2008 Book & Film Reviews / Articles |
 "Bolt" a Disney Film with Pixar Qualities
Walt Disney Animation Studios’ release of Bolt marks an important milestone in the studio’s history. It is the company’s first animated feature conceived and produced since Disney and Pixar merged three years ago. In that merger, Oscar®-winning director John Lasseter (pictured below) and Ed Catmull, the co-founders of Pixar Animation Studios, were chosen to head the two studios. Lasseter serves as Chief Creative Officer for both Disney and Pixar, and Catmull as president of both studios.
The Story
Super-dog Bolt’s (voiced by John Travolta) days are filled with adventure and intrigue as long as the cameras are rolling. The star of a hit TV show, he believes his amazing feats and powers are real, and lives to protect his person “Penny” (voiced by Miley Cyrus). One day he is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York City, where he begins his biggest adventure ever, a cross-country journey to get back to Penny. |
 Twilight The Next Harry Potter? Not Yet, Anyway
According to the hype, Twilight is the new tween sensation, the next Harry Potter and the movie that is creating a tourist trap out of a place named Forks, Washington; just a short ride across the water from my hometown.
Alas, I must admit right up front that I have not read the book. In fact, until the movie was announced I hadn’t even heard of Twilight. In case you were wondering, yes, it did take about four people to remove that rock I’d been living beneath. Therefore, I unfortunately am unable to provide an opinion on the film as an adaptation. I can only give my opinion of it cinematically and I must say that I wasn’t very impressed.
For anyone else who has been living under a rock, the plot of Twilight focuses on Isabella “Bella” Swan (Kristen Stewart), a teenager who decides to move to Washington and live with her father when her mother remarries and begins traveling the minor league baseball circuit with her new husband. Although she doesn’t seem to be very social, the klutzy Bella is quickly welcomed into her new school by everyone but the brooding, pale-skinned boy she can’t seem to take her eyes off.
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 Fireproof, The Interviews: Up Close and Personal with Kirk Cameron
As a teen idol in the 1980s, Kirk Cameron starred in the sitcom “Growing Pains.” During that time, he met his wife Chelsea Noble and began a relationship with Christ. After the show ended, Kirk had roles in other films, including the Left Behind movie series.
His passion for evangelism also led him to a friendship with Ray Comfort and work on “The Way of the Master” radio and television programs. He and Chelsea live with their six children, four of whom are adopted. The family vehicle of choice? A 15-passenger van, with a Volvo as a back-up.
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 Billy Graham's Early Years Portrayed in Film
The coming-of-age story of 20th century icon Billy Graham will be seen on the big screen this fall through the release of the film "Billy: The Early Years." This highly anticipated film will be released theatrically on October 10, 2008 across the country.
"Billy: The Early Years" captures the true essence of Graham’s life’s journey from an earnest young man at the crossroads of faith and doubt, to ultimately facing the moment of decision that launched one of history's most influential evangelists. Starting out with the tranquility of the Graham dairy farm in North Carolina, "Billy: The Early Years" depicts the look and feel of the Depression-era as we accompany Graham to the tent revival where he finally heeds the altar call, and follows him through the struggle of doubt and resolution of the next decade of his life.
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 WALL-E: A Robot with a Heart
Released in Australian Cinemas around 18th September 2008
 G (General)
by Angela Walker
Christian Cinema.Com
One of the most memorable and romantic characters on film so far this year is a little robot named “Wall-E” (Wast Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class). Aside from a seemingly indestructible cockroach, he is the last functioning entity left on earth.
Though the first 30 minutes or so are completely without dialog, there is enough humor and visual action to keep everyone engaged with the story. In addition to this unusual beginning, Pixar utilizes some amazing new animation technology, and, in a first for this studio, includes a live person in the story (Fred Willard).
Wall-E’s original purpose (along with thousands of other robots) was to clean up the planet that humans turned into a huge garbage dump with their materialism. In fact, Earth became so trash-bound that humans were sent on a luxury space cruise intended to last only two years. More than 700 years into that journey, humans have become big blobs without muscle mass, dependent on robots to serve them, and Wall-E has become a hopeless romantic.
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 The Interior Design of Sex and the City Reflects a Culture in Ruins
 MA 15+ (Not suitable for people under 15. Under 15s must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian) ... Consumer Advice: Sex Scenes
“Women have the right to behave every bit as badly as men” is not a claim made by the big-screen version of the television hit Sex and the City – it is the film’s presupposition. In the world of Carrie, Miranda, Samantha, and Charlotte, women are every bit as callous, petty, unforgiving, and sexually promiscuous as any man. It’s not an aberration, the film reveals, it’s just the way things are.
I have a confession to make. I am not familiar with the television series. But I assume that I am not alone in seeing the film version of Sex and the City as a stand-alone experience. The filmmakers go out of their way to make sure that I am all caught up on the storyline before the opening credits are finished. The world into which I am ushered is one of tremendous financial privilege and faint moral obligation..
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Fantastic Epic Adventure: THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN
 (Frequent Battle Violence)
By Dr. Ted Baehr, Publisher of MOVIEGUIDE®
Special to ASSIST News Service
PRINCE CASPIAN is a very exciting, fantastic epic in the tradition of LORD OF THE RINGS. Right up front it needs to be noted that the book has been re-imagined to make the movie. In most cases, this re-imagining has helped the drama considerably.
Better yet, the filmmakers have kept the integrity of and even highlighted the theological points C.S. Lewis was trying to make. One would hope that C.S. Lewis would be happy with the cinematic changes, although he was very critical of movies in general.
There are, however, a few minor divergences where media wisdom is required. So, don't expect to see the book when you come to the movie. Expect to see a wonderful movie that retains the faith of the book.
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Behind The Scenes of 'Prince Caspian'
Keeper of the Sacred Trust: An Interview with Douglas Gresham
When a cherished book becomes a movie, the book fans usually cringe. Yet, three years ago, THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE burst onto the screen, satisfying even the most ardent fan of C.S. Lewis' literary classic.
The man most responsible for keeping the integrity of the initial book
MOVIEGUIDE® recently chatted with Douglas Gresham.
In his eloquent and affable manner, he gave us insight into the upcoming movie.
Considering himself to have a “moral, sacred duty to protect the essential messages of the books,” Gresham has worked hand in hand with director Andrew Adamson to make sure that the spirit of the book will make its way onto the screen. Gresham says that, during production of the first movie, he had a steep learning curve due to his ignorance of the filmmaking process. Gresham credits Adamson with being the “world’s best teacher.” This time around, the learning curve has not been as steep for Gresham, but he said they found PRINCE CASPIAN presented unique challenges not found in the previous book and movie. . |
Bella
 (Mild Themes)
It’s not very often that a drama comes along that literally sweeps you off your feet and leaves you feeling deeply impacted in such a life affirming way. Bella is such a film. We are thrilled to be working with Hopscotch Films to introduce Bella to you.
Winner of the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival, Bella is a beautiful story from The Producer of Braveheart and The Passion of The Christ – Steve McEveety.
Steve’s thoughts on Bella are summed up well in his quote …
“The Passion showed how Christ died for us. Bella shows us how we should live for others.”
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 The Greatest Story Ever Told -- through the eyes of a woman
New Film about Jesus released to U.S. audiences on dvd - not yet classified or available in Australia
(last checked July 08)
A new film about the life of Jesus has been produced by the same people who have turned the movie JESUS into the most-translated film of all time.
With the U.S. release of the film Magdalena: Released from Shame, the JESUS Film Project has begun distributing a unique new view of Jesus' life through the eyes of Mary Magdalena.
Instead of a new translation into a different language, this film uses a new perspective to tell the Jesus story -- a female point-of-view.
Magdalena: Released From Shame is the story of Mary of Magdala, also known as Mary Magdalene, and what she may have experienced walking with Jesus of Nazareth during His public ministry. Through her eyes, this film portrays how Jesus values women by focusing on historical accounts of His interactions with them. |
 Saving Sarah Cain, a movie to watch out for!
By Michael Ireland
Chief Correspondent, ASSIST News Service
January 2008 - Released on DVD in the US, not yet classified or available in Australia
Sarah Cain is not quite at the top of her game. She is, in fact, a journalist in danger of losing her column to a particularly bad case of writer's block.
Her harried, high maintenance lifestyle is interrupted one evening with a phone call from her niece Lyddie informing her that Sarah's sister has died, leaving Lyddie and four siblings orphans with only one living relative -- Sarah herself.
Michael Landon, Jr., and Brian Bird, who produced The Last Sin Eater, have teamed up again to create a film that first premiered on the Lifetime Network.
Based on the best-selling book by Beverly Lewis "Saving Sarah Cain" (the novel is "The Redemption of Sarah Cain"), the film tells the story of a newspaper reporter from Portland, Oregon who suddenly gains custody of her sister's 5 children who were raised in an Amish community. |
2008 Books Reviews / Articles |
Enslaved to Freedom
Atariah has a dream…a dream that she holds on to despite its improbability… the dream of freedom!
But when you are trapped in a world that offers little more than hurt and pain and your own mind is ensnared with frustration and doubt where can you turn for such freedom? Do you wait for it to find you or do you set forth to take it for yourself?
When Moses returns to Egypt with some seemingly outrageous claims, Atariah believes she is about to have that question answered.
Pulled in many directions by the events that are unfolding about her and the feelings that are unfolding within, Atariah has to learn that perhaps the freedom that she so yearns for will come in a guise she never expected, requiring not action but choice.
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 In Love with Death
The Twilight of American fiction.
It’s not surprising, in the wake of Harry Potter, for a new series to involve teenagers with supernatural powers. The Twilight series has that much in common with J. K. Rowling’s creations. That and huge sales: It was the series’s Eclipse that knocked Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows off the top of the bestseller lists last year. The fourth and final Twilight book, Breaking Dawn, sold 1.3 million copies on its first day of release (August 2).
But Rowling’s young wizards have little else in common with Stephenie Meyer’s sparkling vampires. Yes, sparkling vampires. Where Harry and his friends are best known for qualities like courage and loyalty, Meyer’s characters and stories are all about appearances.
The Twilight books tell the story of Bella Swan, a high-school girl who goes to live with her father in Washington state, and Edward Cullen, a classmate who happens to be a vampire. Regarding Edward, Bella liberally spills adjectives like gorgeous, perfect, beautiful, flawless, glorious, and godlike. |
 North Korea -- Axis of Evil?
U.S. lifts sanctions against North Korea after nuclear reactor cooling tower destroyed. Meanwhile, millions of North Koreans starve to death.
Filled with dramatic scenes based on real-life tragedies that North Koreans face daily, I'll Cross the River addresses issues such as religious persecution and life under the rule of a communist dictator who is deceiving and starving the population to death.
Based on true and current circumstances, C. Hope Flinchbaugh, the author, has sat with North Korean defectors at Congressional hearings in Washington, DC, as they wept when telling the horrors of starvation, deception, and brainwashing inside North Korea
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 Former Mormon Polygamist Speaks Out
Illegal in the U.S. and banned by the mainline Mormon church in 1890, the practice of polygamy still survives today. Some people say it may be on the verge of a comeback. Those still practicing plural marriage, termed fundamentalists, believe in attaining God-like status based on the number of wives and children a man possesses.
According to a news release from her publicist, at 16 years old Irene Spencer became the second wife of her brother-in-law Verlan LeBaron in 1953. From a fourth generation polygamous family, it had been pounded into the young girl that plural marriage was required to enter heaven. A few months later, the government raided one of the polygamists' camps at Short Creek, Arizona and the LeBarons fled to Mexico, joining Verlan's fundamentalist brothers Joel and Ervil. |
A Friendly Dialogue launches at unique New York event
The first collaboration between an American Christian evangelist and a Chinese scientist, scholar and atheist, "A Friendly Dialogue" is an open and frank exchange on issues of faith, culture, history, and politics.
It has been a best-seller in China since its release in August of 2006: the much-anticipated English and Spanish versions, published by Zondervan (a division of HarperCollins Publishers) reached American bookstores this month.
At a unique launch event hosted by News Corporation CEO Rupert Murdock, HarperCollins CEO Jane Friedman and Zondervan CEO Moe Girkins, Palau and Zhao shared the story of creating the book's unique content through recorded dialogues that were later transcribed.
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