Culture
A dilemma for TV watchers: more news but less content
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- At the end of March, the Federal Communications Commission took action to quash the growing monopolization of local TV airwaves by just a handful of broadcasting conglomerates.
Movie review: The Other Woman
NEW YORK (CNS) -- When a screenwriter's armory of jokes is so depleted that a large dog having a very visible accident qualifies as a sight gag, moviegoers of taste will want to steer clear. And so they should in the case of the crass comedy "The Other Woman" (Fox).
Movie review: Brick Mansions
NEW YORK (CNS) -- Combat, albeit of a stylized kind, is the whole point of the action picture "Brick Mansions" (Relativity). Though gore is kept to a minimum, some of the mayhem registers as vicious, if only by implication.
‘Moon Knight:’ Marvel comic book tackles mental illness
NEW YORK (CNS) -- One of the best comics to have been published in the last few years was a 2011 reboot of "Moon Knight," created in the 1970s. A new version suffers a dropoff in the quality of writing and art.
Poetry collection shows beauty, fragmentation of everyday life
Honest, touching, sometimes startling, the poems in this collection reveal the divine spark alive and well in the diversity of human experience.
Movie review: ‘Transcendence’
NEW YORK (CNS) -- Despite its lofty title, the muddled sci-fi drama "Transcendence" (Warner Bros.) sinks rather than rises.
Books present correlations between St. Francis and his papal namesake
The mountain of books written on St. Francis of Assisi testify to the enduring attraction of this saint, usually regarded as the most perfect follower of Jesus. Why two more such biographies?
Smart, restrained ‘Oculus’ is mirror image of most horror films
NEW YORK (CNS) -- Brains trump bloodshed in "Oculus" (Relativity), a generally enjoyable horror exercise acceptable for most mature moviegoers. By comparison to the innumerable fright flicks that substitute the merely repellant for the genuinely scary, this film is a lesson in restraint.
‘MLB 14: The Show’ puts video gamers into the batter’s box
While the Cadillac of sports video games is so realistic it's eerie, this year's version of the Major League Baseball game allows users to speed up the game. Instead of a game consuming hours, in the new version nine innings can be played in under 30 minutes.
Book offers excellent overview on religions’ take on today’s issues
"World Religions and Contemporary Issues" is, overall, an excellent text suitable for use in adult education classes or undergraduate studies. Brennan R. Hill, the author, is professor emeritus in theology at Xavier University and his experience in teaching shows in the format and ease of use and readability of the book.