Culture
As a game or movie, ‘Ouija’ isn’t fun or fitting
Part half-baked cautionary tale, part dangerous pastime, "Ouija" lurches from one horror genre standby to the next. Its ultimate impact on moviegoers is to offer an alternate spelling of "board."
Steal this book? No, ‘Shoplifter’ is worth paying for
Sometimes we commit a sin because we feel unable to control our situation. If we're lucky, we encounter someone who shows us mercy and convinces us to take a different path. That's the story arc of a new graphic novel.
Movie review: Fury
Brutal realism in the depiction of combat and scripturally inspired spirituality hardly make an obvious pairing.
Chapels on campus seen from religious, architectural perspectives
During the mid-1990s, while my oldest son was shopping for a college, we toured Washington University in St. Louis. There in the heart of the campus was Graham Chapel -- a stately edifice that could have been a European cathedral. Our guide informed us that it was used for concerts, lectures and plays. She did not mention it being a site for prayer and worship.
Movie review: The Book of Life
Who knew the Day of the Dead could be so much fun? The Mexican method of observing All Souls' Day, Nov. 2, is the backdrop for "The Book of Life" (Fox), an entertaining and visually stunning 3-D animated film.
Whole family gets to share in Alexander’s very bad day
If you can look beyond the relentless physical gags, a peeing baby and a vomiting teenager -- and a long film title -- there’s a small lesson in how a family pulls together through adversity in "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day."
For a warmhearted film with seamy underside, you be ‘The Judge’
The movie's most troubling element is treated so nonchalantly that ethically acute moviegoers are likely to shake their heads even as they squirm.
A cleaner Dracula story that still raises red flags
If viewers dig beneath "Dracula Untold's" special effects-driven mowing down of Islamic extremists -- perhaps sending a message -- they might discover the movie's moral and spiritual ambiguities.
Readers get a thrill with book’s unique plot and spiritual message
The novel "The Rising" tells of the power of a 9-year-old boy who, after whispering three words to a deceased woman at her wake, causes her to rise from the dead. It examines the good and bad motives of people surrounding him.
Movie review: Left Behind
Catholic viewers will likely feel left out by "Left Behind" (Freestyle).