Should Churches Be Movie Houses, Too?

Last updated on: January 30, 2015 at 12:55 pm By Paul Asay

Have you heard of the movie Hoovey? Probably not, I’m guessing. Hoovey is a little Christian flick directed by Sean McNamara (Soul Surfer) and starring some familiar actors (Cody Linley from Hannah Montana, Lauren Holly from NCIS and Motive, Patrick Warburton from the greatest car rental commercial of all time). It’s not a breakthrough in Christian cinema, but it is a sweet, competent story worth some attention—at least in Christian circles. It opens Jan. 31, but it’s probably not playing... Read more

Who’s the Best Bond of Them All?

Last updated on: January 28, 2015 at 4:26 pm By Paul Asay

Roger Moore, who played an ever-so-suave James Bond in the 1970s and ’80s, told Fox News yesterday that he doesn’t think he was a particularly good Bond at all. The 87-year-old said that Sean Connery and Daniel Craig were/are the best Bonds in history. He ranks himself “a little big behind George Lazenby, I suppose.” Now, Fox News took that to mean that Moore thought himself the fourth-best Bond, which isn’t what he really said. Lazenby? The guy who was... Read more

Big Hero 6: Binary Love

Last updated on: January 26, 2015 at 7:19 am By Paul Asay

Disney has given us some pretty unlikely heroes: A wooden marionette; a flying elephant; a worry-prone fish. But maybe none has been quite as unlikely as Baymax, the inflatable robot from Big Hero 6. The robot looks like a cross between John Candy and a ping-pong ball. He’s a robotic, vinyl healthcare provider—more a digital Mrs. Doubtfire than Dr. Manhattan. He’s about as intimidating as a fresh marshmallow. Clearly, Baymax doesn’t look like a superhero. But in the end, that’s... Read more

A Literary Digression

Last updated on: January 20, 2015 at 7:21 pm By Paul Asay

As you might expect of a movie critic, I watch a lot of movies. Denver hosts most of the advanced screenings in my neck of the woods, which means I drive up to the Mile-High City a couple of times a week. Sometimes I’m rewarded with a good movie. But even when the movie’s not so hot, I at least have the pleasure of a good book beforehand. Tonight, I’m reading John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. There are certain writers... Read more

American Sniper: Holding Out for a Hero

Last updated on: January 19, 2015 at 5:09 pm By Paul Asay

American Sniper, Clint Eastwood’s biopic of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, scored six Oscar nominations on Thursday and made $90 million this weekend—a January earnings record. It’s already a critical and commercial smash—one of the most successful R-rated films ever. Weird for a movie that people seem to hate so much. Never mind the praise: Criticism of Sniper has been withering. Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore went on Twitter and called snipers “cowards” (though he later denied his tweets were a direct... Read more

Oscars Missed a Good One in Calvary

Last updated on: January 16, 2015 at 9:52 am By Paul Asay

Nominations for the Academy Awards came out yesterday morning. Among the eight Best Picture nominees, the Academy lauded the creative triumph Boyhood, the artistic weirdness of Birdman, the inspirational story of Selma and even the very Anderson-esque Wes Anderson movie The Grand Budapest Hotel. All the nominees make sense, I suppose, even as pundits from across the Interweb lament some obvious snubs. But the worst snub, in my opinion, was one that not many are discussing: The complete shutout of... Read more

Selma: The Fearsome Power of Faith

Last updated on: January 12, 2015 at 7:36 am By Paul Asay

The late Christopher Hitchens once wrote a book called God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. He was quite serious about it. Hitchens was a smart man and, often, a brilliant writer. But on this matter, he was blind. His overreach here is obvious. Yes, religion does have sins to answer for. But when someone insists that “religion poisons everything,” I don’t even need to have a rebuttal ready. I’d just need to point to the movie marquee of... Read more

Stuart Scott Won His Battle

Last updated on: January 6, 2015 at 8:27 am By Paul Asay

Stuart Scott was as cool as the other side of the pillow. Scott worked for ESPN for more than 20 years, coining catchphrase after catchphrase, inspiring countless wannabe sports broadcasters and, in his own seemingly effortless way, changing the face of television sports journalism. He died Sunday morning at the age of 49. He was a fantastic journalist, tireless professional, dedicated father and, apparently, a Christian. He didn’t make a big show of his faith, I don’t think, but he... Read more

What Boyhood Says About Marriage

Last updated on: January 5, 2015 at 8:21 am By Paul Asay

Paul’s Note: Last week, I put Boyhood on my “best of” list, just as so many other critics have done. It’s a pretty weighty movie, and I may unpack some of its themes in a few weeks. But in the meantime, I just had to share a dynamic take on Boyhood from friend and fellow blogger Esther O’Reilly. O’Reilly has been a guest contributor for Christ and Pop Culture, The Retuned and Patheos Evangelical, and you can read more of... Read more

Into The Woods: Evil Beans

Last updated on: January 2, 2015 at 3:26 pm By Paul Asay

In her look back on the year in pop culture, Christianity Today’s Alissa Wilkinson deftly discusses the many, many ways in which 2014’s movies and television shows have grappled with the concept of evil. And while our entertainment offers lots of different sources for evil, Wilkinson says, one of the biggest is disturbingly close to home: We make our own problems. She writes: We moderns feel comforted by the idea that evil is something we create or choose through our own... Read more