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Samuel D. James

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Select a Month October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 November 2013

September 2015

September 21, 2015

New Trailer for Documentary About Kermit Gosnell

Here's an exclusive trailer for the upcoming documentary about mass abortionist/infanticidist Kermit Gosnell. This promises...

September 19, 2015

Loving Our Movies Well In the Golden Age of Nostalgia

There’s a scene in Back to the Future II where Marty McFly, played by Michael...

March 2015

March 10, 2015

Why the Caged Birdman Sings

Henry David Thoreau once said, "The mass of men live lives of quiet desperation." He...

February 2015

February 25, 2015

How the Oscars and Elitism Help America

Mathematically speaking, the odds are that if you A) purchased a ticket to a movie...

February 19, 2015

Why the Oscars Still Matter

I know, I know. Of all the major American entertainment award shows--the Grammys, the Tonys,...

February 19, 2015

How to Watch TV Like a Christian

Last week I wrote a review for The Gospel Coalition of a helpful new book...

February 18, 2015

50 Shades and the Limits of Cultural Engagement

As forecasted, 50 Shades of Grey is a box office hit. The film toppled a...

February 05, 2015

Fifty Shades of Self-Loathing

I have absolutely zero intention of talking about the upcoming Fifty Shades of Grey movie....

January 2015

January 26, 2015

My Essential Movies: “Schindler’s List” (1993)

Oskar Schindler was the greatest con artist in history. Most conmen fail. The successful ones...

January 16, 2015

Some Oscar Thoughts

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released the nominations for this year's Oscars...

January 05, 2015

Dear Peter Jackson

Dear Peter Jackson, I hope this letter finds you well. Actually, I know it does....

December 2014

December 19, 2014

My Essential Movies: “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946)

Much like its protagonist, It's a Wonderful Life was a financial failure in its day....

November 2014

November 19, 2014

My Essential Movies: “The Godfather Part II” (1974)

Today begins a new series called "My Essential Movies," monthly essays on the finest films...

November 10, 2014

“Interstellar:” (Not) At Home Among the Stars

The word "interstellar" literally means "between stars or planets." Christopher Nolan's film is about exactly...

October 2014

October 31, 2014

The Christian Ideas of “The Exorcist”

William Friedkin’s The Exorcist turned 40 years old last year. Like Kubrick’s 2001, The Exorcist,...

October 08, 2014

In Defense of Christian Subculture

I grew up in the afterglow of contemporary Christian music's astonishing 90s heyday. I was...

October 03, 2014

Gone and Left Behind

As an intriguing case study into two ways to do Christian film criticism, observe the flip...

September 2014

September 25, 2014

I Walked Out of “Guardians of the Galaxy”

I went to the movies late last night. Normally when that happens, this space contains...

September 23, 2014

Matt Walsh, Armond White, and the Problem of Crank Conservatives

If you are a right-leaning Christian, or are Facebook friends with people who are (I...

August 2014

August 26, 2014

Hoping While “Cast Away”

The year 2000 saw two Oscar nominated films about men who have everything taken from them...

August 18, 2014

Movie Review: “Boyhood”

Richard Linklater's Boyhood is an utterly unique creation. Linklater filmed it over the course of...

August 15, 2014

The Atrophy of the Evangelical Imagination

Last month Christ and Pop Culture ran an article by Jordan Monson entitled "Do Christians...

August 05, 2014

Movie Review: “Non-Stop”

In airplane movies, there’s only so much that can happen to everyone. The traditional threats...

July 2014

July 20, 2014

A Critic Considered

When you think of beloved writers, writers who receive adulation and respect and even affection,...

June 2014

June 19, 2014

Reviewing Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert died last April after a ten year co-existence with thyroid cancer. I remember...

June 14, 2014

Movie Review: “Edge of Tomorrow”

Warner Bros presents a Doug Liman film. Written by Christopher McQuarrie, Jez Butterworth and John-Henry...

June 07, 2014

“An Apology For the Star Wars Prequels,” Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Folks, I've had it. I'm tired of people bashing the Star Wars prequels. I'm not...

May 2014

May 13, 2014

Super-Same?

I read with eager interest both Matt Zoller Seitz and Tim Wainwright’s contributions to a...

May 05, 2014

Spider Strong

"The Amazing Spider-Man 2." Columbia Pictures. Written by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. Directed by...

March 2014

March 04, 2014

3 Really Bad Movies (You Should Definitely Watch)

The bad movie is a delightful genre. For one thing, it is an almost never...