Jerry Howell

Synopsis: It's the best-loved Christian song in a long time...but, do you know the story behind it? Young Bart Millard has a tough life; his dad is abusive, and his mother walked out on him. To escape his dire situation, Bart hits the road as part of a Christian band. He and his bandmates want to make it big...but, they're not having much success. When Bart writes a song inspired by his hard upbringing, he has no idea the impact it will have on his band...and the world.
Based on a true story.

The Good: As a longtime fan of contemporary Christian music, this kind of film is right up my alley. The performances were wonderful, especially by Dennis Quaid, although his character was rather despicable. Seeing a young Amy Grant and hearing names such as Audio Adrenaline made me happy. This film's story was rather inspiring, all the more so because it's true. While there's plenty of Christian songs heard here, I also liked hearing ELO's "Don't Bring Me Down"; one of my favorite mainstream tracks.

The Bad: Not necessarily bad, per se, but...this may be tough to watch for some. Seeing Bart get abused by his father and abandoned by his mother could trigger bad memories for viewers who had similar childhoods. Pretty much every scene of this flick is rife with emotional intensity; it makes the story all the more powerful...but, it could prove to be a stumbling block for sensitive people. Proceed with caution.

Conclusion: Me and the song "I Can Only Imagine" have an interesting history. I used to hear it on the way to and from church in my sister's car; she was a big contemporary Christian music fan, and she and my brother-in-law got me into the musical stylings of dc Talk, Audio Adrenaline, and the Newsboys. One time, during a communion devotional, a guy read the lyrics to "I Can Only Imagine"...only for us soon to start singing it during services. Our church was never one to use instruments, so, we sang it a cappella...and it was a tough one. One time, the song leader said just before leading it, "I can only imagine what this song would sound like if we got it right." Back in the day, I wasn't a big MercyMe fan; in recent years, my tastes in everything, including music, have seriously broadened, so, I now have many of their albums on my iPod...and I love them. So, maybe that makes me biased, but I really enjoyed this film; more than just a "behind the music" flick, it's an inspiring story of triumph over dire circumstances. However, for some, this may be too intense; if you're still haunted by childhood memories of abuse and/or abandonment, I'd think twice before watching this.

Synopsis: Young Phiona lives in the African country of Uganda, and sells corn her mother grows only because it's the only source of income her family has. When Phiona is introduced to the ancient game of chess, she finds she has an affinity for it; she learns to predict her opponents moves so far in advance, they think she is reading their minds. Phiona has what it takes to become an international chess champion...but, between the funds required for entering and traveling to the tournaments, her family losing their home, and Phiona not believing 100% in herself, the odds to reaching that dream seem insurmountable. Can she overcome them?
Based on a true story.

The Good: What an amazing film! It took me to a faraway yet real land, and illustrated its people's struggles quite vividly. It also features a main character who overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds, and challenged me to refrain from chickening out when faced with problems, whether small or big. Better yet, it portrays the Christian faith in a positive light. Though there are references to sex, they're handled with very old-school decorum. The performances, sets, and production values in general were all fabulous.

The Bad: Other than one misuse of God's name, I can't come up with any complaints. I will say one thing: Largely accented dialogue may make you want to turn on the closed captions or English subtitles in order to understand what they're saying. Also, some Lugandan dialogue, which is subtitled in English, may present a problem for those with reading issues.

Conclusion: While I've adored many of Disney's live-action productions, this is in a class all its own. Inspiring and affirming, this is the kind of cinema we need more of. If you haven't seen this, you definitely should.

Score: 5/5

Synopsis: It's the happiest day of Skylar's (Alexa PenaVega, Spy Kids) life! She and her fiancee are getting married, and they and all their friends and family are beyond happy for them! Unfortunately, the joy soon turns to sadness when, during the reception, wedding guests--including Skylar's parents--and people all over the world inexplicably drop dead. What could be causing this? Skylar, her new husband, and their friends are about to learn a hard lesson about their faith...or lack thereof.

My Review: I haven't done a longer review like this in a while, but, this film is so epic, it deserves it. Before I watched it, I thought: A Christian horror movie? Are you serious? Surprisingly, though, it's done very well, and brings home a chilling message: You never know when the end will come...so, be ready! While I don't agree with the Rapture theology--though it's presented much differently here than in the Left Behind series or any of the Pure Flix films--I have to say that, after watching this, nobody is going to want to be stuck on this Earth after Jesus returns. A gripping story, excellent performances...all in all, outstanding.

Content Concerns: Like with many Christian films of this rating, you should take the "PG-13" seriously; this is definitely not for kids. I also wouldn't suggest watching it before bed, unless you like having nightmares. Seriously, it's that creepy.

As usual, I'll start with my history with this franchise: In 2000, when I was in sixth grade, our teacher had us all read The Hobbit as it was adapted into a play in our literature textbook. Another teacher that year had copies of the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy in her personal collection, so, I tried it...and just couldn't get into it. The next school year, a teacher recommended that I read the actual Hobbit novel, so, I attempted to...and had the same problem. When the movie came out in 2001, me and some family members went to see it on Christmas Day...and I was quickly bored. Not only was the flick overly long--probably the longest one I'd ever seen, and definitely the longest I'd watched in a theater--but, we arrived at the theater quite early, so having to sit still that long just drove me crazy. I was used to sitcoms and quick Super Smash Bros. Melee matches; a three hour movie couldn't hold my interest.

Despite that history, thanks to DVD technology, I discovered that watching long films in more than one sitting helped me appreciate them better. For example, I had trouble sitting through Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban at the cinema, but watching it and the other flicks in the series on DVD over the course of two or more days was much more fun. So, since I had the Lord of the Rings flicks on my DVD rack, I figured: Why not give them a whirl? For the past couple weeks or so, I've been watching Fellowship in fifteen-minute increments; this time, my reaction has been completely the opposite. The flick that once nearly bored me to death has proved amazing, inspiring, and beautiful.

I would say that I can't wait to watch the sequels...but, before I do that, I'm going to try out the extended edition, so I can see the entire story. Plus, I'm going to give the original novels a try as well; I had them years ago, and enjoyed the first two...but never finished the trilogy, even though I meant to do so for quite a while.

If you're a fantasy fan, and haven't seen this...you need to!

Synopsis: Emmet is just an average guy. He lives his life by the same routine every day, and always follows the instructions. One day, a weird mishap leads to him being declared The Special: the one person who can stop the evil President Business' dastardly plan of unleashing the Kragle on the entire world. The only problem is: There doesn't appear to be anything special about Emmet. Will he be able to save all his fellow citizens regardless?

The Good: This movie is a wonder to behold. The animation really brings inanimate Lego bricks to life, and the humor and pop culture references are spot-on. It also brings home an excellent moral: that everyone is special and valuable, no matter who they are. All in all, a wonderful flick.

The Bad: Nothing, really.

Conclusion: Me and Lego blocks have an interesting history. My mom got me some Lego sets as a kid, but, I had trouble manipulating the small pieces due to coordination issues. I had a good friend at church who loved those building blocks so much, he dressed up as a Lego for Halloween. Toward the end of my high school days, I had fun playing Lego Star Wars on my Nintendo GameCube; since then, I've had a blast with Lego's TV series, ranging from their comedic take on Lucas' space opera to Ninjago. I've been meaning to watch this flick for a while, but just recently got around to it; it was just as good as I expected and then some. If you haven't seen this yet...what are you waiting for? Go rent or stream it, now!

Score: 5/5

Synopsis: You know the dynamic duo of Mike and Sulley from Monsters, Inc....but, do you know how they first met and became friends? All young Mike (Billy Crystal) has hoped for is to be a scarer at Monsters University...but, he gets upstaged by James P. Sullivan, a member of the legendary Sullivan family. After getting kicked out of the scaring program due to lack of scariness, Mike issues the dean of the college a challenge: If he can win a competition, they must readmit him. Unfortunately, Mike and his fraternity of misfits don't seem to be well-suited to the games. Will they emerge victorious, and get readmitted?
A Pixar film.

The Good: Words can't describe how blown away I was by the animation; it was so detailed, I thought I was watching either a live-action film or stop-motion animation. The lighting, the scenery, the character designs...all incredible. It's also fun to see what happened before Mike and Sulley met Boo, and...well, you know that story. The narrative of the film is inspiring, and the content is very clean.

The Bad: Like with the other film in this series, some moments could be scary for young children; for older fans of movies like this, though, it's no big deal. That's really the only complaint I have.

Conclusion: It's been a while since I've seen it, due to us not having a DVD copy...but, Monsters, Inc. is my favorite Pixar film. It's much funnier than Finding Nemo and easier to appreciate on a small screen than The Incredibles, not that those flicks weren't great in their own right. I had my doubts on how Pixar could follow that film up...but, they did a bang-up job, especially with the animation. If Pixar keeps making movies like this, they've got my support.

Score: 5/5

Synopsis: Just after being released from an unfair prison sentence, preacher Dave (David A.R. White) names his good friend Jude as his associate minister...only for Jude to be killed in an accident caused by a brick thrown into one of the windows of the church building, which also burns the building down! Dave is bound and determined to have his church rebuilt; problem is, it's on the campus of a university, and the leaders of the college want the church removed. Not sure what to do, Dave turns to his long-lost brother, a lawyer, for help in the legal fight. Meanwhile, Christian college student Keaton (Samantha Boscarino, Nickelodeon's How to Rock) is experiencing serious doubts in her faith...which become even more complicated when she discovers her boyfriend Adam was the one who threw the brick that started the whole affair! Will Adam ever come clean? Will Dave be able to rebuild his church building?

The Good: This had some surprising plot details, especially portraying a preacher as a flawed individual who messes up in a big way. It also makes a wonderful point about what a church truly is. (Hint: It's not a building!) All of the actors did amazingly well, and the storyline had me hooked.

The Bad: The only complaint I had was with the beginning's out-of-order chronology; it would have been better if they'd shown it in order.

Content Concerns:
Sex: College co-eds briefly seen dancing at a party; kissing.
Nudity: A girl in a one-piece swimsuit; slight midriff.
Language: Name-calling, at worst.
Violence: A man is killed in an accident, which is a bit bloody; two men get into a fight, which leaves a gash on one's face; a man knocks a college student into the bushes.
Drugs: Possible drinking at a college party.
Frightening/Intense Scenes: The accident scene at the beginning; emotional intensity throughout; people arguing on television news programs; a funeral; the fights.

Synopsis: Walter, a lifelong fan of Kermit, Miss Piggy and crew, dreams of visiting the Muppet studio. When he, his brother Gary, and Gary's significant other, Mary (Amy Adams), finally make the trek over there, they discover that it's been largely abandoned. Worse yet, Walter overhears an evil tycoon's plan to buy the Muppet studio only to dig up the oil reserve beneath it. The only way the nefarious scheme can be stopped is if Kermit and friends can raise ten million dollars. Kermit assembles the old crew together to put on a benefit...but, that nefarious oil baron will stop at nothing to be the owner of the Muppet studios. Will Kermie prevail in the end?
Features appearances by Jack Black, Whoopi Goldberg, Neil Patrick Harris, Selena Gomez, Emily Blunt, and several other celebrities.

The Good: After Jim Henson died, the Muppet franchise went into a downward spiral. Muppet Treasure Island and Muppets from Space were pretty good...but, after the mediocre and somewhat crude It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, the absolutely horrible The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, and the inane A Muppet Christmas: Letters to Santa, things seemed bleak for Kermit and crew. Well, I'm happy to say that this film brings back the Muppet magic. It's a serious throwback to a time when movies were made to simply be enjoyed, not picked apart for hidden meanings. Humor abounds; the musical numbers were great; the heroes were likable; the villain was utterly despicable; and, there's many a cute moment.

The Bad: Unfortunately, the makers felt the need to add some occasional crude bits, though it's nowhere near as egregious as in the other Muppet flicks mentioned above. Without them, this movie could have scored a "G".

Conclusion: I grew up watching the Muppets in various forms: movies, both older and newer; Muppet Babies; Muppets Tonight; and, yes, even Fraggle Rock. That may make me a bit biased, but, I still had a blast with this movie. Say what you will about Disney; they brought back the Muppets to their former glory. Whereas the movies from the 2000s would have made Jim Henson turn in his grave, this would have made the late Muppet creator proud. Let's hope the next movie, Muppets: Most Wanted, continues this trend.

Score: 4.5/5

I'm a sucker for a story.

Seriously, anytime I hear, read, or see a story--in any form--I always want to know what happened next. I still remember years-old incidents where somehow--flipping channels, being at a friends' house, a technical problem, etc.--I saw only part of a movie or show; to this day, I wonder what happened before or after what I saw. True, some tales are not worth telling; if it's morally offensive, I don't want to hear any part of it. However, as long as it isn't sinful, pretty much any story can grab my attention.

So, despite the critical drubbing this movie got, I found it to be a captivating tale of redemption, with a charming historical setting. The performances were wonderful, and the production values were amazing. It seems to me that the critics were just too hard on this movie because it fell into the genre of Christian cinema. I would say that we need more films--and, for that matter, television shows--like this.

Then again, I'm such a sucker for a story that I stayed up past midnight to finish watching The Witches of Oz, which had the worst special effects I've ever seen, so, maybe I'm not a fair judge. To adapt an old song lyric, "Here I am now; entertain me!" That's what this movie did; you may feel differently.

(I do want to issue a content concern: This film has a surprising amount of violence; more than I would expect in a "PG". The initial shock I had while watching this is akin to what many people felt when Prince Caspian first came out. While there's no blood or gore, the intensity of the action made me feel like this should have been "PG-13" instead.)

First off, a little personal history: All the way back in 1995, I received a computer game as a Christmas gift called Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon. My mom didn't even know what it was; I still can hear her saying, "What is that? A golf game?" Despite its title, it had nothing to do with any sport; Putt-Putt was actually an anthropomorphic purple convertible that actually gets launched on a rocket to the Moon while visiting a fireworks factory. As the game progresses, that titular vehicle does everything from save an alien from moon goo to play the arcade game Bear Stormin' to meet up with an abandoned NASA Rover...and, eventually makes it back to terra firma. I quickly got addicted to that game, and soon got my hands on not only other Putt-Putt titles, but also others from the same developer, Humongous Entertainment. One of their games, Let's Explore the Airport, I awaited owning for well over a year, playing the demo to death the whole time. Words can't describe my excitement when my mom randomly decided to purchase it for me as an end-of-school reward.

Fast forward to 2004: I hadn't touched any Humongous Entertainment games in years, but I did fondly remember playing them on my first Mac, which was long gone. That November, I went with some friends from church to see The Incredibles in theaters, where the trailer for the first Cars flick was unveiled. As you can imagine, those Putt-Putt games were the first thing I thought of; it was almost like a 3-D version of a childhood favorite. I actually didn't see Cars until well after it came out on DVD, but I enjoyed it, particularly the vehicle-themed spoofs of other Pixar films during the end credits.

That was years ago; the Cars franchise is now a trilogy, and I'm just now seeing the second outing. What did I think? Honestly, I had a blast with it; the action and intensity was on point, and Mater's triumph over dire circumstances was very inspiring. I loved the voice actors, especially the female British spy, Holley Shiftwell. As usual, the animation was excellent. Despite what some people may think, I think this is another winner from the studio that pioneered computer animation; it was vastly superior to the last one I sat through: the dreadful, nerve-grating Incredibles 2. If you like family-friendly action/adventure flicks, this one is for you.

Synopsis: There's an undersea monster that has been taking the lives of sailors, and nobody can catch it! What could it be? It's soon discovered that the "monster" is actually a submarine, captained by a man named Nemo, who uses his submersible to isolate himself from society. Professor Aronnax, his assistant, Conseil, and their cocky harpooner, Ned, believe Captain Nemo to be crazy, and try to escape...only to put the ship and its entire crew in danger. Will the professor and his associates be able to safely emerge from the clutches of the insane Captain Nemo?
Based on the book by Jules Verne.

The Good: This is the old-school kind of adventure they don't make anymore. Not only is it clean-cut and exciting, but there's nary a female character in sight. (While I don't mind a character of the fairer sex, I do mind when she becomes a Mary Sue, and starts outdoing all the males in everything, which happens far too often in modern entertainment.) While this film may be quite old, it stands the test of time quite well. It's easy to see why this continues to be revered, several decades after its release.

The Bad: The violence wasn't graphic or bloody, but some may find there to be a bit too much here, especially for a "G" film. Also, the scenes involving smoking or drinking were rather disturbing, especially when they get their pet seal to join in.

Conclusion: Believe it or not, I haven't read the original Jules Verne novel. (I know; what kind of bibliophile am I?) Still, I enjoyed this throwback to a time when films were meant to be enjoyed, not brooding with hidden meanings. If you're a fan of Disney's live-action productions, you should check this out.

Score: 4.5/5