Publishers Weekly<\/em>, filmmakers Scott Derrickson and Darren Aronofsky, magazines like Image<\/em>, Christianity Today<\/em>, Relevant<\/em>, CCM<\/em>, and Aspiring Retail<\/em>\u2026 Through a Screen Darkly<\/strong><\/em> is receiving quite an ovation\u2026<\/p>\n Publishers Weekly<\/em>, Starred Review:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIf viewing a film is to be a spiritual exercise, one must be open to conversion. Overstreet \u2026 leads readers through his own cinematic conversion in this compelling volume. Overstreet\u2019s greatest gift is the masterful way he brings a spirit of discernment to the world of film. \u2026 Two thumbs up!\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Greg Wolfe, Publisher and Editor of Image<\/em>; Author, Intruding Upon the Timeless: Meditations on Art, Faith and Mystery<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThrough a Screen Darkly<\/em> constitutes a milestone in Christian reflection about contemporary film. This is not simply because it is full of insightful analysis and a generous, open spirit, but because its vision grows out of a passionate, personal journey. This is film criticism with a soul and a sense of urgency growing out of the conviction that faith and the imagination need one another \u2014 the better to open our eyes to the flickerings of God\u2019s grace.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Robert Clark, Edgar-Award-Winning Author of Mr. White\u2019s Confession<\/em> and Washington Book Award-Winning Author of Dark Water<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIn this beautiful and incisive meditation on the art of film \u2014 at once memoir, manifesto and critical guide \u2014 Jeffrey Overstreet teaches us not only why film should matter to people of faith but how to see<\/em>\u00a0movies as vehicles for inspiration and, indeed, grace.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Brett McCracken, Relevant Magazine:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIf you propose in academic or professional film circles the notion of \u2018Christian film criticism\u2019 as a serious discipline \u2026 you will probably be laughed off. Thankfully, we are taking steps to change that. A significant step in the right direction has come with the brand new book by Jeffrey Overstreet, Through a Screen Darkly<\/em>\u2026. Overstreet \u2026 has taken it upon himself to free Christian arts journalism from the ghetto and shackles of narrow-mindedness, utilitarianism and aesthetic ambivalence (as well as the flipside \u2014 aesthetic gluttony). His new book \u2026 gives hope to all of us who struggle for a more thoughtful, measured and empathetic Christian perspective toward cinema.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Aspiring Retail Magazine:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cLike a machete-wielding soldier facing a jungle, Overstreet . . . cuts through the glamour of the silver screen to reveal deeper truths behind films both famous and little-known. He explores such themes as wonder, loneliness, humor, and abuse \u2014 and how movies can give us God\u2019s perspective on subjects we would normally avoid. . . . Overstreet brings readers beyond gut-level reaction to deeper understanding of movies and why some things rejected out-of-hand by most Christian reviewers shouldn\u2019t be. Overstreet\u2019s grand tour of the entertainment industry is thoroughly enchanting, enlightening, absorbing. For many readers who were previously unfamiliar with him, the book will make him the reviewer of choice, the best source for what movies to see, what to avoid \u2014 and how to watch a movie.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Scott Derrickson, Writer and Director, The Exorcism of Emily Rose<\/em> and The Day The Earth Stood Still<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cJeffrey Overstreet is a spiritual bloodhound, rabidly tracking the voice of God through his own experience of the history of cinema. In Through a Screen Darkly<\/em>, he leads the way for all of us, demonstrating how we can look closer and experience the divine invasion of film for ourselves.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Darren Aronofsky, director of Requiem for a Dream<\/em> and The Fountain<\/em>, in a message to the author (shared with permission):<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cInspirational\u2026. Sometimes all of us forget that love for movies, that internal spark inside us that movies lit, and your book is going to remind many of us about it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Steven D. Greydanus, film critic, ChristianityTodayMovies.com, DecentFilms.com:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201c[Overstreet] doesn\u2019t just tell you whether or not he liked a movie. He offers you a seat next to him as the movie unfolds and he points out and reflects on the things that thrill, fascinate or trouble him. It\u2019s an invitation not only to look more closely, but to ponder more deeply and appreciate more fully.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Eric Miller, Christianity Today<\/em> book review:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cOverstreet\u2019s memoirist-as-mentor tack serves the \u2018invitation\u2019 part of the book well, enabling him to address contentious issues from an intimate, personal vantage. Nudity, sex, violence, profanity, anti-Christian storylines: He approaches each in a seasoned, sometimes battle-weary way, still smarting from the e-mail shellackings he\u2019s received from hostile readers over the years. So in the form of a story \u2014 his own story \u2014 he responds, seeking to deepen the reader\u2019s notion of what art is and fashion a new framework for considering the vexing questions art invariably raises.<\/p>\n \u201cOverstreet is most convincing in his effort to show evangelical readers that their traditional approach to art tends to impede both a rich experience of the goodness of God and a profound understanding of this present darkness. \u2026 He urges readers instead to more daringly embrace good art, whether Christian or not, as a means of expanding vision and enlarging wisdom, accepting \u2018the sensual pleasure of God\u2019s gifts\u2019 even as they take care to avoid the kind of exposure that may actually diminish their ability to taste goodness.<\/p>\n \u201cTo this end, Overstreet gives layers of description of dozens of films, ranging from The Empire Strikes Back <\/em>to Taxi Driver<\/em> to Wings of Desire<\/em>. It\u2019s a clinic in art criticism. Through his earnest and illuminating instruction, we learn much about genre, sacramentality, cinematography, and more. His quest to \u2018apprehend beauty wherever I can find it\u2019 is clearly an impassioned romance, one he longs to usher us into as well.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Dr. David Frisbie, at the award-winning Armchair Interviews site:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cScarcely a few decades ago, the phrase \u2018Christian movie reviewer\u2019 might have seemed an oxymoron: entire denominations and churches shunned the theatre, believing it to be evil per se. Overstreet is a much-needed voice that helps postmodern Christians and others be fully engaged with their culture, yet move beyond its limitations to produce high-quality films.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Mark Moring, Editor, ChristianityTodayMovies.com:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cJeffrey Overstreet has taught me a great deal not just about how to watch movies, but also how to glean truth, beauty and redemption from films of all types \u2014 even those that aren\u2019t necessarily comfortable to watch. I am learning the art of looking closer, and this book takes that art \u2014 and that education \u2014 to even deeper, and thus more rewarding, levels.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Eugene H. Peterson, Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Theology, Regent College, author of The Message<\/em> and Eat This Book<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cJeffrey Overstreet is a witness. While habituating the dark caves of movie theaters, he gives articulate witness to what I too often miss in those caves \u2014 the contours of God\u2019s creation and the language of Christ\u2019s salvation. In these theaters, assumed by many to be unholy temples in a wasteland of secularism, he writes what he sees and hears. I find him a delightful and most percipient companion \u2014 a faithful Christian witness.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Mark Shea, Senior Content Editor, CatholicExchange.com:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cGod the Maker made us to be makers as well. That is why, as Chesterton said, \u2018Art is the signature of man.\u2019 Filmmaking is an art form that is the unique invention of the twentieth century. Nothing quite like it had ever existed before, and through it, millions have had powerful, even profoundly spiritual, experiences. Jeffrey Overstreet is a guide eminently qualified to show us how to see the way in which films both illumine the terrain of the human spirit and probe the eternal mysteries of God.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Dick Staub, Author, Christian Wisdom of the Jedi Masters<\/em> and The Culturally Savvy Christian:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cJeffrey Overstreet understands the art of understanding art and believes it is too important a task to leave to the experts. Through a Screen Darkly<\/em> is a trustworthy guide as you sort through the enriching, exhilarating, messy, dangerous and important business of loving God and film.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Publishers Weekly, filmmakers Scott Derrickson and Darren Aronofsky, magazines like Image, Christianity Today, Relevant, CCM, and Aspiring Retail\u2026 Through a Screen Darkly is receiving quite an ovation\u2026 Publishers Weekly, Starred Review: \u201cIf viewing a film is to be a spiritual exercise, one must be open to conversion. Overstreet \u2026 leads readers through his own cinematic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":41692,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-48552","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n