(REVIEW) Benjamin Franklin famously once said, “In life, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Death is one of those things that the religious and non-religious have in common. It forces both to contemplate how to find meaning in life. Religious people have had the advantage in this regard, as the idea of eternal life is more appealing for people than the alternative.
Read More(REVIEW) “The Ritual” is a movie you’ve seen many times before. But the story is clearly powerful enough that it is worth retelling. Hopefully, filmmakers will start figuring out how to tell these stories in new and different ways. In the meantime, we have movies like “The Ritual” and can always rewatch a classic such as “The Exorcist” again.
Read More(REVIEW) While “Bad Shabbos” is very funny, little about it really breaks new ground, as it primarily leans on the classic tropes and themes of a Jewish “meet the parents” comedy. The movie also has some tonal awkwardness between the relatively grounded characters and dialogue mixed with its rather unbelievable farcical premise and series of escalating decisions.
Read More"The Damned" is a film that focuses on the human element of war, particularly faith and individual stories, during the Civil War. Unlike many modern war films, it connects viewers with characters through their personal beliefs and struggles. Director Roberto Minervini used nonprofessional actors and improvisation to create an authentic experience.
Read More(REVIEW) “Shadow of God” is stuck between several different possible movies and doesn’t commit to any of them effectively. It could have been an entertainingly self-aware exorcism movie, but it has too few scenes where it embraces that winking glee for the cliches. It could have subverted the cliches with its own original ideas. Even if its ideas weren’t original it could have made up for it with thoughtful and nuanced dialogue to explore familiar ground.
Read More(REVIEW) In an age ruled by smartphones, “Carlo Acutis: Roadmap to Reality” arrives as a timely and stirring documentary that invites viewers to pause, reflect and reconnect — with others, with the world and with something greater than themselves. This 90-minute documentary recounts the story of Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old computer whiz who died of leukemia in 2006 and now set to be canonized a saint.
Read More(REVIEW) Data shows that organized religion is better for society than disorganized spirituality. Whether it’s mental health, building social bonds, fighting toxic masculinity, creating safety nets to avoid poverty or creating social change (just remember the Black church’s important role in pushing forward civil rights), there’s no doubt that the house of worship has more power than cloves of garlic to ward off the evils that plague us.
Read More(REVIEW) There’s a kind of soothing boredom that settles in throughout the film. Everything about it is mild. The jokes are gentle. The characters’ anger restrained. The sadness subdued. The animation is beautiful, but unremarkable. The voice actors deliver their lines without much intensity. Because the emotional highs and lows are nonexistent, the experience is more like watching a screensaver.
Read More(REVIEW) When the characters discover the monkey can kill people, they start trying to figure out how it works, to discover its rules so they can play the game and win. But the monkey doesn’t have rules. The characters who cause the suffering in this movie are the ones who try to impose order and meaning on these meaningless death. And it’s when characters accept death and its pointless randomness that the carnage stops and reconciliation occurs.
Read More(REVIEW) The film’s best elements still chaff under faith-based genre tropes. The genre that Kingdom Story Company has conquered so successfully is built on an audience that highly prizes good messages and family friendliness. Both of these are good things. But that has often rewarded tropes that work against the genre being both truthful or beautiful. These have often become more noticeable as the quality of the movies have otherwise improved.
Read More(REVIEW) The film follows Roya Mahboob, an Afghan woman whose passion in life is giving young girls a chance at a better life by teaching them computer programming. She decides that the only way to gain popular support for her endeavors in a patriarchal society is to start a women’s robotics team and win global competitions. But this will be harder and more dangerous than she suspects. It may go without saying, but the movie has a worthy message based on inspiring real-life people.
Read More(REVIEW) The film also gives a fairly actuarial picture of our culture’s modern move toward the supernatural. As people are abandoning organized religion, they’re not becoming secular, but embracing “new age spirituality” — with beliefs in some kind of God and/or spirits and various occult or folk methods of connecting with them. This is particularly true of young women.
Read More(REVIEW) “Brave the Dark” is easily the best movie the faith-based film industry has released about the struggles of young men. It’s by far the best Angel Studios movie to date. There’s a major gender shift happening in American Christianity. Church pews have largely been filled by women, even as the pulpits were dominated by men. Women are abandoning church and men are starting to flock to it.
Read More(REVIEW) “Between Borders” is a timely film that shows the resilience of refugee families, along with the greatness of Christianity and America. Sadly, mediocre storytelling saps it of its emotional power. One might have noticed that immigration is a hot topic in Christian circles these days. It should be no surprise then that faith-based films have increasingly turned to the topic of immigration.
Read More“Nosferatu” shares many of the strengths of the rest of Robert Eggers' work. The filmmaking craft on display is undeniable. The camera lingers on the screen away from showing all of Nosferatu almost as if the camera itself is scared of him. The production design completely transports you into the world of the 18th century. Nonetheless, this is a film that has issues.
Read More(REVIEW) Netflix has put out a movie about the life of Mary just in time for Christmas. For those who want a modern retelling of Mary and the Christmas story that lives up to its potential, “Mary” is sure to disappoint. For those who simply want to enjoy a reverent take on the Christmas story that has a place at the table in a world of endless secular content, this might be just what the angels ordered.
Read More(REVIEW) “Conclave,” the fictional thriller that outlines the Catholic process of selecting a new pope, does the audience the service of stating its intended message outright. In a controversial homily that begins the proceedings, Cardinal Thomas Lawrence declares that “certainty is the great enemy of unity.” The movie also goes on to demonstrate that lesson in a variety of ways, as conspiracy abounds and tension grows.
Read More(REVIEW) Forgiveness is widely considered one of the most difficult things to do in life — particularly when it comes to the relationship between parents and children. This is probably why so many films deal with the idea of reconciling with one’s parents. “Exhibiting Forgiveness” does a great job of honestly wrestling with the hardest questions around forgiveness.
Read More(REVIEW) Presented as an offbeat rom-com, “Between the Temples” contains a depth of feeling and personal reflection that’s admirable. It’s a must-see for many reasons, and only one of them is its central romance. It’s also a hilarious misadventure, a reflection on life and relationships and the beautiful journey two people take to rediscovering faith.
Read More(REVIEW) The “Beetlejuice” sequel shows that Tim Burton continues to present religious themes, such as when Beetlejuice makes the sign of the cross and immediately catches on fire. Also, the movie expands the afterlife and shows how there are places beyond the waiting room and hallways we were shown in the first movie.
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