It’s a common mistake, but still worth noting: Contrary to what many people seem to think, The Sixth Sense was not M. Night Shyamalan’s first movie. It was, in fact, his third. But virtually no one had seen his first film, Praying with Anger (still not available on DVD), or his second film, Wide Awake […]
Ben Stein’s Expelled generates more heat than light
Canadians are making their mark on the evangelical movie scene — but unlike our brethren south of the border, most of us may have to wait until the movie in question comes out on video to see what all the fuss is about. The latest Christian film to crack the all-important top-10 list at the […]
Indiana Jones & The Crystal Skull, Prince Caspian and Silent Night
Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull If you watch the Indiana Jones movies in the order they take place, rather than the order they were made, you may notice something interesting. The first, Temple of Doom, introduces Indy as a cynic out for “fortune and glory” who discovers that there are higher […]
Bella comes to Canada, and Billy Graham gets the bio treatment
A lot can happen in a year or two. Take the case of Bella, an independent film that has been heavily promoted to Christian groups as a ‘prolife’ film. When it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2006 – winning the People’s Choice Award, no less – this gentle and unassuming film, produced […]
I am legend
I have never read Richard Matheson’s novel I Am Legend, but I have seen all three of the films that have been based on it. It is probably safe to say the newest version, starring Will Smith, is the most obvious in its use of religious themes – but also the shallowest. In other words, […]
Lars and the Real Girl – An Endearing Parable
Lars and the Real Girl stars Ryan Gosling as a loner who doesn’t allow himself to come close to anyone, not even his brother (Paul Schneider) and sister-in-law (Emily Mortimer). He certainly can’t handle the thought of a relationship with an actual woman, even though he has a co-worker named Margo (Kelli Garner) who is […]
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days – Unflinching
What with films like Waitress, Knocked Up and the upcoming Juno, this seems to be the year of the unplanned pregnancy in North American films – and many critics have asked why the women in these films don’t just have their pregnancies terminated. That is, beyond the obvious fact that, if these women were no […]
Real Girl an endearing parable
Lars and the Real Girl stars Ryan Gosling as a loner who doesn’t allow himself to come close to anyone, not even his brother (Paul Schneider) and sister-in-law (Emily Mortimer). He certainly can’t handle the thought of a relationship with an actual woman, even though he has a co-worker named Margo (Kelli Garner) who is […]
4 Months unflinching
What with films like Waitress, Knocked Up and the upcoming Juno, this seems to be the year of the unplanned pregnancy in North American films — and many critics have asked why the women in these films don’t just have their pregnancies terminated. That is, beyond the obvious fact that, if these women were no […]
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
There is a lot that could be said about Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. It is the longest of the books in J.K. Rowling’s phenomenally popular series, yet it is also the shortest of the five movies that have come out so far. The book, which came out in 2003, was the […]