Category: Film & TV

‘The Rainmaker’ From 1956: Drought and Atmospheric Rivers

Commentary “The Rainmaker” is a fanciful title for a film. Just from the title, it could be about a native witch doctor or perhaps a reference to symbolic precipitation. Nevertheless, this 1956 film starring Katharine Hepburn and Burt Lancaster is set in the United States of America and based on a real person who claimed…


Film Review: ‘Tetris’: Political and Commercial Intrigue Over a Computer Game

R | 1h 58m | Cold War Drama The “Tetris” video game was one of the most successful exports of the late Soviet era, but it was not a socialist-friendly tycoon like Armand Hammer who landed the deal. Henk (with an “e”) Rogers was not the Soviets’ kind of guy, but the Dutch game designer…


In Defense of Hollywood’s Old Code: Debunking the Common Myths

Commentary “Woman of the Year” from 1942 was the first movie Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy made together. In this film, which began their dynamic partnership spanning eight films and three decades, they both are journalists working for the same paper. Sam Craig (Tracy) is a sportswriter, and Tess Harding (Hepburn) has an opinion column…


[PREMIERING 3/31 at 7:30 PM ET] Afterlife | Documentary

Devout Christians and devout atheists alike have profound interest in the same question: What happens when we die? This and other questions about the afterlife are scientifically explored through modern research into near-death experiences. Through interviews with noted researchers like Drs. Raymond Moody and Jeffrey Long, this documentary explores the evidence of the afterlife using…


[PREMIERING 3/31 at 7 PM ET] Afterlife | Documentary

Devout Christians and devout atheists alike have profound interest in the same question: What happens when we die? This and other questions about the afterlife are scientifically explored through modern research into near-death experiences. Through interviews with noted researchers like Drs. Raymond Moody and Jeffrey Long, this documentary explores the evidence of the afterlife using…


Rewind, Review, and Re-Rate: ‘Broken Lance’: A Rousing Tale of Revenge in the Old West

1954 | Not Rated | 1h 36m | Adventure, Drama, Western The 1950s saw a massive proliferation of American Westerns and, while many were excellent, an equal number could be considered mediocre or worse. “Broken Lance” (1954) is definitely from the former camp and takes the genre into the realm of familial drama. It’s based…


TV Docuseries Review: ‘Waco: American Apocalypse’: Was It Government Overreach or Legal Enforcement?

 TV-MA | 2h 22min | Documentary, U.S. History | 22 March 2023 (USA) Thirty years ago, first the United States and then the rest of the world watched in guarded fascination for the outcome of a 51-day standoff at the Branch Davidian Compound in Mt. Carmel, some 20 or so miles northeast of Waco, Texas. Inside the compound was David Koresh,…


Film Review: ‘Luther: The Fallen Sun’: Big Screen Transition Is Successful

R | 2h 9m | Cop Thriller | March 10, 2023 Netflix’s “Luther: The Fallen Sun,” a Batman-like atmospheric cop thriller following up on what was already an engaging, Batman-like BBC cop serial, is basically Idris Elba in a bigger, tougher movie version of the TV series, which he also stars in. John Luther (Idris Elba) chasing a…


Rewind, Review, and Re-Rate: ‘Coal Miner’s Daughter’: Country Music’s Original Honky Tonk Girl

PG | 2 h 4 min | Drama, Musical, Biopic | 1980 If you look at today’s pop, rock, or R&B charts, you may imagine that country music, America’s staple music diet for over a century, is dying. Only, you’d be wrong. The Country Music Association reports a 9 percent growth in listenership annually, more…


‘His Only Son’ Coming Soon to Theaters: A Conversation With Director David Helling

“His Only Son” is a movie set to be released in theaters on March 31 about the biblical story of Abraham. Director David Helling tells how this film transitioned from scripture to screen and shares critical elements drawn out in the story. The film displays how God redeemed Abraham’s life and set him on a…