(REVIEW) The “Avatar” franchise contains two of the highest-grossing movies in history. Its spiritual influences and concern for the environment are two of the franchise’s most notable themes, and they are inextricable from real world events in the modern day.
Read More(REVIEW) Fighting Muhammad Ali and losing in 1974, Foreman began a downward spiral. Hit after hit to that newly accrued self-esteem eventually resulted in a near-death experience after a match. It’s after waking up from the blackout that Foreman experiences a transformational conversion, becoming a baptized Christian.
Read More(REVIEW) “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” is firmly part of American literary canon, and it’s been adapted into a movie. It’s a perfect nostalgia vehicle for fans of the book and those who grew up nearer to the time it was first published, but it isn’t good for much else.
Read More(REVIEW) This past weekend, two movies about demonic possession released. “The Pope’s Exorcist,” starring Russel Crowe, is a Hollywood horror with a big budget and inspiration from the Vatican. “Nefarious” is a faith-based horror drama made by the creators of the “God’s Not Dead” franchise.
Read MoreThe Christian movie “Jesus Revolution,” which has surpassed the $50 million mark in theaters, premieres today on digital platforms and soon on Blu-ray. Released by Lionsgate, the movie telling the story of the 1970s Jesus People movement earned more than $51 million in box office receipts. That makes it the ninth highest-grossing faith-based film of all time.
Read More(REVIEW) It just so happens that one of the most anticipated events of the HBO show — the death of patriarch and media tycoon Logan Roy — aired on Easter Sunday. If Easter is meant to celebrate resurrection and forgiveness, this episode mourns the opposite.
Read More(REVIEW) The eight-episode series “In The Name of God: A Holy Betrayal” covered Jesus Morning Star, Five Oceans, The Baby Garden, and the God of Manmim cults. Comedian Esther Ku spoke with ReligionUnplugged.com about how the series unearthed an ecosystem of cults in Korea.
Read More(REVIEW) Amazon Studios’ new film “On a Wing and a Prayer” succeeds both as a faith-based film and mainstream inspirational drama, hopefully setting a new standard for faith-based representation in Hollywood.
Read MoreThis real story of the Whites’ harrowing experience after the pilot of their private plane died midflight inspired the Amazon Studios movie “On a Wing and a Prayer.” The film, starring Dennis Quaid and Heather Graham, comes out Good Friday, April 7, on Amazon Prime Video.
Read More(ESSAY) For almost a century, two of the most powerful and culturally influential institutions in the West — the church and Hollywood — have lived in near constant enmity with each other. Why is this? Does it have to be this way? Is there hope for unity? Much like Scripture, I was taken with the wonderful narratives I was invited into through film. But it was confusing to see an inspiring and entertaining movie on Saturday night and then be told how evil it was on Sunday morning.
Read MoreEarlier this month, the two-part BBC documentary “The Modi Question” was screened at Columbia University's Journalism School and Harvard University's Graduate School of Design, among others. In its most recent attempts at stifling dissent, the Indian government banned the documentary. At Columbia University, the screening was followed by a panel discussion led by progressive academics, Indian activists and journalists.
Read More(REVIEW) Although it is a supernatural anime, Demon Slayer is set during the shortest era in Japanese history — the Taisho Period (1912-1926). Japanese religion during this time was made up of several different elements, including Shintoism, “the way of the spirits or deities” that was present in the nation before the sixth century, and Buddhism, which began during the sixth century in India.
Read More(REVIEW) The first two seasons of the Star Wars spinoff show deal with Mandalorian Din Djarin’s strict beliefs that forbid him from removing his helmet in front of another being. Now that he’s removed his helmet, he’s been cut off from his people, and the only way he can find forgiveness is by visiting his destroyed homeworld.
Read More(OPINION) Raquel Welch wasn’t trying to hide during the later decades of her life when she faithfully attended Calvary Presbyterian Church in Glendale, Calif. She was simply looking for people she could trust. Welch died on Feb. 15 at the age of 82, inspiring waves of tributes focusing on her iconic beauty in “Fantastic Voyage,” “100 Rifles,” “The Three Musketeers” and dozens of other movies and TV programs.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The 2023 Oscar nominees have largely given up on real religion. Portrayals of religion in the real world are almost exclusively cartoonishly negative, but the movies also acknowledge that a world without religion isn’t great either. Instead of real religion, the academy seems to believe in a handful of imaginary religions created for the silver screen.
Read More(OPINION) We cannot afford to repeat the errors of the Jesus revolution of the 1960s in the days ahead, as thousands (millions?) of young people (and others) from many different backgrounds begin to pour into our churches, looking for God, looking for hope, looking for meaning, looking for truth.
Read More(REVIEW) “Jesus Revolution” is well intentioned, but its storytelling is too weak and its message too dishonest to inspire a true vision on how to start or maintain a Christian revival in the modern world.
Read More(REVIEW) Ever get the sinking feeling that your friends don’t like you? That every time you talk, they’re just wishing you’d shut up — that they’re even timing how long you talk? Or worse: have you always thought you had a friend until, one day, they just told you they didn’t like you anymore? That horrifying premise is the driving force behind Martin McDonagh’s heartbreakingly bloody friendship breakup “The Banshees of Inisherin.”
Read More(REVIEW) "The Chosen" wraps up an uneven third season in a triumphant manner, highlighting all the strengths and weaknesses of what might be the biggest faith-based project ever made.
Read More(REVIEW) “Left Behind: Rise of the Antichrist,” the new movie about the end of the world as told in the Bible, has it all: boring action sequences, jokes about the COVID-19 vaccine, altar calls, a postscript message from former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, a joke about former president Barack Obama being the Antichrist, a painfully clunky script and even a Romanian politician who has a bland American accent.
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