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When Disaster Strikes
by Tyler Smith
It seems like almost every week we hear of another disaster- natural or otherwise- befalling some poor, far-away country. We are aware of it largely because we are inundated with media; it's on every front page, every network, every website. However, once this disaster becomes "old news," it quickly drops out of view, to be replaced with whatever new thing is happening; perhaps a celebrity scandal or a political skirmish. That's just the way it is, and to bemoan that would be to beat a horse long since dead.
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The Self-Hating Hero
by Robert Hornak
Barney’s Version, based on a book I haven’t read, isn’t a very good movie. It’s a kind of legitimization of self-hatred and an apotheosis of The Curmudgeon As Suitable Suitor. The mid-movie revelation of the main character’s looming Alzheimers and the last minute litany of good things bestowed upon mankind by him all seem tacked on to make sure we get the point, which is this: there’s nobody in the world so ensnared by their loathing of themselves and others that they can’t be redeemed by a swelling orchestral cloud over their backlit headstone.
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Life is Sweet
by Robert Hornak
Mike Leigh’s new film, Another Year, is nominally a reflection on the ways in which we cultivate the relationships around us, but more so it’s a dissection of the prickly dynamic between the emotionally strong and weak. Fortunately the film overcomes the prosaic symbolism of a garden, managed over the span of a year, by burrowing into the disparity between those who wish to give others help and those who clearly cannot be helped until they first help themselves. It’s a set up of character conflict that promises drama, but Leigh doesn’t seem as interested in anything as fabricated as drama, in the sense of any “movie” drama we’re trained to expect. Instead, the four pieces of his story – each corresponding to a season of the year – demonstrate the filmmaker’s gift for recording simple life moments, some triumphant, some humiliating, all of it true and awkward and real.
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Who's To Blame?
by Josh Long
The tragedy that rocked our nation on January 8^th has left everyone looking for answers. People with full lives and potentials ahead of them are dead, and for no good reason. It’s a serious tragedy, and one that is unfortunately becoming increasingly familiar in the United States. But just as the sympathies of the country go out to the victims and their families, there is a mad rush to find someone to blame. And it’s no surprise to find fingers once again pointed at Hollywood.
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The Best of Pictures: The English Patient (1996)
by Josh Long
If you’re like me, the first thing you remember when you think of The English Patient is an episode of “Seinfeld.” In it, Elaine is forced to see the film several times, consistently hating it. Everyone around her seems dead-set on proving to her that it’s a great film until she finally explodes in the theater and yells at the screen, “Quit telling your stupid story about the stupid desert, and just die already! DIE!” Is that an overreaction? Two hours into the movie, watching it for a second time, my answer is no.
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Home Movies
by Tyler Smith
Life is not without a sense of irony. When we're kids, we spend all of our time wishing that we were adults. Then, when we take a look around at the mounting debt and missed opportunities that is adulthood, all we want to do is be children again. We realize too late that it was a simpler, more magical time in our lives. The future seemed like an endless expanse of possibilities. But, now, here we are, disgusted to find that our once-vast vision of the future extends no further than next week, when we have all that stuff we need to get done.
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Look Out, World! It's Scott Pilgrim!
by Josh Long
This weekend, a wild fantasy film born of underground rock and Super Mario Brothers hits the scene. It’s quirky, it’s funny, and it knocks your socks off at ninety miles per hour. It is Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and it is here to make you think about death and get sad and stuff.
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The Best of Pictures: Titanic (1997)
by Josh Long
James Cameron’s Titanic is a film almost as storied as the ill-fated ocean liner itself. It tied the record for most Academy Awards, it launched the careers of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, and until Avatar, it was the highest-grossing movie of all time. In my own personal studies of film, I made it a point to see every film to win Best Picture, and by 2005 I had – every one but Titanic. Even into my twenties I was still holding the grudge of a fifteen-year old, furious that any movie would have the audacity to beat Star Wars at the box office. Recently, I finally caved so that I could bring my clearly invaluable opinions to you, the reader. So these are my thoughts on Titanic after seeing it for the first time, thirteen years after its theatrical release.
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Five Years
by Tyler Smith
June 25, 2005, I got married to Jennifer Erin Alders. It is one of the smartest things I've ever done.  In the five years that have followed, Jen and I have had many ups and downs. We've faced all kinds of hardships; financial, professional, emotional, you name it. I wish I could say that we always managed to get through those times by gazing into each other's eyes and lovingly assuring ourselves that everything was going to be okay. Certainly, sometimes we were able to do that. Other times, however, we would blame each other, as if to say, "This would all be going fine if it weren't for you."
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On Set
by Jason Eaken
The simplest thing to say is there’s nothing like being on a movie set. There’s nothing simple about being on-set itself either. It’s chaos: all busy and technical and clustered and there’s a lot of waiting involved sometimes. But it’s the most exciting kind of chaos: creative.
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The Best of Pictures: The Hurt Locker (2009)
by Josh Long
So for those who don’t know, I’ve been writing a series on the films that have gained American film’s highest honor: the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since the Oscars themselves have caught up with me, I think it’s time to step away from the retrospectives and take a look at 2009’s winner, The Hurt Locker.
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Caffeine Free
by Tyler Smith
Recently, I have become more and more fascinated with the time in which Jesus lived. The more I read about it, the more suffocating it sounds. There were so many rules, so many tiny, seemingly insignificant boundaries that a God-fearing person was expected to respect every single moment of every single day. If they didn't, the local religious leaders would see to it that the person would be treated as a social leper. If they were lucky, that is. Death was also a frequent punishment.
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Culture-of-Goal
by Jason Eaken
I am a Christian not usually moved by Church. What I mean is this: I go to church, I can appreciate the ideas and truth content of a sermon, but rarely does the experience – the packaging, if you will – itself move me. Oftentimes, I leave slightly fussy and have to get over myself on the car ride back home. This is not a film. This is not a novel. This is not art. This is proclamation on a 7-day cycle. Pastors don’t have teams of writers like sitcoms and anytime I think, “Well, hell, maybe they should” I am immediately struck by the stupidity and un-enlightened-ness of the concept. It is just possible that the sermon was not crafted with me in mind – and that it shouldn’t have to be for me to be willing to see what it’s saying. This is a lesson continually learned. For myself and people like me, small group meetings are more fulfilling: discussing verses, digging into them more than usually happens in a sermon. This is where His words come alive for me.
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