The apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal have drawn more attention than any other Church-approved Marian apparition. The appearances of the Blessed Mother and the “Miracle of the Sun” happened 103 years ago and was witnessed by an estimated 60,000 people, even non-believers. The new Fatima move opening in theaters August 28, tells […]
Early on Saturday, March 12, 1938 German tanks and armored vehicles crossed the border into Austria, encountering no resistance. German newspapers printed a phony telegram supposedly from the new Austrian chancellor claiming German troops were necessary to restore order. In reality, it was an aggressive take over. The von Trapp family did not want to stick […]
All Clara (Mackenzie Foy) wants is a key – a one-of-a-kind key that will unlock a box that holds a priceless gift. A golden thread, presented to her at godfather Drosselmeyer’s (Morgan Freeman) annual holiday party, leads her to the coveted key—which promptly disappears into a strange and mysterious parallel world. It’s there that Clara […]
Miles Finer has good reasons not to believe in God. Or so he thinks. That’s what a tragedy can do to a person who measures God against prayer results. Never mind that his father is a pastor, it seems to Miles that God either doesn’t come through for us or he just isn’t there. The […]
When World War II ended, Louis Zamperini, a former Olympian runner and war hero, was ready for peace. But soon, he fell captive to another more personal war. Memories from his ruthless treatment in a Japanese prisoner of war camp would not release him. The story was told in 2014 in Unbroken, but that movie only hinted in […]
The Nun, is a film that releases this September about a priest and a woman who is in training to become a religious sister sent to investigate the mysterious death of a nun at an isolated, ancient convent. Last summer, I was graciously invited by Warner Bros. and the filmmakers to visit their set in […]
Operation Finale, brings to life one of the most daring covert operations in modern history. Starring Academy Award winner Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Schindler’s List) and Golden Globe winner Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, X-Men: Apocalypse), the film vividly captures the ingenious and brilliantly executed mission to capture Adolf Eichmann, one of the […]
In 2004, I was making my way through the canned goods aisle at my local supermarket when I heard the opening chords of MercyMe’s hit song “I Can Only Imagine” being broadcast over the store’s sound system. I had two conflicting responses: 1) this song doesn’t belong in a grocery store, and 2) I think […]
Pain is powerful when it’s transformed by redemption, hope, faith, and God. It is the story that inspired the song, I Can Only Imagine the best-selling Christian single of all time, selling 2.5 million copies. The touching ballad which considers what heaven and meeting God will be like, is the only song ever to go […]
Christmas is the birth of Jesus. And right behind that is Charles Dickens story, A Christmas Carol. For me, anyway. One is the reason for the season and the other is the spirit of the season. The movie The Man Who Invented Christmas, opening in theaters, Friday, November 22, chronicles the story behind the classic […]
Forgiveness leads to happiness and the beauty of renewed relationships. It also led to the new movie, Same Kind of Different as Me. Studies show that the happiest people are the ones that can forgive. This movie shows what it looks like to forgive what many consider the unforgivable—an extramarital affair. Based on the New […]
Christopher Robin and Winnie-the-Pooh are unique among the most widely loved storybook characters of all time. They were actually real. Until I previewed the movie Goodbye Christopher Robin, I did not know that the Winnie-the-Pooh stories by A.A. Milne were based on a real person. And the assortment of animals such as Piglet, Eyore, Tigger, […]
The movie, The Promise about the Armenian genocide, was viewed at the Vatican’s 50-seat screening room on April 4 with director Terry George, producer Eric Esrailian and some of the talent. The Pope was not able to attend however senior Vatican officials were in attendance at the screening. According to Variety: “When there was awareness [within the Vatican] […]
How ironic that Pontius Pilate who sentenced Jesus Christ to death, should give testimony to the existence of Jesus 2,0000 years later through a stone bearing Pilot’s name. The decision of the prefect of Judea to crucify Jesus, clinched salvation history and was both the greatest good and the greatest evil—killing God and saving mankind. […]
DO NOT WATCH THE TRAILER! GIVES TOO MUCH AWAY! Don’t Breathe is a much ballyhooed suspense-thriller from 38-year-old Uruguayan horror-meister, Fede Alvarez, that I was very eager to see. I don’t do straight-up horror/slasher films, but I could tell that Don’t Breathe had more of the air of a thriller, and I wasn’t wrong. It’s […]
Mel Gibson has done it again. Hacksaw Ridge is the cinematic event of 2016-2017. Hacksaw Ridge is the true story of Private Desmond Doss, a Seventh-Day Adventist from Virginia who enlists in World War II, but — as a conscientious objector — staunchly refuses to bear arms. Literally. He won’t even touch a gun, let […]
I am not an avid fiction reader. If I’m lucky I make my way through one or two novels a year. More often than not my nose can be found in theological texts, most likely Mariological in nature. My reading of novels might make an increase as I recently discovered the wonders of Audible and […]
A new film aptly entitled Denial — about a famous Holocaust-denial court case–is a jewel. I hope it will be used in classrooms. I will be doing some SPOILERS in this review in order to pick apart the storyline, as well as the reality of dealing with Holocaust deniers. Rachel Weisz plays professor, historian and […]
VidAngel is the market-leading entertainment platform empowering users to filter language, nudity, violence, and other content from movies and TV shows. It continues to earn a surge of grassroots support as the company prepares for its preliminary injunction hearing in late October. Disney—along with Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, and Lucasfilm—has taken legal action to […]
The latest big screen Ben-Hur is a fresh take on the beloved 1880 historical fiction novel: Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace that deftly and intricately weaves the story of Judah Ben-Hur into the Gospel account of Jesus. However, it sadly limps in the faith department, which, of course, is the punchline […]
The beloved classic, The Little Prince, was released simultaneously in theaters and on Netflix, and will not disappoint fans of the fable. Jeff Bridges’ rich, warm, craggy American voice brings to life Saint-Exupéry, the author and aviator. Three different kinds of storytelling visuals are utilized: the now-familiar computer animation, sporting oversized heads and large, expressive […]
Part one of this discussion can be found here. More subtly, Game of Thrones can be used to validate Machiavellian politics and shadowy character traits. Instead of mixed characters simply being portrayed as sympathetic due to the human condition, their warped aspects are made to seem acceptable and even heroic. It becomes more important to […]
Game of Thrones, the wildly popular HBO series based off of George R.R. Martin’s high fantasy book series A Song of Ice and Fire, is a presently unavoidable part of popular culture. Praised for its high production values, including acting, costuming, setting, and cinematography, and dubbed one of the “epic sagas of our times”, the […]
I’m going to call the latest documentary on John Paul II an “almost perfect documentary.” The title is: Liberating a Continent: John Paul II and the Fall of Communism. Why is it almost perfect? Because it’s Rolls Royce super-classy in every way. The production values are off the chain, the august interviewees always on point, […]
