wife team known as Over the Rhine cancelled their 2003 tour to save their marriage. Sophie Scholl: The Final Days Delivers Stirring Portrait But the issue is full of fine work by my friends, co-workers, and... Read more
Two home-run reviews of V for Vendetta popped up this week, and even though the film is already fading, I thought them worth a read: CAUTION: SPOILERS! L. Michael Foote reviews V for Vendetta for Stylus. (Caution: Harsh language) Merely replacing the simplistic morality of one political system for another, the people of England never honestly question their own circumstances. Finally realizing that something is wrong with their society, citizens leap at the vague beliefs of a man who gains... Read more
Yahoo posts a T-Bone Burnett interview. (more…) Read more
Surprise, the first solo album from Paul Simon in seven years, will be released on May 9th. Rolling Stone reports that Brian Eno helped Simon out with the production of this one. And regarding the question on everybody’s mind… the answer is yes. It will include the song he wrote for The Wild Thornberries movie: “Father and Daughter.” Billboard reports: Guest appearances include guitarist Bill Frisell, drummer Steve Gadd and pianist Herbie Hancock, whose 2005 album, “Possibilities,” featured a new... Read more
This new book looks intriguing: A long list of writers talk about their craft and their faith. It features entries from Luci Shaw, Frederick Buechner, Anne Lamott, David James Duncan, Madeleine L’Engle, Brett Lott, Paul Schrader, Kathleen Norris, and others. Read more
I believe that the lion will lie down with the lamb, but this… this is remarkable! LISBON, Portugal — The Muslim imam and the Roman Catholic priest watch movies together at each other’s homes. The Adventist nun reads the imam’s mail for him because he can’t read Portuguese. And the three congregations sometimes hold joint prayers for world peace. While Islamic outrage over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad has brought mob rampages to many countries across the globe, members of... Read more
I imagine that for Doug Cummings meeting the Dardennes was as thrilling as it would have been for me to interview Krzysztof Kieslowksi. The interview that resulted is in the new issue of Paste, which I believe is read by more and more cinephiles all the time. So hurry out and buy a copy (even if you do read the article on his site.) And when it reaches your town’s theaters, go see the Dardennes’ latest masterpiece (that’s three, arguably... Read more
Thanks to Peter T. Chattaway for linking to this rather surprising development in… uh… “Nollywood.” Mark Steyn mentioned a few months ago that Nigeria “now has the third biggest film industry in the world, after Hollywood and Bollywood.” What he didn’t mention — but I guess it was inevitable — is that the Nigerian film industry now goes by the name “Nollywood”. And now, the Associated Press reports that one church has been taking the industry by storm. Read more
The most interesting thing I read all day was Adam Walter’s post on the difference between “disturbing” films and “scary” films. He ends up talking about the effect of violence in art, and quoting a lot of Flannery O’Connor, which is always a good thing. Nice work, Adam. Really interesting stuff. And way to go, Nate Bell, for making Adam think and blog. Read more
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