It’s been a rough week out there. The nice folks over at Aleteia asked me to review both “Exodus: Gods and Kings” and “The Red Tent” and just let me say, the psychological scars are just healing. Would it kill people these days to make an adaptation of a Bible story and, oh, I don’t know, actually show what’s in the Bible?
Anyway, along with those less than stellar viewing experiences, this also turned into the week I got on people’s nerves. As you may remember from last week, I left a comment on famed author John C. Wright’s blog and was eagerly awaiting his sure-to-be-negative reaction. Well, not only did he respond in his combox, but became so flabbergasted (his word) that he put up a whole post denouncing my comments. Don’t worry, though, after a little more back and forth in the combox of that post, we reached a congenial middle ground and he dropped his estimation of my opinion from absurd to reasonable. Hey, anytime you can walk away from a scuffle with John C. Wright bloodied but alive, that’s a victory.
Alas, there was no such diplomatic meeting of minds with one of the nice ladies who took offense at my review of “The Red Tent.” So taken aback was she by my negative comments that she felt compelled to start an entire blog just to refute them. Am I wrong to feel flattered by that? Anyway, check out Mia Knows for a dissenting opinion on “The Red Tent” and then stick around to see what she might post next.
In other news that doesn’t involve me (who knew there was any), it appears I’m not the only one who has had a rough go with religious themed movies lately. Noted apologist Jimmy Akin was asked to take a look at the documentary “The Principle” and not only did he find it a bit lacking as a documentary, but also pretty much full of bunk when it comes to its central thesis of geocentrism.
As for poor Matthew Archbold over at Creative Minority Report, he had the dubious pleasure of running across the proof of concept trailer for “Iron Sky: The Coming Race.” This is the proposed sequel to 2012’s low budget sci-fi comedy “Iron Sky” which, as you might recall, detailed the efforts of Nazis from the moon attempting to conquer the Earth. This time around, it looks like Jesus is getting involved and he’s surprisingly good with machine guns. I’m sure you’ll want to help crowd fund this film rather than give to the poor this Christmas.
You know, sometimes it’s just better to stick to the old stuff. That’s why, back over at Aleteia, Philip Jenkins suggests you check out the lost classics of Christian cinema from the silent era. With titles like “Metropolis” on the list, it’s hard to argue his choices.
If you prefer newer stuff, though, don’t worry, there’s still a few enjoyable things being produced. For instance, The Oxford University Press blog has an interview with screenwriters Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes (“The Conjuring”) about their recent spate of successful religious-themed horror movies. During their conversation the writers discuss what they have termed “the Catholic Supernatural” and the enduring appeal of Catholic culture to moviegoers.
And on that positive note, we’ll leave you till next time. Enjoy reading.
2 comments:
You know, although it may not feel so at the time, it's not such a bad thing if you cause some controversy. People are reading your posts and thinking about them. We don't all reach the same conclusions, but a polite dialog is a good thing. Keep up the good work.
Polite is always the hard part, isn't it?
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