Muddling Toward Maturity Blog

MOVIE REVIEW: "THE CASE FOR CHRIST"

UPDATE 4/8/2017  - I saw the movie today and agree with both Ed Morrissey's review (below) and that of Steven D. Graydanus'.  Both reviews acknowledge that this faith-based film evidences the genre's maturation.  One can watch it without cringing.  I found the acting very good, and the emotional responses of Erika Christensen (who played Strobel's wife, Leslie), particularly outstanding.

Here is a trailer followed by Lee Strobel's talk at a church last month in which he tells his story in his own words. 

Original post:

Ed Morrissey, whose opinion I regard highly, gives five stars to The Case for Christ movie.   It opens in theaters across the U.S. tonight.  Strobel is the author of the best-selling book (over 14 million copies) The Case for Christ.  Here is Morrissey's review:.

The faith-based film industry has both grown and matured over the last several years as filmmakers and investors see enthusiasm from audiences for these offerings. The new film The Case for Christ, based on the real-life conversion story of former Pulitzer-nominated journalist Lee Strobel and taken from his 1998 book of the same title, provides further evidence of this maturation.

In fact, the pursuit of evidence forms the core of the film’s narrative. In 1980, Lee Strobel (Mike Vogel) finds his marriage and professional life turned upside-down when his wife Leslie (Erika Christiansen) converts from their shared atheism to Christianity. Convinced that his wife has been brainwashed by a cult — being just a couple of years removed from the Jonestown massacre — Strobel decides to apply his journalistic expertise to debunk the central core of the Christian faith: the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Can Strobel find an evidence-based argument to refute Christianity, or will he be forced to face his own biases and assumptions?

The Case for Christ models a familiar tension for believers between faith and reason. People come to Christianity through both paths and generally find ways to accommodate both. Leslie’s conversion comes through an emotional tie to faith, but Lee clings to his vision of reason. That dichotomy plays out in their interactions, depicted realistically and very believably between Vogel and Christiansen on screen. For most of us, who struggle to blend the two, we will recognize ourselves in Lee and Leslie.

HOLLYWOOD IS EMPLOYING A NEW TECHNIQUE TO INCREASE THE BOTTOM LINE: CONNECT WITH CHURCHES

It has taken Hollywood a long time to seriously gear up to tap into the vast potentially lucrative Christian marketplace.  Brooks Barnes recently penned an eye-opening article describing how such efforts have now taken on more energy than ever before. He writes in "Secular Hollywood Quietly Courts the Faithful":

On the surface, Hollywood is a land of loose morals, where materialism rules, sex and drugs are celebrated on screen (and off), and power players can have a distant relationship with the truth. But movie studios and their partners have quietly — very quietly, sometimes to the degree of a black ops endeavor — been building deep connections to Christian filmgoers who dwell elsewhere on the spectrum of politics and social values. In doing so, they have tapped churches, military groups, right-leaning bloggers and, particularly, a fraternity of marketing specialists who cut their teeth on overtly religious movies but now put their influence behind mainstream works like “Frozen,” “The Conjuring,” “Sully” and “Hidden Figures.”  

The marketers are writing bullet points for sermons, providing footage for television screens mounted in sanctuaries and proposing Sunday school lesson plans. In some cases, studios are even flying actors, costume designers and producers to megachurch discussion groups.

I found it a fascinating article, filled with marketing details and personalities new to me.  As I read I began to wonder, might these developments be a sign that God is beginning to answer many people's prayers for Hollywood to change its direction and offer uplifting and morally challenging films on a more regular basis?    One can hope -- and continue to pray.  Read the whole thing.

ROD DREHER: Au Revoir, Madeleine Lebeau

I am borrowing a blog post from Rod Dreher containing a movie clip I found very moving.

 

Dreher:

Madeleine Lebeau has died. She was the last surviving cast member of Casablanca, and she had an iconic role in what for me is the greatest scene of all cinema. See above. She’s the character you see crying while singing “La Marseillaise”. From the story:

It was for her third American film however that she is most remembered. Signed to a Warner Bros contract in 1942, she was quickly cast in Casablanca as Yvonne. Introduced as yet another spurned conquest by main character Rick Blaine, she is next seen as a collaborator on the arm of a German soldier. However, during the iconic cast performance of “La Marseillaise,” Yvonne tears up as she sings along and then shouts “Viva la France!”. Like many of the film’s cast who were also refugees from Nazi terror, Lebeau’s tears, and her shout, were absolutely genuine.

Madeleine Lebeau was a Jewish refugee. May her memory be eternal, and may her memory be a blessing.

And: Vive la France!

QUICK TAKES

     - Wintery Knight - What marriage-minded women need to learn about men from the movie "High Noon"  - Great post!  WK offers video segments from the movie, a partial transcript, and excellent commentary.  

     - Wintery Knight - "Is Trump a Christian?  Is Donald Trump a moral person?

     - David Harsanyi - Why aren't we having a conversation about Leftist violence?  Good question!!   

     - Steve Forbes, Stephen Moore and Art Laffer (all experts on tax policy) support Ted Cruz's flat tax proposal.  It will simplify the tax code and create jobs!

    - On Foreign Policy, Donald Trump sounds a lot like Obama.  Jim Talent offers valuable analysis.  

"RISEN" MOVIE - VERY MUCH WORTH SEEING

The movie "Risen" is quite good and definitely worth seeing.  A positive review and helpful reflection on Christian faith and "Christian movies" can be found in the following article:   "Risen and What Makes a Good Christian Film"

A friend of mine recently wrote me and included a link to the First Things  review of Terrence Malick's Knight of Cups.  He saw it shortly thereafter and wrote:

I thought the movie, Knight of Cups ... phenomenal. I think Malick is attempting to express profound truths about life, God, and relationships through film like no one else.  I can understand why some don't have the patience for his films - they are like visual poems, very beautiful but demanding. Certainly high art.   

 I am grateful for this introduction to Terrence Malick's work.

MOVIE RECOMMENDATION: "WHEN THE GAME STANDS TALL"

Email from a mom of teenagers [I haven't seen the movie yet] - 

We went to see "When the Game Stands Tall" tonight, a movie about the De La Salle High School football team, their coach, and their amazing winning streak.  I wondered if I'd enjoy a football movie, but the dynamics running throughout the story kept everyone of all ages engaged.  Even my teen girls loved it (and of course, the men and boys who were with us were totally attentive)!

 

Main characters were played by Jim Caviesel (Jesus in "The Passion of the Christ"), Michael Chiklis (Curly in "The Three Stooges") but there was a large cast of characters, portrayed vividly.  The film had all the right elements to keep you watching.  

 

There were multiple issues left unresolved, yet many heroes.

 

The cinematography in this film was incredible.  You will feel like you're watching MondayNight Football from the field.   This is a date night or family night worth doing.

 

 

After the best original song nomination for "Alone Yet Not Alone" was rescinded, "Schindler's List" producer Gerald Molen rips the Academy for "faith-based bigotry" (VIDEO)

Here is a sequence of stories over Joni Eareckson Tada's singing "Alone Yet Not Alone" in a movie of the same name:

-- Joni Eareckson Tada  is surprised and delighted at the song's nomination

-- Academy strips "Along Yet Not Alone" of its Oscar nomination

-- Oscar winner pens letter accusing Academy of Christian "bigotry" in song flap

Joni Eareckson Tada, in the first link above, makes the following inspiring statement:

What message do you want to leave with the song’s listeners?

Years ago I wrote a mission statement for my life, and the mission statement is simply “I want to be God’s best audio-visual aid of how His power shows up best in weakness.” And, I see this opportunity as just another example of God answering that mission statement. God seems to delight in taking the ill-equipped, untrained, unskilled, and unprofessional and placing them to do a job so that the whole world would know that God is God. And, if people watch that video link [see above], that’s the message I hope they’ll get.

THE AMERICAN LEFT DISLIKES "LONE SURVIVOR" MOVIE

I haven't seen the movie yet but I've read reviews of both the movie and the book.  I think David French's response to leftist criticism particularly trenchant.

. . . Lone Survivor tells the story of a SEAL mission gone wrong and the resulting firefight where a small band of SEALs displayed remarkable courage under fire. But they showed more than courage. An act of humanity sealed their fate — the decision to free Afghan civilians that stumbled into their path. With their own lives on the line, they obeyed American rules of engagement, obeyed the laws of war, and conducted themselves with honor (with one SEAL posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor). 

So how do some in the left-wing press write about this movie? Here’s L.A. Weekly:

These four men were heroes. But these heroes were also men. As the film portrays them, their attitudes to the incredibly complex War on Terror, fought hillside by bloody hillside in the Afghan frontier with both U.S. and Taliban forces contributing to an unconscionably high civilian body count, were simple: Brown people bad, American people good.

Really? You say that after the film shows how Americans actually gave their lives rather than kill an innocent “brown” person? Make no mistake, this is an accusation of the most vile racism, and it slanders these SEALs. Indeed, it slanders more than the SEALs involved in that firefight. Friends of mine died in Iraq — including, and this will be a news flash to L.A. Weekly (which apparently views our forces as all-white), “brown” friends — because of their concern for and respect for the lives of local citizens. We erred on the side of saving local lives, to the point where people very dear to me paid the ultimate price.

THE MOVIE "THE BUTLER" DISTORTS RACE RELATIONS

I'm always bothered when movies rewrite history.  Most moviegoers accept the screen story as accurate.    Richard Epstein tells the true story.

HOLLYWOOD JUDGES "BEHIND THE CANDELABRA" TOO GAY

What? you ask.  How can gay-friendly Hollywood judge a movie as "too gay?"  Michael Voris says gay propagandists want the populace to concentrate on abstractions ("rights," "equality," "fairness") but avoid at all costs showing what gay people actually do.  Voris writes:

Hollywood producer Steven Soderbergh has made a movie about flamboyant homosexual showman Liberace and his very much younger gay partner.

The name of the movie is "Behind the Candelabra" and it stars Michael Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as much much younger live-in male sex partner Scott Thornson.

But you won't be seeing this movie - not that you would want to - but you wont be seeing in US theaters anytime soon. The reason?

According to Soderbergh - he had the door slammed in his face by every major studio in Hollywood because they all said the movie was - his words now, quoting them - the movie was "too gay".

According to those who have seen the movie - it is VERY gay. Kind of no holds-barred, practically nothing left to the imagination .. including a couple of very explicit raunchy sex scenes between Douglas and Damon.

But what does Hollywood say - NOPE. Too Gay.

But why? Why should the Puritans who run Hollywood all of a sudden take exception to extraordinarily explicit sex scenes .. especially ones involving Michael Douglas?

WEIRD THINGS HAPPENED ON THE SET OF 'THE BIBLE'

Grady Smith writes:

For producer Mark Burnett, who worked on the ten-hour special with wife Roma Downey, the success of  "The Bible" isn’t all that surprising. “It will be, over the next 40 or 50 years, the most watched thing that Roma and I have ever made,” he told EW, quite confidently, back in January.

At the time, Burnett gushed about shooting the series. “I really believe what I’m going to tell you right now,” he said. “The hand of God was on this…. the edit came together perfectly, the actors came together perfectly, it just comes to life.” But Burnett wasn’t just speaking about how well the practicalities of production had gone. “Weird things happened during filming,” he said. “Everybody would look at each other like, “Whoa.”

Here are a few of the “weird things” he was talking about:

A mighty desert wind
“There’s a scene with Jesus and Nicodemus, when Nicodemus comes to Jesus in the night. It’s a very still night, not a breath of wind, and we’re on the edge of the Sahara desert in a palm grove in an oasis… Jesus says, ‘The Holy Spirit is like the wind.’ At that moment, a wind, like as if a 747 was taking off, blew his hair, almost blew the set over and sustained for 20 seconds across the desert, and the actors didn’t break — they kept going. And everything stopped. Everyone just looked at everyone like, ‘What just happened?’” 

There were more "weird things" . . . 

"THE BIBLE" TV MINISERIES BEGINS TONIGHT ON THE HISTORY CHANNEL

The 10-hour, five-week miniseries,“The Bible,” premieres Sunday, March 3, at 8 p.m. ET on The History Channel. Scroll down for a useful news piece published by the Huffington Post.

 

 

Jaweed Kaleem of the Huffington Post writes:

One is best known for playing a kind-hearted angel on a hit television drama. The other is the man behind more than a dozen record-breaking reality shows. But husband and wife Roma Downey ("Touched by an Angel") and Mark Burnett ("Survivor," "The Voice") say their biggest achievement is yet to come -- and it offers a stark contrast to the primetime roles that have made them sought-after Hollywood stars.

Called "The Bible" and set to premiere Sunday on the History Channel, their new production is a 10-hour scripted miniseries that aims to take viewers on a dramatic, special effects-filled journey through the world's most popular book, from the story of Noah's Ark to the Exodus and the life of Jesus.

"We're trying to tell the story of God's love for his people," said Downey, who plays the role of Mary in the five-episode series.

She and Burnett were inspired after watching "The Ten Commandments," the famed -- but dated -- 1956 film by Cecil B. DeMille that makes its rounds in television reruns during major holidays. "We saw this as an opportunity engage people in new and exciting ways to consider these stories and re-experience them," said Downey, who conceived the project with Burnett nearly four years ago.  [more...]

THE HOBBIT -- EIGHT WEEKS AND COUNTING

HT: Ben Witherington



ED MORRISSEY REVIEWS "FOR GREATER GLORY"

See what you think.

 

Morrissey writes:

For Greater Glory tells the story of the Mexican government’s attempt to stamp out the Catholic Church under President Calles (played by Ruben Blades), and the uprising that followed, a civil war that killed 90,000 people. Calles attempted to enforce the anti-clerical laws put into Mexico’s 1917 socialist Constitution by demanding the expulsion of foreign priests, banning public demonstrations of faith (including the wearing of clerical garb), and making criticism of the government by priests punishable by five years in prison. A boycott organized by the Catholic Church prompted Calles to get even tougher, and open war broke out. Enrique Gorostieta (Andy Garcia), a general who had fought for the winning side in the revolution, chose to lead the Cristero rebellion, and the film focuses mainly on Gorostieta, two of his lieutenants, and a young boy named Jose Sanchez del Rio, who was later beatified by the Catholic Church.

RECOMMENDED FILMS FROM CHUCK COLSON'S "BREAKPOINT"

Here's the list:

THE MOVIE "OCTOBER BABY" OPENS TONIGHT

I saw "October Baby" tonight and thought it great!   Go see it.  (I don't think the trailer does it justice).

Chuck Colson comments:

[...] In October Baby, we have the story of Hannah, a college student suddenly hit with earth-shattering news. Not only is she adopted, but her biological mother had tried to abort her. Her overprotective adoptive parents had tried to shield her from the truth, but the lingering health problems caused by the procedure finally force them to tell her what happened.

The devastating news propels Hannah on a journey to learn more about her origins, but she finds out even more than she bargained for.

Hannah’s cinematic story was inspired by the real-life story of Gianna Jessen. Gianna was born with cerebral palsy after a botched abortion and has become a celebrated pro-life speaker. After watching October Baby, Giann said that watching the film was a healing experience for her.

For those of us who haven’t been through anything like what Gianna has, the film is a valuable glimpse at experiences that we can hardly begin to imagine. It raises awareness of the unseen person who is always involved in an abortion, and asks us to identify with that person in a way that we never have before.

But another one of October Baby’s strengths is that it doesn’t present only a single perspective. Hannah talks with a nurse involved with her abortion. She learns about a clinic bombing that affected that nurse’s life.

The film, you see, doesn’t do any demonizing; it shows the pain that surrounds this issue for everybody, from the abortion-minded mother to the adoptive parents dealing with the fallout of her decision. . .

See also:

'October Baby': A film with a fresh perspective
Gina Dalfonzo | BreakPoint Blog | February 6, 2012

October Baby Stories: Gianna Jessen
YouTube.com | October 21, 2011

Update 3/27/12 - Tina Korbe wrote today, "October Baby brings out movie reviewer's bias."   Korbe cites one reviewer's extreme hostility which is quite incredible, especially since the movie is so mild in its telling of a compelling story:

Catsoulis can’t restrain her antipathy, claiming the movie has “an essential ugliness at its core” and “communicates in the language of guilt and fear.” It’s “clearly intended to terrify young women,” she writes. Then, she reveals her true objection to the film is political: “It fits right in with proposed state laws that increasingly turn the screws on a woman’s dominion over her reproductive system.”

TWO REVIEWS (ED MORRISSEY & KEVIN MCCULLOUGH) OF NEW FILM, "ACT OF VALOR"

Ed Morrissey, whose opinion I respect, says,

Americans love military and action films, as box office returns show. But what if filmmakers eschewed ridiculous plot lines for actual missions fought by American commandos, along with realistic depictions of terrorism, violence, and weapons fire?  And what if most of the actors on screen aren’t actors at all, but actual Navy SEALs?  Act of Valor tells those stories and uses those fighting men — and the result is an excellent action movie that keeps viewers riveted to the action until the very end.  [more . .]

 

Kevin McCullough, in his review, "Ignore the Haters... Act of Valor is a great piece of film making," said "the film is a breathtaking action movie, the likes of which comes along once in a generation," and "the story has more heart than any movie made about our military in the last twenty years."

McCullough said the "primary motivation for making this apolitical movie about the life of Navy Seals was primarily to pay honor and tribute to the sacrifice these extraordinary individuals make in order for all the rest of us to walk around free."    Further:  "It is difficult to put into words how important this film is. It is even harder to put into words how GOOD this film is.

IRAQI MILITARY OFFICER: AMERICAN MOVIES DON'T DEPICT AMERICA ACCURATELY

At the end of her Wall Street Journal article, "Jobs, Thatcher and the Force of Life,"  Peggy Noonan writes:

Final note. We are at a point in our culture when we actually have to pull for grown-up movies, when we must try to encourage them and laud them when they come by. . . . [Note:  She likes "The Iron Lady," the movie about Margaret Thatcher, starring Meryl Streep, opening Dec. 30 in the USA].  Our movie culture has descended into immaturity, deep and inhuman violence, a pervasive and flattened sexuality. It is an embarrassment.

In Iraq this year I asked an Iraqi military officer doing joint training at an American base what was the big thing he'd come to believe about Americans in the years they'd been there. He thought. "You are a better people than your movies say." He had judged us by our exports. He had seen the low slag heap of our culture and assumed it was a true expression of who we are.

And so he'd assumed we were disgusting.

On Meryl Streep's performance in "The Iron Lady," Peggy Noonan writes:

The masterpiece is Meryl Streep's portrayal of Mrs. Thatcher, which is not so much a portrayal as an inhabitation. It doesn't do justice to say Ms. Streep talks like her, looks like her, catches some of her spirit, though those things are true. It's something deeper than that, something better and more important. She tried to be Margaret Thatcher, and there's a real tribute in that.

"COURAGEOUS" AND "THE MIGHTY MACS" - BOTH MOVIES WORTH SEEING!

I saw "Courageous" today, the 4th movie put out by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia, and thought it excellent.   If enough people would go see it, there could be a real change in families around the world. (I look forward to hearing of its international release).  It alternates between tears and laughter,  tears and laughter.   Solid stuff!  Well done.

 

I love movies that involve athletic competition.  The Mighty Macs tells the true story of Cathy Rush taking over a nondescript women's basketball program and producing a national championship team.  Really entertaining!   And a movie you can take all the family to.

 

Update 11/1/11:  Following is "The Resolution" featured in the movie, "Courageous":

MARVIN OLASKY RECOMMENDS TEENS WATCH CLASSIC MOVIES - MANY OF THEM WESTERNS

I am posting this as much for myself as for others.  I have not been much of a movie-goer, so I am open to suggestions.  Olasky offers lots.

"Cinema Classics Offer An Opportunity to Train Youth in the Art of Patient Watching"

Mattie Ross, the lead female character in last year's movie True Grit, is a 14-year-old in 1877 with determination so steely and speech so precise that some reviewers have complained. They claim that Mattie could not have existed, since the 14-year-old girls they know are flibbertigibbets. They're wrong: Some students I know are just like Mattie, capable of intense concentration rather than multitasking.

Some of their ability is due to parents who showed children that books, board games, toy soldiers, Lego blocks, and other activities without flashes and beeps can be so fascinating that time stops. These parents shielded their sub-teen children from electronic addiction and their teenagers from drug and sexual activity. Some parents, though, say NO MOVIES—and that can be a problem when children grow up inexperienced in discernment and therefore subject to manipulation by those who equate adult with adultery.

As I was mulling over that problem, a new issue of Academic Questions, the journal of the National Association of Scholars, arrived and surprised me. Academic Questions has a traditionalist orientation that often leads to articles praising Great Books curricula, so it was semi-shocking to see a slew of articles praising the study of popular culture—and particularly movies from past generations that can train students to watch patiently.

Some writers went way back. English professor Thomas Bertonneau praised The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) for its "heroic narrative and medieval balladry." He noted, "The film's appeal is adult, involving the expectation that to appreciate it children and adolescents must rise to the adult level. The dialogue is noticeably literate." True, true—and the movie even ends with a marriage.

ED MORRISSEY REVIEWS "SOUL SURFER" MOVIE POSITIVELY

In my book, if Morrissey says "it's good," then it's worth seeing. 

A MOVIE TO SEE: "THE KING'S SPEECH"

Update 1/7/2011 - I saw the film yesterday.  It merits all the praise Witherington gives it (see below).   Utterly superb.   I came away much moved by the drama of a good man and a good wife (who later became the much-beloved Queen Mother, the mother of the current Queen Elizabeth). 

- (Original post) I haven't seen it yet, but Justin Taylor likes it and so does Dr. Ben Witherington.  (Witherington's comments follow the trailer below).  Taylor says:

If you like historical dramas, great cinematography, and excellent character acting, this is your film. (I really don’t know why it’s rated R—it has one brief scene with some swearing.) The movie is on limited release in the US, so it may not be the easiest one to find in the theaters.

You can read the book upon which the movie was based, entitled, The King’s Speech: How One Man Saved the British Monarchy, co-written by the speech therapist’s grandson and based on actual letters and journals.

 

Witherington says:

"COOL IT" OPENS THIS WEEKEND

Hugh Hewitt says:

The critically-acclaimed new documentary that rips global warming alarmism opens in theaters across the country today, and every opponent of cap-and-tax and the hysteria that drives it should turn out to see the entertaining expose of sky-is-falling climate change doomsaying.

Bjorn Lomborg drives the Goreites crazy, as will this film for years to come.  A big first weekend at the box office will drive its release so find time to be amused and enlightened this weekend.

CHUCK COLSON RECOMMENDS THE MOVIE "EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES"

Read his review here.  He subtitles his post, "The Worth of a (handicapped) Child."

Colson says,"I love a good movie. And a movie that underscores the value of every human life, well, I really love that one."  Apparently "Extraordinary Measures" is such a movie.

NEW TRAILER FOR "VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER"

This looks really good to me.  It may be the best screen adaptation of a C.S. Lewis Narnia book so far.  It's coming to theaters this December. 

 

MOVIES

I'm not much of a moviegoer, but I am something of a "data collector" so this Justin Taylor post might prove useful sometime in the future:

  Films to Watch While Reading Meaning at the Movies

If you’re going to read Grant Horner’s new book on film art, Meaning at the Movies, he strongly suggests that you watch certain films before reading the chapter in which they are discussed. If you don’t, you’ll find spoilers (which is inevitable in any serious analysis of a story) and it will lessen the impact of the film itself.

I thought it might be helpful to break down his suggested movie watching in conjunction with the chapter and genre he’s discussing:

Before you read chapter 4 (“A Time to Laugh: A Theological Approach to Comedy“), watch

• City Lights [1931] and
• Dr. Strangelove [1964].

Before you read chapter 5 (“Exorcising the Psycho: The Invention of Fear for Pleasure“), watch

• Psycho [1960] and
• What Lies Beneath [2000].

Before you read chapter 6 (“Hollywood Invents Romance: Of All the Gin Joints, in All the Towns, in All the World, She Walks into Mine“), watch

• Marty [1955].

Before you read chapter 7 (“Film Noir: The Dark Side, or Solomon Goes to Hollywood“), watch

• Double Indemnity [1944],
• Sunset Boulevard [1950], and
• Scarlet Street [1945].

Before you read chapter 8 (“The End of the Matter: Movies and Meaning, Memory and Man“), watch

• Citizen Kane [1941],
• 2001: A Space Odyssey [1968],
• Blade Runner [1982], and
• Memento [2000].

TRAILER FOR "VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER"

Coming this Christmas:  (HT: Between Two Worlds)

I confess I am not a fan of these movies.  I think they would be far stronger if the movie makers would stick more faithfully to C. S. Lewis's actual stories.  Christianity Today, ("Will the 'Dawn Treader' Float?") suggests this new one will be an improvement over Prince Caspian.   May it be so!

HOW DOES ONE ACCOUNT FOR THE "GOLDEN AGE OF FILM"?

Chuck Colson offers a cogent explanation.

One of the best films ever made is Frank Capra’s "It Happened One Night," starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. The 1934 comedy features an heiress on the run from her father, and the reporter who joins forces with her. The two fall in love and, alone in hotel rooms, to guard against temptation, they hang a blanket between their beds. They call it “the walls of Jericho.” When the couple finally ties the knot, the “wall” comes tumbling down.

In the 1930s, a plotline that precluded premarital sex was a wise idea. Movie-makers who flouted the Motion Picture Production Code risked a backlash against their films.

As Peter Dans writes in his new book, Christians in the Movies: A Century of Saints and Sinners, the Code’s purpose was to protect filmgoers from films that “will lower the standards of [viewers.]”

In recent years, much fun has been poked at the Code, which went belly up in 1968. But as Dans points out, enforcement of the Code brought about the “Golden Age of Film.” Requiring moviemakers to exercise restraint “was, on balance, beneficial to the creative process,” he says.

Joseph Bottom explains why in the foreword. “Naked breasts are eye-catching, and well-sculpted nudes don’t need much dialogue,” he notes. “So what happens when you can’t show them? Turns out, you have to tell a story instead.”

For example, imagine the plotline of It Happened One Night if no Code had been in force. Nothing would have prevented Gable and Colbert from sleeping together the minute they fell in love—or prevented Capra from

MOVIE REVIEW: "TO SAVE A LIFE"

Mark Early, of "Breakpoint," says a new independent film is now out and "teens are praising this film for its realistic and relevant portrayal of their world and responding enthusiastically to its message."  Early writes: 

It’s entitled, To Save a Life. It honestly portrays the enormous challenges facing our teens today. Written by a seasoned youth-pastor with a degree in film, this story doesn’t shy away from the real life-and-death issues our young people face.

The film tells the story of Jake Taylor, a young man who has it all: a basketball scholarship, the ideal girlfriend, and the right friends. But faced with the demands of the in-crowd, Jake has written off

NILE GARDINER LISTS THE TOP 10 CONSERVATIVE MOVIES OF THE LAST DECADE

As I've said before, I'm not much of a movie goer, but if the bug ever bites, I'll want to take a look at some of the movies on Gardiner's list.  (HT: John J. Miller at The Corner).  Incidentally, National Review Online has a list of its own: "25 best conservative movies of the last 25 years."  The two lists overlap a good bit.

HOLLYWOOD STARS WITH AND WITHOUT MAKEUP

I think you'll want to see these photos.  The "beautiful people" look pretty ordinary (to say the least).  There's a lesson here somewhere.  Photo to the right: Katie Holmes

1939 WAS THE ZENITH OF THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD

So says Pamela Geller. 

The thirties, forties, fifties boast a treasure trove of  classic, brilliant film masterpieces, but '39 was unmatched.  Movie historians and cinemaphiles agree that 1939 was "the greatest year in film history". Consider the exceptional Dark Victory, Ninotchka, Rules of the Game , The Wizard of Oz, The Young Mr. Lincoln, Love Affair, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Juarez, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, Destry Rides Again, Gunga Din, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Of Mice and Men, Stagecoach, The Women, Wuthering Heights, and Gone With the Wind -- all made that year.

These films reflect American culture's finest hour. Essentially, they are a reflection on our values, morality, and art. Consider American film just one of our unquantifiable gifts to the world. We ought to look back, in order to go forward. So grab the popcorn, dim the lights and take a trip back with Atlas.  [more . . .]

"THE BLIND SIDE" -- A MOVIE WORTH SEEING

I'm not much of a movie-goer, so it's not often that I offer comments.  (Click here for previous blog posts on movies.)  Tonight, though, I came across Prof. Ben Witherington's enthusiastic review of the new movie, The Blind Side.  Since I value his judgment,  I just may go see this film.   Witherington is a world class New Testament professor at Asbury Seminary in Kentucky, and a film aficionado whose blog I check on a regular basis.

MOVIE - "THE STONING OF SAROYA M."

- On the suffering of women under Islam (including honor killings), Phyllis Chesler remains a good source.  She comments on the Muslim mass murder in Canada currently under investigation.

 - As for the movie, "The Stoning of Saroya M." good background video can be found here.  Article excerpt:

The creator of The Stoning Soraya M. hopes the film will open the world's eyes to a brutal practice  that is still taking place today.

Zahra is an Iranian woman who meets a French journalist and exposes a brutal tradition in her village.  Her niece Soraya was stoned to death.

The gripping story is the focus of the feature film directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh.

"In modern-day Iran,  the victim is accused of a crime.  Usually it's adultery or sex-related crime, for which stoning is the punishment," he explained.  "And it is usually women who are the victim."

In this film the victim is Soraya.

Her husband, Ali, wants to dump her and marry a 14-year-old.  He then falsely accuses Soraya of cheating.  The punishment is being buried waist deep while the men in the village throw stones at her.

And this is a true story based on an international best-seller first published in 1994.    

Zahra is the brave woman standing up to the men.

She's portrayed by Shoreh Aghdashloo -- who actually left Iran 30 years ago, shortly before the islamic revolution.

Turning the light on a dark injustice is what moved big name stars like Jim Caviezel to be a part of the independent film.

Some reports suggest 1,000 women have been stoned in the last 15 years in a number of countries including Iran, Nigeria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

MOVIE: "THE STONING OF SORAYA M."

There's been a lot of talk about this new movie.  Charles Colson offers a valuable introduction.

A woman is marched out of her small Iranian village, her arms are bound behind her back, and she is buried up to her waist in the sand. The villagers—including her own father, husband, and sons—fling stones at her, showing no sympathy or compassion as the blood runs down her face and soaks through her clothes. They stone her until they’re certain she’s dead, and then they leave her body on the ground for the wild dogs.

This is what audiences will see in the film The Stoning of Soraya M., made by the filmmaking team behind The Passion of the Christ. It opens in limited release on June 26. I haven’t given away any plot twists or surprises—the title of the film tells you all you need to know.

The Stoning of Soraya M. is based on a true story; in fact, you may have read the bestselling book when it came out in 1994. Journalist Freidoune Sahebjam was traveling through Iran when he

THE TRUTH ABOUT "ANGELS AND DEMONS"

- I learned (via Justin Taylor's blog Between Two Worlds), about this useful website set up by Westminster Theological Seminary.

- Ben Witherington of Asbury Theological Seminary reviews the movie.  Update 5/24/09: Christianity Today reviews the movie here, and Plugged In here.

- In a New York Times op-ed, "Dan Brown's America," Ross Douthat says,

It isn’t just that he [Dan Brown, author of "The Da Vinci Code", and "Angels and Demons"] knows how to keep the pages turning. That’s what it takes to sell a million novels. But if you want to sell a 100 million, you need to preach as well as entertain — to present a fiction that can be read as fact, and that promises to unlock the secrets of history, the universe and God along the way.

Brown is explicit about this mission. He isn’t a serious novelist, but he’s a deadly serious writer: His thrilling plots, he’s said, are there to make the books’ didacticism go down easy, so that readers

HAVE YOU SEEN THE MOVIE "WALL-E"?

I've read about the movie WALL-E before, and heard it was good.  Just  now I read another article, this time by Chuck Colson, who once again explained the excellencies of this film, so I've made up my mind I've got to go see it.   Colson provides a link to a World magazine interview with the filmmaker, Andrew Stanton.

1960's RADICALS ENTHUSIASTICALLY SUPPORT OBAMA

Story here.

MICHAEL NOVAK'S SUMMER READING/VIEWING RECOMMENDATIONS

Michael Novak recommends the DVD The Ninth Day, a German film set in Dachau and Luxembourg, plus two novels: the Newt Gingrich novel (with William R. Forstchen), Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8 and Dragon Fire,  by former Secretary of Defense, William S. Cohen.  Novak explains why these are worth reading and viewing here.

SEX AND THE CITY - And being single today

Kathryn Jean Lopez offers a unique review of the move and in a later post offers some reading ideas to deal with the pain that comes with the "Carrie approach."  Lopez's suggestions:

As for writing — Jennifer Marshall has written thoughtfully about single life, helping single people feel confident without giving up. Jennifer Roback Morse has written with some authority and experience on why the Carrie approach isn't the right one. Leon and Amy Kass have put together a great collection on courtship I like to give young people — how many young people have ever thought about that word? Kate O'Beirne has written about what feminism has wrought, which is really a big reason why we're where we are — why Carrie and the girls have been so darned unhappy. Michael and Harriet McManus do a good job of presenting the practical drawbacks of cohabitation — and urge churches to take the lead in helping singles wait. Kay Hymowitz reminds us about how the inner-city truly suffers without marriage. And Kathleen Parker embraces men and rejects feminist hostility toward them in her new book, which really is a healthy cleansing — and one I wish Carrie and the girls could have had a long time ago.

THE MOVIE "PRINCE CASPIAN" OPENS TODAY - C.S. LEWIS'S "JUST WAR" TALE

- Update 5/30/08 - This review by by Joe Carter over at The Evangelical Outpost has won me over.  I hadn't planned on going to see the movie, but now I plan to see it (at some time or other).

- Update 5/17/08 - Frederica Mathewes-Green thinks the movie improves on the book!  She lists other books that have fared better as movies as well.  You might want to see if you agree with her! - Thomas Hibbs laments alterations the film makes from the book.

- Michael Ward, author of Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis, offers the following commentary:

"Caspian" is a fantasy, of course - but also a war story. Indeed, it's the tale of a just war: Prince Caspian's fight to return Narnia to its natural, Aslan-given order by driving the tyrant Miraz from power and bringing back and restoring the rights of talking animals, fauns, dwarves and other magical beings.

The tale is full of military events, councils, knights. Aslan gives a great war cry to summon and inspire his troops ("The Lion Roars"). Miraz is defeated in single combat, after which "full battle" is joined.

In fact, "Caspian" is centered on the theme of Mars, god of war.

Lewis wrote the Narnia Chronicles so that they would express the qualities of the seven heavens of the medieval cosmos, which he deemed "spiritual symbols of

12 Spiritual Lessons from "Prince Caspian"

Prince Caspian, the second movie in the "Chronicles of Narnia" series by C.S. Lewis, opens May 16, 2008.  These 12 spiritual lessons drawn from the book and movie  prove worth noting.

DAVID BERLINSKI DEFENDS THE MOVIE "EXPELLED"

David Berlinski is a secular Jew who appears in Expelled (the movie questioning Darwinists who disgorge at the thought of Intelligent Design).  He has replied  to John Derbyshire, a National Review writer and committed Darwinist.  Berlinski's article exhibits exceptional writing talent, and skewers Derbyshire's  intemperate dismissal of a movie he refuses to see.  Berlinski is the author of The Devil's Delusion: Atheism and Its Scientific Pretensions.

BEN STEIN'S "EXPELLED": A MUST-SEE MOVIE (With an additional note on Hitler and Darwinism)

Update 5/6/08 - I have a new post today, David Berlinski Defends the Movie "Expelled"

Update 4/20/08 (later) - Tim over at Random Observations overs an invaluable survey of media reviews which can only be described as "ranting and hysterical".  Tim offers judicious and appropriate responses.  I recommend you click through to read his post.

Update 4/20/08 - The movie is generating a lot of controversy, as expected.  Brent Bozell had the same reaction I did.  He went into the movie bored and came out stunned. Dinesh D'Souza has an AOL article focusing on Richard Dawkins' idea that the origin of life on earth may have been the result of a visit from highly-evolved aliens.  Chuck Colson dispels a number of myths about the movie.  Marvin Olasky's review in World Magazine substantiates the Nazi reliance on evolutionary theory to undergird the holocaust.  Another article examines "Michael Shermer's 'fact-free' attack on Expelled."  Many of these articles can be found on the Discovery Institute website and doubtless many more will be posted there as the controversy continues.  On the other side of the argument,"The National Council for Science Education has opened a website as a rebuttal to the movie.   

- I went to see Ben Stein's movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed  last night (opening night).  It completely exceeded my expectations.  The juxtaposition  of modern visuals and interviews with background historical movies and other images (complete with touches of humor), will hold the attention of both youngsters as well as adults.  Outspoken atheist Richard Dawkins becomes a ridiculous figure in the final interview.

David Klinghoffer has an excellent article showing that Expelled's claim that Darwinism was a crucial part of Nazi ideology is based on impeccable scholarship.  Klinghoffer writes:

CHARLTON HESTON, R.I.P.

Michelle Malkin has a great post with Charlton Heston videos from his speeches and movies.

ISLAMOBULLIES FORCE SHUTDOWN OF GEERT WILDERS' FILM - "FITNA"

Update 3/31/08 - LiveLeak has restored the film "Fitna."  Michelle Malkin comments .

Update 3/29/08 - The film is available here at Google video and here .  Michelle Malkin offers a news update and more video locations.  Wikipedia has a good overview of the film and the controversy.    A European website offering on-going coverage is Gates of Vienna, see e.g. here and additional posts.

**
Mark Steyn posts the update:

Geert Wilders' film is a hit - over 1.5 million views in English, over 2.5 million in Dutch last time I checked - but it's nevertheless been yanked by LiveLeak, with the following statement:

Following threats to our staff of a very serious nature, and some ill informed reports from certain corners of the British media that could directly lead to the harm of some of our staff, Liveleak.com has been left with no other choice but to remove Fitna from our servers. This is a sad day for freedom of speech on the net but we have to place the safety and well being of our staff above all else.

Indeed. The Internet will keep Fitna alive in odd corners hither and yon, but only to those who actively seek it out. In the wider world, it goes without saying that such a film is unacceptable, and that this time round the pre-emptive rage (as Diana West

GEERT WILDER'S FILM ON ISLAM IS FINALLY OUT

Update 3/28/08  - Geert Wilders' film yanked  due to Islamobullies.

**
-The film was greatly feared by European governments and elsewhere because of its anti-Islamist thrust. Douglas Murray has important things to say  (HT: the Corner):

Well Geert Wilders' film 'Fitna' is finally out, as of last night, and so far there is no need to retire to the bunker.  At the time of writing there's been a bit of rioting in Karachi but Holland itself is still standing if - thanks to its government - slightly cowed

The film itself. . .  click here for the full 15min version - is well worth seeing.  It isn't for the faint-hearted: footage includes some of the most barbaric acts committed by the jihadists. But there's no burning of the Koran or ripping up of the Koran, or any of the other allegedly 'shocking' things which the Dutch government and others revealingly predicted would be in the film.  The film simply shows what the Koran says and then shows footage of certain Muslims carrying out those words to the letter.  To this extent, anything which people find shocking in the film should be put at the doors of Mohammed and certain of his followers, not Wilders.

DVD: Into Great Silence

Thomas Hibbs comments on a countercultural DVD, Into Great silence, which brings one into the depths of monastic life.  Of the DVD, Hibbs says:

N ietzsche once trenchantly quipped that “...our modern noisy, time-consuming industriousness, proud of itself, stupidly proud, educates and prepares people more than anything else does, precisely for unbelief.”The truth in that statement is perhaps never more on display than during the Christmas season. . . .   Those in search of an antidote might consider watching the newly released DVD Into Great Silence, Philip Groening’s movingly observed study of the daily lives of Carthusian monks at La Grande Chartreuse, founded in the French Alps in 1084.

A prize winner at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, the film has received universal acclaim for its minimalist style, its cinematography and especially its attentiveness to the spiritual dimension of existence to which the Carthusian life aspires. Given that contemporary entertainment fosters an attention deficit in all of us and that the film makes no effort to provide even the scaffolding of a plot, this is not, initially at least, an easy film to watch. But as it unfolds, the virtue of taking one’s time becomes evident. The virtue is most profoundly captured in one of the texts interspersed through the film: “Behold the silence that allows the Lord to speak a word in us: That He is.”  (more .  .)

More on "The Golden Compass" Movie

Update 12/13/07 - Don Feder has observations worth reading, even if one has read all the other posts on "The Golden Compass" I have put on this blog.

**
Although I have blogged before on the "Golden Compass" movie, I think Archbishop Chaput's recent comments deserve coverage.  Chaput is head of the Catholic Archdiocese in Denver. He writes (my underlining):

The aggressively anti-religious, anti-Christian undercurrent in “The Golden   Compass” is unmistakable and at times undisguised. The wicked Mrs. Coulter alludes approvingly to a fictional version of the doctrine of Original Sin. When a warrior Ice Bear — one of the heroes of the story — breaks into the local Magisterium   headquarters to take back the armor stolen from him, the exterior walls of the evil building are covered with Eastern Christian icons. And for Catholics in our own world, of course, “Magisterium” refers to the teaching authority of   the Church — hardly a literary coincidence. The idea that any Christian film critics could overlook or downplay these negative elements, as some have seemed to do, is simply baffling.

Strangest of all — and in striking contrast to the Harry Potter and Narnia   stories — is the absence of joy or any real laughter in the movie. The talented   child actress who plays the film’s leading role is hobbled by a character that is uniformly unpleasant, rebellious, belligerent and humorless; the kind of   young person described by one of my parent friends as needing a “long time-out.”

Read his entire review.  It's not long.  (HT: Hugh Hewitt) 

"The Golden Compass" Revisited

Update 12/11/07 - I have produced a new post featuring Denver Archbishop Chaput's evaluation.

Update 12/7/07 - Albert Mohler  has a complete review of the movie.  I'll print one paragraph before printing the review in full.  Here's the paragraph (my underlining):

Philip Pullman [the author of the book on which the movie is based] has an agenda -- an agenda about as subtle as an army tank. His agenda is nothing less than to expose what he believes is the tyranny of the Christian faith and the Christian church.  His hatred of the biblical storyline is clear.  He is an atheist whose most important literary project is intended to offer a moral narrative that will reverse the biblical account of the fall and provide a liberating mythology for a new secular age.

And here is the review:

"The Golden Compass - A Briefing For Concerned Christians"

The release of The Golden Compass as a major motion picture represents a new challenge for Christians -- especially parents. The release of a popular film with major actors that presents a message directly subversive of Christianity is something new. It is not likely to be the last.

Having seen the movie at an advance viewing and having read all three books of His Dark Materials, I can assure Christians that we face a real challenge -- one that will