Culture
Video games get White House scrutiny after Parkland shooting
Much has been made of the claim that continued exposure to violent video games desensitize the user to real-life violence.
Players in ‘Sherlock Gnomes’ are stiff, but harmless
The garden gnomes are back with a famous sleuth in a rudimentary plot that, despite providing a positive lesson about not taking loved ones for granted, remains unimpressive for all but young viewers.
‘Midnight Sun’ an inspiring, modern remake of ‘Romeo and Juliet’
The creators of this latest retelling of the star-crossed lovers have made a sweet, heartfelt movie that presents a refreshing view (for Hollywood, that is) of young people who are not behaving badly.
‘Unsane’ shows a world where ‘insane’ is just a profit motive
The audience learns early on that a mental clinic is collecting insurance fees and a bad guy is on the loose, but along the way lots of old canards about the mentally ill and for-profit health care are on display.
‘Pacific Rim Uprising’: A ridiculous sci-fi film of toppling skyscrapers
Even though the monsters of mass destruction from another dimension were vanquished in the first movie, Hollywood decided a sequel was in order. Plot is sacrificed for relentless action, laying waste to much of Tokyo.
A comic book look at ‘The People’s Pope’
Written from a far-left political perspective and with a distorted view of the church, the book calls Pope Francis a refreshing new leader but argues he isn't liberal enough.
Tension of daring raid goes missing ‘7 Days in Entebbe’
Discussions more than action concern the story of a hijacked a plane of Israeli tourists, in particular a superficial look at Israeli political rivalries of the 1970s and the sensitive German leftists who carry out the caper.
Despite flaws, book offers fair assessment of Francis’ papacy so far
The new book by New York Times columnist Ross Douthat serves as an overview of the pope's accomplishments and a sometimes critical commentary on them. It is a nuanced if cautionary account of the unfinished Francis papacy.
Book offers fascinating look at 20th-century feminist, contemplative
Edith Stein, who eventually became Carmelite Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, is not well known as saints go but is becoming better known, thanks to books like this one.
Metaphysical hooey, video-game mayhem marks ‘Tomb Raider’
The tough-gal Lara Croft reboot film has plenty of fighting and dying, and distasteful mythology. Yet it's tiresomely repetitive, with features that might make gameplay enjoyable but fail to work on the screen.