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Is “Game Change” Movie One-sided?

I’m no shill for Governor Sarah Palin, but the new trailer for the movie Game Change has me scratching my head. This is the third of three teasers, and all three trailers make it look like the entire story is about Palin and her incompetence.

I read Game Change when it came out (I couldn’t put it down). The book has three parts. Part one focuses on the Democratic primary, part two on the GOP primary, and part three on the general election. Palin doesn’t enter the story until the middle of part three. The book does not cast a good light on Palin, but neither does it do so on any of the other candidates from either side except Senator Barack Obama.

Why does this movie appear to focus on the pratfalls of only one side?

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Spielberg To Direct New Moses Movie

Here’s the scoop:

The two-time Oscar winner is closing in on a deal with Warner Bros. to direct “Gods And Kings,” which is described as a “‘Braveheart’-ish version of the Moses story” mixed with the “gritty reality” of “Saving Private Ryan.”

Warner Bros. has been courting Spielberg for the project since last September, and now it appears they are close to nabbing him. That in itself is an accomplishment: the notoriously busy Spielberg always has a full dance card, but will have time for “Gods And Kings” next spring. The director just finished “Lincoln” and will soon start on “Robopocalypse”; “Gods And Kings” would hope to begin lensing in March or April 2013.

I confess that when I first read “gritty reality,” the first thing that came to my mind was Exodus 4:25. And that is small potatoes compared to the rest of the Exodus story: the death of firstborn children, the slaughter of the lambs, water turning to blood, the plague of boils, and on and on. This is not a story for the faint of heart. So I am quite curious to see how far Hollywood is willing to go with “gritty reality” in telling this story.

Read the rest here.

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Should Tim Tebow Host SNL?

MSNBC.com reports that “Saturday Night Live” would like to book Tim Tebow to host the show after the end of the NFL season. Other quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady have hosted, and it would be a huge ratings boost for the show. But it’s hard to disagree with Gael Fashingbauer Cooper that it would be a bad idea for him to host if he ever gets the invitation. Here’s why:

There’s no question the sketches “SNL’s” writers would create for Tebow would play off the many known issues surrounding him — the circumcisions, his virginity, the on-field prayer stance dubbed “Tebowing.” But once they handed those scripts to Tebow, it seems wildly unlikely that he’d go along with what they come up with. Who can blame him?

Manning did it, and he looked smart for doing so. But here’s betting the Tebow sketches would be much more personal and vicious, and much more likely to go against Tebow’s personal values, religious or otherwise.

I think this reporter has it right. SNL’s recent parody of Tebow shows just how profane and disrespectful they are willing to be towards Christianity. I didn’t think the Tebow parody was funny, and many Christians agree that it was in poor taste at best and blasphemous at worst. Self-deprecating humor is one thing. Christ-deprecating humor is another, and it’s completely repugnant to Christians. It’s hard to imagine that the sketches would be any better than the last one, were Tebow to host.

I think Tebow should pass on this one.

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First Trailer for “The Hobbit”

(HT: Everybody with a computer)

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Two Reasons Not To Like The Muppet Movie

In his one-minute review over at the Rabbit Room, Father Thomas McKenzie gives two reasons why you may not like the new Muppet movie:

1. You are an adult with no previous contact with the Muppets.
2. You are a soul-less automaton. Continue Reading →

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Do you remember seeing this for the first time?

Okay, Gen X’ers. How many of you remember the first time you saw “The Empire Strikes Back” and found out that Vader was Luke’s father? I remember that it was the talk of my elementary school. The kids who hadn’t seen the movie yet could hardly believe that it was true. How could our hero be the son of Lord Vader?!

If you can’t remember, maybe the video above will jog your memory. It pictures a four year old boy named Faris watching the end of “Empire” for the first time. His reaction is priceless.

(HT: Rachel Held Evans)

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Robert Jeffress on Bill Maher’s “Real Time”

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Steven Spielberg To Direct Movie about Abraham Lincoln

I just read today that Steven Spielberg is filming a movie based on the life of Abraham Lincoln. The movie is set to be released after the 2012 presidential election, so there’s plenty of time for you to read the 944 pages of the book that it is based on—Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln.

Daniel Day Lewis has been selected to play the part of Lincoln, and Sally Field will play Mary Todd. The mash-up to the right shows the uncanny resemblance of Daniel Day Lewis to President Lincoln. Spielberg has the Midas touch when it comes to movies, and I can’t wait to see this one. Continue Reading →

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The Cast of “The Princess Bride” Have Reunion

“The Princess Bride” is a classic. I still find myself quoting lines from it quite often. So it was a gas to see the cast reunited after 24 years. Watch above.

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Rob Bell To Produce TV Show Based on His Own Life

When Rob Bell left Mars Hill Bible Church, he said that he was leaving because he felt a “calling to share God’s love” in new ways. Sarah Pulliam Bailey reports that one of those “new ways” is to produce a television drama about his own life. Bell has joined-up with Carlton Cuse—one of the creators of the TV series Lost—to produce a television pilot, and ABC has already bought the rights to it. New York Magazine has a brief report on how Cuse and Bell got together and what the show will be like: Continue Reading →

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