Culture
As ‘Early Man’ understood, greed will get you nowhere
That's the premise of this claymation film featuring soccer-playing cavemen who must work together to defeat an evil plan -- with plenty of family-friendly slapstick comedy along the way.
Teens get a fresh look at the original tough-guy hero, ‘Samson’
This spirited, biblically based drama is an enjoyable riff on the exploits of Ancient Israel's super-strong champion, affably portrayed here by Taylor James, along with a cast of colorful characters.
Balanced look at Catholic-Protestant links fails on Jewish teachings
Delving into the Bible and Catholic tradition, Peter Kreeft argues that Christian reunification is possible and, indeed, likely to happen if Protestants and Catholics probe deeply enough into their own traditions and listen deeply to each other.
‘Girlfriends,’ streaming, Acorn
Despite a stellar cast, the tiresome, overwrought "Girlfriends" is a misfire for the usually laudable streaming service Acorn.
Producer: New sitcom ‘Living Biblically’ avoids bad language on purpose
"Living Biblically" is adapted from the A.J. Jacobs book of the same title, in which he kept a yearlong diary of trying to live his life entirely according to biblical precepts. It will air at 9:30 EST Mondays on CBS starting Feb. 26.
Author disputes view that Galileo affair showed church as anti-science
Author Father Paschal Scotti, a Benedictine priest, provides readers with a solid foundation to the cultural and intellectual background of famous mathematician, inventor and astronomer Galileo Galilei.
‘The 15:17 to Paris’ is exciting when in crisis, a bore when not
The portion of the movie devoted to the thwarting of a terrorist attack is taut and compelling. But in retelling three friends' lives before that, the film fails to evoke interest in the lads' humdrum childhoods and fitful careers.
Not enough quality films for families to make a top 10 list
Few of 2017's outstanding films aimed at adults were entirely free of gritty or controversial elements. And the aesthetic standard of movies acceptable for almost all age groups was so low that our usual round number of 10 in that category could not be reached without scraping a bit too far down in the barrel.
Girl falls for gills in ’60s period film, ‘The Shape of Water’
Think "Beauty and the Beast" meets "Creature from the Black Lagoon" -- that's this mix of gentle observations on prejudice set in 1962 Baltimore amidst a lush romance with far too strong sexual content.
End of elegance: ‘Peter Rabbit’ descends into cheap gags at a manic pace
That rustling sound you hear is famed children's author Beatrix Potter spinning in her grave. Her title character has become a fast-talking hipster with a murderous streak in this adventure comedy mixing live-action with animation.