If one wishes to make lots of money in this world, one does not major in English lit. But it does have its benefits. For one, it can allow you to criticize your co-workers in creative ways. (“Don’t you dare go all Harold Skimpole on me!” I’ve been known to say.) You stand a better chance of winning in Trivial Pursuit. And it gives you the inclination to tease out strange parallels between centuries-old classics and teen-oriented sci-fi flicks. Take,... Read more
Ran across a pretty terrific post in Christ and Pop Culture today—a piece about AMC’s The Walking Dead (returning this Sunday) by David Dunham. The theme: Brokenness will find you. That brokenness, be it in the guise of the shambling hordes or the duplicitous living, follows Rick, Carl and the rest of the cast, episode after episode, season after season. “Dad, you can’t keep me from it,” Dunham quotes the young Carl when father Rick is trying to protect his young... Read more
It’s probably a bit of a stretch to call 2014 the Year of the Christian Movie. Statistically, at least, it’s yet another Year of the Superhero. Four superhero flicks glut the year’s list of top 10 grossing movies, including No. 1 (Guardians of the Galaxy, $323.4 million) and No. 2 (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, $259.8 million). You don’t find an explicitly religious flick until Noah at No. 21, and lots of Christians hated that one. Heaven is For Real... Read more
I sort of enjoyed the new Left Behind movie. But I enjoy meals from a box, too. And bubblegum pop. And tellingly, bad, B-grade movies. I like a lot of things that some might thumb their noses at. I wanted to like Left Behind in a “hey, this is a pretty dramatic, exciting film you can take your friends to” sort of way. Instead, I wound up liking it in a Mystery Science Theater 3000 sort of way. That hurts... Read more
Has there ever been a work of literature that couldn’t be improved by rank amateurs taking said literature and molding it into something that suits their sensibilities? I thought not. Who needs pesky authors challenging our pre-existing worldviews? Personally, I think Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness could stand a happier ending, while still containing some of the grit. Perhaps we could call it Heart of Dimness. Naturally, I’ve been following the story of Grace Anne Parsons’ work with interest. Writing... Read more
I was reading an interesting article from the New York Post regarding the surge of reasonably successful Christian movies, the newspaper’s eye fixed firmly on the release of the Left Behind remake. “After years of releasing shoddy products featuring has-beens like Kirk Cameron, the Christian film industry is upping its game in an attempt to win a crossover audience,” the Post’s Reed Tucker writes. “Is faith-based cinema about to go truly mainstream?” The answer is no, not yet. Or no,... Read more
The Equalizer isn’t exactly a family friendly, faith-centric movie. Denzel Washington, who plays protagonist Robert McCall, kills more people than die in the first three Jaws movies—and more horribly at that. But Washington’s also one of the film industry’s most prominent Christians who, despite often playing violent characters, tries to weave his faith into the projects he does and the characters he plays. The Book of Eli, which was, quite literally, a Bible story, is just the most obvious. Here’s... Read more
Life just doesn’t make sense sometimes. Just ask Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) from The Maze Runner. One moment he’s … well, he doesn’t quite know what he was doing, come to think of it. But whatever. The next, he’s zipping up, up, up in a super-fast, industrial elevator with some sort of pig. And when he gets to the top, he finds himself in the midst of a green glade surrounded by a bunch of teen boys. And none of them... Read more
This piece, on Fox’s new show Gotham, was initially published on Christian Toto’s excellent entertainment site, Hollywood in Toto. But just for fun (and with Mr. Toto’s permission), I’m reprinting the piece here. Detective Harvey Bullock doesn’t like what he sees in his shiny new partner, a young James Gordon. He may be a war hero. His pops may have been a dynamite district attorney back in the day. Sure, James may have the courage to walk Gotham City’s dirtiest... Read more
In a historic moment yesterday, Scotland narrowly voted against full independence and to stick with ye olde United Kingdom. The Union Jack, one of the coolest flags ever, will stay cool. Hadrian’s Wall will not be rebuilt. Since I live in Colorado Springs, I didn’t exactly have a dog in the fight, Scotty or otherwise. Still, I was happy to see Scotland vote the way it did—in spite of the fact that those in favor of independence used one of... Read more
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