Home Media Magazine - September 16-22, 2007 - (Page CER14)

The message I took away from the movie is to have faith in God, being obedient even when we don’t understand why. The story is situational comedy, not real life, and certainly not a satire of PROVERBS 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. the reality of the biblical flood, or even of the reality of how God interacts with us. Remember that we can boldly approach the throne of God because of the blood of Jesus, and … well, rats, there was no Jesus in this movie. That is certainly an element I would have loved to see added. If you are looking for a movie to build a bible study around, this one wouldn’t quite be right, but you will find a smile in it. Take the scene when God (Freeman) joins Congress in the pledge of allegiance, and instead of the phrase “under God” says “under ME.” Supporting roles from Wanda Sykes and Molly Shannon could have you falling off of your couch laughing. We are made in God’s likeness and image right? So God laughs too. – Pastor Jason Anderson Christian rating: Entertainment rating: ### EVAN ALMIGHTY >> Street 10/9, Universal, Comedy, B.O. $99 million, $29.98 DVD, $39.98 HD DVD, ‘PG,’ Stars Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman, Lauren Graham, John Goodman, Wanda Sykes. E van Almighty, the sequel to Bruce Almighty, is full of family values and great laughs. A snapshot of the story finds Evan Baxter (Carell) elected to Congress. He heads off to Washington, D.C., with his wife and three children (not named Shem, Hem and Japeth). Evan has been sacrificing his family relationship for his career — something his wife has been praying about. The campaign platform he was elected on claimed that he could change the world — something his wife persuades him he should also pray about. God’s answer to both prayers is Genesis 6:14, “Build an ark.” It’s a modern day Noah story. Going into it I was thinking, “God promised never to destroy the earth again with a flood ” But the movie does a nice job of not messing with this promise. And if you can get past the idea of God speaking face to face with Evan and Evan’s face not melting off, it is a wonderful movie full of great family values. Remember also that it is rated ‘PG’ and released in the mainstream market, so there is some crude humor and language. GRACIE >> Street 9/18, New Line, Drama, B.O. $3 million, $27.95 DVD, ‘PG-13’ Stars Carly Schroeder, Elisabeth Shue, Dermot Mulroney, Andrew Shue. G racie is a story based on true events. Carly Schroeder (from TV’s “Lizzie McGuire”) plays 15-year-old Gracie who petitions her school board to allow her to play high school varsity soccer — on the all-boys team — after the death of her MVP brother in a car accident. Gracie wants to take her brother’s place on the soccer team, but her family laughs. Gracie goes through some rebellion, but seems to come to her senses and begins her own regimen of physical training. It is obvious that she is still struggling with grief when she sneaks into a nightclub and takes her parents’ car without permission, shoplifts and pretends to be a college student with an older guy. There is a scene with sexual content in the backseat of the family car. Fortunately, Dad comes along before it goes too far. But Gracie is amazing at soccer. Her dad realizes his daughter needs to play in order to deal with her grief. This helps Dad with his grief, too. It’s unfortunate that the language and sexual content make this film inappropriate for children under 12, because the messages of a family pulling together in grief and reaching goals despite opposition are powerful. Parents who let PHILIPPIANS 4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength. their older teens see this movie, talk about the positive messages, and use the negative ones as teachable moments will be able to find the message Paul shared in Philippians 4:13. – Dr. Roger D. Haber Christian rating: Entertainment rating: #### CHRISTIAN RATING 5 Couldn’t be closer to biblical Christian family values/messages than the Bible 4 Strong biblical Christian family values/messages throughout the movie 3 Good mix of Christian family values 2 Christian values are there, but not obvious 1 Christian values, if any, are hidden and hard to find ENTERTAINMENT RATING 5 # Potential Academy award winner, great entertainment 4 # Great production values, well-acted, good entertainment 3 # Contains several memorable scenes that make it worth watching 2 # Enjoyed watching, but not a must-see 1 # OK, but the type of film you watch and forget 14 CHRISTIAN ENTERTAINMENT REVIEW / SEPTEMBER 2007

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Contents News Commentary TV DVD Reviews Pipeline Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Christian Entertainment Review

Home Media Magazine - September 16-22, 2007

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