X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014): Or, Confessions of an X-Men Ex-Fan
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
May 26, 2014
I'm not going to try to talk anybody out of liking "Days of Future Past." I can see why it's getting such great reviews. But in the whole film, I found only one sequence particularly memorable...
7 Comments21 Minutes
The Return (2003): Why Moviegoers Everywhere Must Learn to Say “Zvyagintsev”
On Movies & Media,Film Reviews
May 24, 2014
If you hear film buffs shouting "Zvyagintsev!" in the coming months, do not say "Gesundheit." The proper response is this: "When do I get to see Leviathan?"
0 Comments11 Minutes
Gadzooks! A Godzilla for Malick Fans?
May 20, 2014
Here are some of the more intriguing paragraphs I've read about Godzilla...
4 Comments4 Minutes
Star Wars – Episode 1: The Phantom Menace (1999): Looking Back 15 Years
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
May 16, 2014
I know, I know. Take a deep breath. Let go of your anger, young Jedi.
6 Comments25 Minutes
Aragorn’s Favorite Peter Jackson Movie (Hint: It’s Not The Return of the King)
May 14, 2014
It's another return of the king! Aragorn is back, and he has some kingly wisdom to share with us...
2 Comments3 Minutes
30 Must-See Movies for Kids
May 11, 2014
Featured in a WORD-FM Radio interview, here's my list of more than 30 of my favorite films for children. Do you like lists? I've got more where that one came from...
7 Comments2 Minutes
Saving Mr. Banks (2013) … or Squandering Mr. Hanks
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
May 9, 2014
If you want to hang on to that warm "Mary Poppins" feeling, you may just want to stop reading — because "happiness" is about the opposite of how I felt when I finally sat down to watch "Saving Mr. Banks."
7 Comments19 Minutes
Hey, Moviegoers: You’re Invited to a Secret Seattle Q&A
May 2, 2014
If you could meet and interrogate your local film critics, free of charge, would you do it?
0 Comments2 Minutes
TEN YEARS! Pt. 2: The Best of Looking Closer – 2005
May 1, 2014
This blog turns ten years old on May 11, 2014. And this post is Part Two of a ten-post series in which I'm celebrating by reflecting on some of my favorite experiences from Looking Closer's first decade.
0 Comments2 Minutes
Podcast: Listen as a Theology Professor, an English Professor, an Ordained Minister, and a Film Critic Talk About That Noah Movie
May 1, 2014
Did the theologian think the movie was "un-Biblical"? Did the English professor think the "rock monsters" in the movie were "stupid"? Did the ordained minister think that God was absent in the film? Did the film critic think it was "the worst Christian movie ever made"?
1 Comment3 Minutes
TEN YEARS! Pt. 1: The Best of Looking Closer – 2004
April 27, 2014
This blog is turning ten! Let's look back a whole decade. What were the highlights here ten years ago?
2 Comments12 Minutes
Listen Closer: Joe Henry; Peter Gabriel & Elbow; The Secret Sisters; Hiss Golden Messenger; Belle & Sebastian; Beck Covers Arcade Fire
April 26, 2014
Sample new music from Joe Henry, Elbow, Hiss Golden Messenger, The Secret Sisters, Belle and Sebastian, and Beck.
3 Comments7 Minutes
Under the Skin (2014)
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
April 23, 2014
Feel free to eavesdrop as I argue with myself upon exiting the theater after seeing Jonathan Glazer's troubling new sci-fi horror film Under the Skin...
3 Comments12 Minutes
Q&O = Question & Overstreet! On Muppets, Korean Cinema, U2, God’s Not Dead!, and more.
April 17, 2014
Q&A time! If you're interested in MFA programs, Korean cinema, Muppets, God's Not Dead, U2, or my dubious opinions... here we go!
3 Comments10 Minutes
God’s Not Dead (2014): A Looking Closer Film Forum
On Movies & Media,Film Forum,Blog
April 12, 2014
Now, two of the finest film critics in Christian media agree: There's something quite contrary to the spirit of the Gospel at the heart of the smash-hit "Christian Movie" God's Not Dead.
7 Comments7 Minutes
I’m Singing On the Radio. Forgive Me.
April 11, 2014
This weekend, I'm a guest on "Tapestry with Mary Hynes" on CBC radio and, in some places, on NPR. Also, on Monday I'll join a panel discussion on "Noah" at The Kindlings Muse. You're invited!
0 Comments4 Minutes
Noah (2014): Part Two of a Two-Part Commentary
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
April 11, 2014
In which two very different moviegoers wrestle with Noah, and with some of the questions that the movie asks.
22 Comments30 Minutes
Noah (2014): Part One of A Two-Part Commentary
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
April 10, 2014
Darren Aronofsky made an epic Old Testament movie in which he wrestled with some of humankind's most difficult questions. And Christians responded with admirable attention, grace, intelligence, and humility. Right? No? That didn't happen?
7 Comments14 Minutes
Is It Dangerous? Biblical? Gnostic? Awesome? — Here’s All The Noah That’s Fit to Print
March 30, 2014
Let's focus on the reviews of Noah that demonstrate an actual love for movies, an interest in our neighbor Darren Aronofsky, and a willingness to engage his ideas.
26 Comments8 Minutes
Three Years Ago Today, We Raised Our Glasses to the Ale Boy
On Books & Writing,Overstreet's Books,Blog,The Auralia Thread
March 15, 2014
"This is my favorite fantasy series," says the latest Amazon reviewer of The Ale Boy's Feast, the fourth and final book in my series of fantasy novels called The Auralia Thread. "I recommend it to everyone 13 through 120."
1 Comment6 Minutes
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
March 14, 2014
Every scene was like a spectacular frosted pastry with a sharp object baked into the middle of it.
3 Comments21 Minutes
Seven Films That the Oscars Forgot
March 14, 2014
Now would be a great time to catch up with what the Oscars missed. And they missed a lot. Good news: Most of those titles are now easily accessible for you to enjoy at home.
0 Comments1 Minutes
The Passion of the Christ: Revisited
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
March 11, 2014
Would I now disagree with the review I wrote ten years ago? Would I flinch to read what I wrote back then?
4 Comments38 Minutes
What’s So Funny? – Part 2
On Movies & Media,Overstreet's Books,Through a Screen Darkly,Blog
March 10, 2014
When movies make fun of religious characters, should we laugh?
1 Comment31 Minutes
What’s So Funny? (Or: Christianity and Comedy are Not Exclusive)
On Movies & Media,Overstreet's Books,Through a Screen Darkly,Blog
March 9, 2014
A criminal steals a baby. Are you laughing? A rabbi uses Jesus's name in vain? Is that funny?
3 Comments26 Minutes
The Incredibles (and Other 10-Year-Old Films); Jesus Films; Matt Zoller Seitz; Scott Cairns
On Movies & Media,Blog,Looking Elsewhere
March 3, 2014
This week, special thanks go out to Brad Bird, Matt Zoller Seitz, and more. Find out why.
0 Comments6 Minutes
Not Gonna Bow: Notes on the Oscars
March 2, 2014
It appears that a lot of people have completely misunderstood what cinema is for, concluding that it's all some big cockamamie competition.
7 Comments5 Minutes
Is Groundhog Day the Most Meaningful Comedy Ever? Or The Truman Show?
February 28, 2014
9 Comments1 Minutes
The Great Beauty (2013)
On Movies & Media,Blog,Film Reviews
February 22, 2014
I've just seen "The Great Beauty" and I'm still a little bit drunk on its imagery. It's a feast for those with big appetites for beauty on the big screen. But alas, the meal is soured by a bitter syrup.
4 Comments9 Minutes
Before You See That Noah Movie, Read This…
February 22, 2014
Here's an article about the upcoming "Noah" movie that's sure to rub some Christian readers the wrong way. But Darren Aronofsky likes it. So does Russell Crowe. And so do I.
7 Comments4 Minutes
Listen Closer: St. Vincent, Beck, Neneh Cherry, Lost in the Trees… and U2
February 17, 2014
Got headphones?
0 Comments8 Minutes
Hard to Be a God — The Science Fiction Film of the Decade?
February 17, 2014
This film first won my attention when one of my favorite film critics rated it a perfect "10." I began to dig for information. What is this movie? Why such a bold title?
6 Comments12 Minutes
Looking Closer with Jeffrey Overstreet
(now the ears of my ears awake andnow the eyes of my eyes are opened)
– e. e. cummings, “i thank You God for most this amazing”