A Film Unfinished 2010 Directed by Yael Hersonski ~ review by Craig Detweiler I recently had the privilege of hosting a screening of the quietly powerful documentary, A Film Unfinished. Four long forgotten film reels were discovered featuring footage shot by the Nazis circa 1942. Labeled “Das Ghetto,” the footage corrects long held assumptions about life in the Warsaw Ghetto. Much of what historians long considered accurate depictions of the era was actually ...

Hope and the Great Restoration ~Travis Stewart Fourteen years ago my wife held our newborn child in our arms as his heart stopped beating after on 30 minutes of life. That experience changed everything; how we viewed the preciousness of life, how we expressed grief and even career choices. It also challenged how we understood the meaning of redemption and the core of the Gospel message. What I present here, in this audio presentation preached at Open Door Fellowship in ...

Precious 2009 • Rated R Directed by Lee Daniels Review by Craig Detweiler Precious is the most basic, extraordinary and humane film of 2009. After a summer of silliness, Precious arrives as a bracing alternative, powered by jolting performances from Mo’Nique and newcomer Gabourey Sidibe. It takes viewers inside the tragic life of a teen mother. It puts a face on poverty, abuse, and perseverance. Precious offers hard-earned hope amidst overwhelming odds. I had the privilege of seeing Precious on the night it won the Grand Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. Director Lee ...

Andrew Peterson's music has constantly been in my iTunes rotation since I first heard him about 4 years ago. His lyrics resonate deeply with my experience of faith and his sense of hope bring hope to me. Recently, on his website www.rabbitroom.com he wrote of a love that surprises him with it's constancy. He has graciously allowed me to re-post it here. ~Travis The Pit of Despair, or, A New Lament by Andrew Peterson The oldest song on my new album is also the ...

Forty years go by with someone laying in your bed Forty years of things you say you wish you'd never said How hard would it have been to say some kinder words instead I wonder as I stare up at the sky turning red ~ Long Ride Home These lyrics haunt me. I think of my wife and our marriage and what in the world I will be thinking of after that ride in a long black limousine - what will it be like to return home that evening with no one there? What will I be ...

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 ...