Avatar 2009 • Rated PG-13 Directed by James Cameron Warning: minor spoilers ahead Avatar is an scrumptious feast which sets a new standard for visual effects and imaginary worlds. That alone makes up for James Cameron using standard fare storytelling and tired cliches. The colors are so vivid and the imagination so active that I hardly noticed the flaws until the movie was long over. An oft repeated phrase in the film is “I see you” which the characters use to communicate a personal knowing and recognition. It is reminiscent of Native American language (as is much of the ...

Up Pixar Animation Studios 2009 • Rated PG Directed by Pete Docker & Bob Peterson There is a lot of beauty is Pixar's latest film Up (released on DVD 11/10/09), not the least of which is the stunning animation, brilliant colors and spot-on "set design". But the transformative power of the story lies in two primary relationships: Carl and his wife Ellie and later, Carl and young Russell. The former relationship (which technically last through only the first 11 ...

Craig Detweiler is a filmmaker of faith; he is a producer, screenwriter, author, lecturer, and Assistant Professor of Communications at Pepperdine University. He recently had the opportunity to preview 30 minutes of James Cameron's highly anticipated film Avatar: Last night, I saw thirty minutes of the most anticipated movie in years. It is reportedly the most expensive feature film ever. James Cameron has wanted to make it for a decade, but had to wait for the technology to catch up to his vision. I thought it had so much potential to revolutionize entertainment that I entitled my ...

Away We Go 2009 • Rated R Directed by Sam Mendes (2009) My wife hated this movie. She said it was vulgar and crude. I have to agree with her, particularly in the first 20 minutes of the film. But as we lay in bed after watching it, talking about why she hated it we discovered the value of the film. It’s in the questions it raises and the underlying hope that serves as its foundation. As actor John Krasinski says in the DVD bonus features, “It’s about searching for a place where you belong and searching for who you really are.” Away We Go is the story of Burt and Verona ...

Author and educator Craig Detweiler is interviewed about his books Matrix of Meaning and Into the Dark and finding God in the movies. Film: a matrix of meaning from CPX on Vimeo. What are your thoughts? Has God spoken to you through a particular film, book or TV show? How do you discern between what may be the voice of God and what might be too much soda and Junior Mints? Share your thoughts here. ~ Travis Stewart ...

District 9 2009 • Rated R Directed by Neil Blomkamp When I’m on a business trip I usually try and take along a “guy” movie to watch on my laptop or catch a new release at the theater. I do this because with two pre-teen kids and a wife with a low tolerance for aliens, bloody battles or orcs, fantasy movies like Braveheart just don’t make the Family Movie Night cut at our house. On my trips I’ve seen the likes of Tropic Thunder, Apocalypto and The Shooter ...