When Leo McCarey won an Academy Award for directing The Awful Truth, he began his acceptance speech with the following: “I want to thank the Academy for this wonderful award, but you gave it to me for the wrong picture.” That same year also saw the release of one McCarey’s … [Read more...] about Reviewing the Classics: Make Way For Tomorrow
Essays
The Year in Liturgical Cinema: Easter
Note: “The Liturgical Year in Cinema” is an ongoing series, a personal exploration of the thematic connections between the Christian calendar and films. We celebrated Easter Sunday on March 27. This installment explores the connection between our personal Christologies and the … [Read more...] about The Year in Liturgical Cinema: Easter
Reviewing the Classics: Casablanca
If you asked me about my top 10 favorite films of all-time, Casablanca would be on the list. It’s romantic, witty, adventurous. It is both ahead of its time and incredibly timely. The doomed romance between Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) is … [Read more...] about Reviewing the Classics: Casablanca
The Fixer: HAIL, CAESAR! and the Pastoral Vocation
Eddie Mannix is a good man. At least his priest thinks so when Eddie visits him only a day after his previous confession. "You're really not that bad," the priest mutters, a bit exasperated at the film producer's self-deprecation and religious fervor. There are two scenes in this … [Read more...] about The Fixer: HAIL, CAESAR! and the Pastoral Vocation
The Year in Liturgical Cinema: Ash Wednesday and Lent
The second essay in The Year in Liturgical Cinema was posted at Christianity Today. (You can read the first essay on Epiphany here). This is a series exploring the theological themes of the Christian liturgical calendar and finding those themes within films. I explored Ash … [Read more...] about The Year in Liturgical Cinema: Ash Wednesday and Lent