San Andreas: How Jesus and The Rock Look Alike (If You Squint a Little)

Last updated on: June 1, 2015 at 3:44 pm By Paul Asay

San Andreas is exactly the movie you’d expect it to be. There are no unexpected twists or touching romances here, no obvious ruminations on human nature or profound symbolism. You get what you pay for—Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson taking on a 9.6-level earthquake. The winner? The special effects, naturally. (Without ’em, the movie would’ve been pretty lame, as you can see below.) Thankfully, San Andreas does have special effects—gobs of them—and that makes for a big, dumb, kinda fun popcorn... Read more

God Promises Forgiveness, Not a TV Show

Last updated on: May 28, 2015 at 11:35 am By Paul Asay

I don’t know much about the Duggar family. I’ve never watched an episode of 17 Kids (or 18 or 19) and Counting. Last week, I wouldn’t have recognized a single Duggar. But that was last week, before we learned that Josh Duggar had sexually assaulted several young girls—some of whom were his sisters—when he was 14. TLC has pulled 19 Kids from its schedule for now, and while it has yet to officially cancel the show, advertisers are abandoning it... Read more

Daredevil: A Superhero in Samaria

Last updated on: May 22, 2015 at 2:23 pm By Paul Asay

I finished watching Netflix’ saga Daredevil recently. And while some folks have mentioned that Netflix actually soft-pedaled Daredevil/Matt Murdock’s Catholicism a bit, the series still spent plenty of time exploring some spiritual themes. My friend J.R. Forasteros over at NorvilleRogers.com did a pretty fantastic job walking us through some of Daredevil’s spiritual themes, and as tempting as it is to plagiarize his fine work, I’ll just suggest you read it yourself. But I did want to touch on something that... Read more

Win a Copy of American Sniper on Video!

Last updated on: May 19, 2015 at 9:29 pm By Paul Asay

Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper, the award-winning biopic based on the military career of Chris Kyle, was released on video May 19. With the proceeds, Warner Brothers plans to donate up to $1 million to the Wounded Warrior Project. I’m a big fan of Clint Eastwood’s directing, and while American Sniper wasn’t my favorite of his, it was still pretty well crafted (albeit full of seriously hard R-rated content). It made nearly $350 million in theaters and was nominated for six Academy... Read more

Mad Max and the Furious Road to Redemption

Last updated on: May 18, 2015 at 12:13 pm By Paul Asay

We Christians talk a lot about our broken world. And let me tell you, worlds don’t look much more broken than they do in the Mad Max movies. So given all that brokenness, maybe it’s not so surprising that religion and faith are important thematic elements in Mad Max: Fury Road. Through muscle, cruelty and a convenient monopoly on water, Immortan Joe has appointed himself as savior to his portion of parched land. He lives on high in a pillar... Read more

The Gospel According to B.B. King

Last updated on: May 15, 2015 at 10:14 am By Paul Asay

Legendary blues artist B.B. King died last night at the age of 89. King’s influence on American music can’t be overstated. Through his dirt-road voice and exuberant guitar work (often on his famed favorite Gibson guitar Lucille), King brought the blues to mainstream audiences. You can read The New York Times‘ obituary of King here, but for my money, King might’ve been one of the greatest American musicians ever, ranking alongside the likes of Elvis Presley, Ray Charles and Billie Holiday. The blues... Read more

Noble Works

Last updated on: May 11, 2015 at 8:01 pm By Paul Asay

I’ve spent lots of time talking about superheroes lately—their their choices, their longings, their guilt, their sometimes problematic Christ complexes. Heroes don’t just wear colorful body armor or turn green when they’re angry, of course. Some are very human indeed. But their work is, in some respects, no less extraordinary. Noble, released in about 175 theaters this weekend, is a dramatization of the work of Christina Noble, an Irishwoman who heard a call of her own and followed it all... Read more

Orson Welles, Ultron and a Longing for Home

Last updated on: May 6, 2015 at 2:10 pm By Paul Asay

If he was alive, Orson Welles would’ve celebrated his 100th birthday today. Perhaps he’d celebrate it by watching his cameo in The Muppet Movie (where I first saw him) and sipping a glass of inexpensive wine. Welles might be one of the most influential entertainers ever. The guy did a little bit of everything, from avant-garde Shakespearian stage productions to headline-grabbing radio theater (his 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast triggered nationwide panic) to, of course, movies. Citizen Kane, his... Read more

Age of Ultron May Be the Most Spiritual Superhero Movie Yet

Last updated on: May 11, 2015 at 9:49 am By Paul Asay

Avengers: Age of Ultron has been out for, oh, about 90 seconds, and already you’re seeing them: T-Shirts, bumper stickers and mugs bearing the slogan “Jarvis is my co-pilot.” We see the bumper sticker ever-so-briefly when Tony Stark’s flying the Avengers’ quinjet. It’s a quick glimpse, but it speaks volumes—Tony’s reliance on his disembodied computer helper, a sly tweak on those ever-popular “God is my co-pilot” stickers and a bit of foreshadowing of what’s to come in this spiritually self-aware... Read more

Are the Avengers Religious?

Last updated on: April 30, 2015 at 3:33 pm By Paul Asay

Superhero stories often have religious oomph to them. It’s only natural, really: You’re dealing with tales that dive into the nature of good and evil, are predicated on themes of justice and redemption and often star cape-wearing demigods. But who or what, exactly, do these superhuman wonders worship themselves? That can be tricky to parse. Thankfully, a site called comicbookreligion.com helps keep track of all this spirituality. And according to the site, The heroes we’ll see in The Avengers: Age... Read more