Under the Sun: Postmodern Athletics
Do sports spectators actually believe, or are they deceiving themselves into believing what they know is untrue?
Under the Sun: The Cultural Shift from Disney to Chick-Fil-A
“Ten or twenty years hence, we will see the Chick-Fil-A uproar as the tipping point where the boycotters publicly assumed the position of the ‘buycotters.'”
Under the Sun: The Health Care Debate, Then and Now
A political narrative and a religious narrative help provide much needed historical context for the health care debate.
Under the Sun: Michael Salman’s Attorney and the Christian Legal Movement
Recent headlines provide the ingredients for a Christian litigant stew, and John Whitehead is stirring the pot.
Under the Sun: Patriotism Inside the American Church
Is this seemingly inextricable connection between patriotism and worship something old or new?
Under the Sun: Depoliticizing the Pulpit
“These historical complications do not on their own invalidate Olasky and Piper’s position. They do, however, call into question the stories these men are telling about their positions.”
Under the Sun: C.S. Lewis, Swimsuits, and Social Propriety
“Even if I know the history of a cultural practice—if I correctly classify a problem as ‘propriety’ rather than ‘chastity’—my decisions about how to look and what to wear don’t suddenly get easier.”
Eat Your Vegetables: Lola rennt and Dramatic Irony as Love’s Performance
“This movie is conflicted. On the one hand, the movie tells us, “Don’t think. Act.” On the other hand, it shows us that when we don’t think, our actions have horrible consequences.”
Eat Your Vegetables: Where are the Wild Things?
“Where the Wild Things Are is not a kids’ film. It’s an adult film about the moment where the adult world becomes tangible enough for a child to cause problems but too far away for the kid to do anything about it.”
Eat Your Vegetables: Adaptation (2002)
“For all of this witty meta-one-upsmanship, Adaptation does make two thought provoking points: adaptation involves all of us and it occurs outside of the conscious decision of any one person.”
Eat Your Vegetables: “Being John Malkovich,” Being Puppets Without Strings
“It’s not a fun truth that we all want to be somebody else. In fact, the film’s black joke is even more depressing: given the opportunity, we would simply morph that new person into us.”
Eat Your Vegetables: A Critique of Criticism
“But more than the film’s source for comedy, irony is at the heart of everything the film does.”
Eat Your Vegetables: The First Rule of Fighting Yourself…
“If I buy what the film’s selling, then the only consolation I have is that at least I feel alive as the flames melt me.”
Eat Your Vegetables: “Annie Hall,” Romance, and Real Love
“I get the feeling that remembering what was supposedly great is far more fun that actually experiencing said greatness.”
Eat Your Vegetables: “Badlands” (Malick, 1973)
“The movie about a young spree-killer and his ‘along for the ride’ girl gives us a way to think about how we relate to creatures who can’t overtly communicate.”
Eat Your Vegetables: “Doubt” (Shanley, 2008)
“The film ultimately believes in doubt, thus robbing both belief and doubt of their potency.”
