Post Published in January, 2010

Jan 25,2010, 1:53AM

Cinema in Focus - CRAZY HEART - 3 Stars

The devastating effects of the disease of alcohol addiction are well known and yet many choose to risk the disease to indulge in the substance. The reasons why they choose to do so vary from individual to individual. For some, it is a family disease that usually infers a genetic predisposition, while for others, alcohol is used as a social lubricant rewarded by increased acceptance, and for still others, alcohol is used as a coping mechanism to help them relax until it turns against them. For Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges), in this film written and directed by Scott Cooper, alcohol has become a way of life.

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Jan 24,2010, 9:33AM

15th BIRTHDAY of CINEMA IN FOCUS

By Denny Wayman

2010 marks the 15th year that the movie commentary Cinema in Focus has been published. Invited to write a column by the editor of the Santa Barbara News Press, a NY Times newspaper at the time, Denny Wayman and Hal Conklin began writing a new type of movie review. Wanting the column to speak to the values presented in film, the editor invited Denny and Hal, as a pastor and a politician, to address the spiritual and social messages in film. Originally published under the name Cinema of Values, the column soon changed its name to Cinema in Focus as Denny and Hal focused on the values presented in the movies they reviewed.

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Jan 22,2010, 11:20AM

Get Connected In 20 Minutes A Week – The Worry-Hurry Connection

By Family Values Cinema

The Parents Coach - column By Timothy Smith | www.ParentsCoach.orgBlog: ParentsCoach.Wordpress.com Sponsored by www.FamilyValuesCinema.com/TS "Get Connected In 20 Minutes A Week"A weekly family activity adapted from: 52 Family Time Ideas by Timothy Smith ©2006 Draw Closer To Your Kids as You Draw Your Kids Closer to GodBethany House Publishers 1. Main Point: We need to stop ourselves fro...

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Jan 20,2010, 2:39PM

Cinema in Focus - THE BOOK OF ELI - 3 Stars

By Denny Wayman

If taken as a video game, "The Book of Eli" doesn't have to make sense in the real world. But to say that gamer and screenwriter Gary Whitta has only written a film-length video game, or that director Albert Hughes' (The Dead Presidents) penchant for violence makes him a perfect partner in creating this film, is to miss some of the intriguing observations their partnership makes. It is true that Eli (Denzel Washington) is on a quest and he has gained an invincible strength and skill developed over thirty years as a "walker," but his purpose is not to save a princess or discover a new level of challenge, but to complete a call of God on his life.

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Jan 19,2010, 9:34AM

Get Connected In 20 Minutes A Week – Family Is Still A Good Idea

By Family Values Cinema

The Parents Coach - column By Timothy Smith | www.ParentsCoach.orgBlog: ParentsCoach.Wordpress.com Sponsored by www.FamilyValuesCinema.com/TS A weekly family activity adapted from: 52 Family Time Ideas by Timothy Smith ©2006 Draw Closer To Your Kids as You Draw Your Kids Closer to GodBethany House Publishers 1. Main Point: The family is God's idea. 2. Materials Needed: Park with playgrou...

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Jan 15,2010, 2:24AM

MovieMinistry’s Films to Look For in 2010

By Marc Newman

Once again, MovieMinistry rejects the backward-looking top ten lists. (Do you really need someone else's opinion to determine which ten films you thought were best?) Instead, we look ahead, to try to help you to identify the upcoming films that appear to have some ministry potential. So if you use film for outreach, or if you are trying to find some movies that may have some great clips that repre...

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Jan 11,2010, 6:38PM

Cinema in Focus - UP IN THE AIR - 3 Stars

By Denny Wayman

Detaching ourselves from others is one way to avoid having to carry the weight and responsibilities of life. The difficulty with this solution is that when we avoid any relationship that requires the weight of commitment and the responsibilities of caring for another, we end up isolated and alone. This truth is insightfully presented by Jason Reitman (Juno) as both director and screenwriter in his film "Up in the Air."

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Jan 08,2010, 3:44PM

Get Connected In 20 Minutes A Week – Love Doesn’t Quit

By Family Values Cinema

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Jan 06,2010, 11:53AM

Cinema in Focus - SHERLOCK HOLMES - 2 Stars

By Denny Wayman

Though all of us realize that even the greatest human beings are flawed, director Guy Ritchie's presentation of the famed detective Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey, Jr.) depicts him as a lonely and isolated alcoholic. Troubled in love and bored by life, Holmes' renowned skills at observation and logical deductions have become as much a curse as a blessing. But however dark and disturbing this movie may be, its intrigue is ingenious.

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Jan 04,2010, 8:50AM

Get Connected In 20 Minutes A Week – New Years

By Family Values Cinema

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Jan 02,2010, 3:50PM

Cinema in Focus - IT'S COMPLICATED - 2 Stars

By Denny Wayman

While attorney Jake (Alex Baldwin) lives in a world where people are asked to "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," the fact is that Jake couldn't tell the truth if his life depended on it. Jake leads a well-financed lifestyle in Santa Barbara, California, has a trophy wife 20 years his younger, and is a man who thrives on getting what he wants.

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Reviews, discussions, articles, and opinions on films and faith.