I’m pretty excited about this movie. I’ve been waiting for a while for the studio to release the trailer, but for some reason it has been withheld despite the fact that the movie had been finished for some time. I first found out about the movie version of this book when I saw a theatrical promotional copy with Viggo Mortenson’s face on the front. Although there’s a few movies recently that I wish he hadn’t made, he’ll always be Aragorn to me. He is a tremendous actor who really embodies his roles. Anything with Viggo attached to it is going to get my attention.

The Road is the Putlitzer Prize winning book from Cormac McCarthy who is famous for his books that make up The Border Trilogy (All the Pretty Horses from this trilogy was also made into a movie some years ago) and the more recent work of his that went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture, No Country For Old Men. I have to give some credit to my buddy Ched Spellman (Says Simpleton is his blog) who is a McCarthy fan and who helped push me to read The Road. I bought a used copy of the book over Christmas Break and started reading it on a late Monday night on January 5, ‘09. The next day I found myself devouring the book as I sat in Kim’s labor and delivery room, awaiting the arrival of my new son. I finished it a day after he was born. The movie isn’t coming out until October of this year, so please go and read the book first. You may say that you just don’t have the time. Believe me, you do have the time because McCarthy’s style and pace of the story will not allow you  to read this one slowly. I’m a very slow reader, but I couldn’t believe how quickly I was plowing through it. It’s the only McCarthy book I’ve read so far, but I’m going to change that soon. Check out the preview, I think this is going to be a powerful film in many ways.

Over the past few weeks, Yahoo! set up a bracketed contest in order to poll users to see what they thought should be crowned as the greatest movie of all time. The only criteria a movie had to meet to be a contender was that it was an Oscar winner. Yahoo! ran this contest as a lead-in to this year’s Academy Awards set for February  22. I kept up with the runnings off-and-on, and voted randomly, but as I began to see “The Return of the King” making its way to the top, I was anxious to see how it would do, especially since it was the first fantasy movie to win an Oscar for Best Picture.

The final round of voting pitted Peter Jackson’s “The Return of the King ” against Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather”. When I cast my digital ballot, ROTK only had a 2% lead, but I was surprised to see it beating “The Godfather” regardless. When the dust and smoke cleared, ROTK came out victorious. This right here tells you just how awesome this movie franchise is: It beat “The Godfather”! That’s not an easy task. Other movies that fell beneath the feet of Aragorn, Frodo, and Gandalf were “The Godfather II”, “Forrest Gump”, and yes, ”Gladiator”.

I found it encouraging that ROTK ousted “The Godfather” in this particular poll for “Ultimate Best Picture” for a few reasons. One was what I mentioned above about the unlikelihood of a fantasy film dominating so many other well-deserving classics. Another one would be that a movie such as ROTK won where the heroes “the least of these” are the ones who are admired as opposed to “The Godfather’s” storyline where family corruption and a depraved morality are center-stage. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a fan of “The Godfather Trilogy”, and they have earned their places in movie legend. But, it was nice to see a movie such as ROTK be voted by the Yahoo! users as number one.

Click here to view Yahoo!’s post announcing ROTK as the champion.

Everyone loves polls and lists. So I’m going to test out one of the new “free” features of being a blogger on WordPress and create a poll of my own. I want to see who the voters here at “Joy in the Journey” would have chosen as “Ultimate Move of All Time”. The list is abbreviated, and I’ve tried to put titles on here that lost to either ROTK or “The Godfather” in the final rounds of Yahoo!’s playoffs.

I want to direct you to a great post by my good friend Bret Rogers over at the blog he co-authors with his brother Brandon called “Irruption“. Bret tackles a great issue concerning the entertainment of horror films, which is especially relevant in light of Halloween right around the corner. I believe that his post is a great example of how to evaluate the culture in light of a Christian worldview. His conclusions towards the end shed much light on how a believer ought to approach this movie genre. Check it out and let him know what you think!

Here’s a sample:

I must ask, in what way is torture cool or entertaining? How is the theatrical destruction of human beings, who have been created in the image of God, enjoyable to watch? How does the cruel murder of persons on the “big screen” bring a high school boy to say, “that was a cool movie” and “that torture device/game was clever”? On what grounds does a people justify investing $30,500,000 in a weekend to see death and carnage when the same funds might have been used to see thousands of people dying of starvation live in Mexico, Sudan, Chad, and India? How does one, after delighting in such an evil flick, not become numb to the real news reports of others who are being sawed in two for proclaiming the Gospel of peace?

via Humans Need Jesus: Horror or Christ « irruption

Ironically, I just finished re-watching Cool Hand Luke again on Friday, and then I woke up today and saw on the news that the natural born “hardcase” had passed away. I have a picture of Paul Newman and Robert Redford in my office from the final scene of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and everytime I look at it, I can’t help but smile. Those who know me best know that my favorite actor is Robert Redford, which means that I have to love Paul Newman by association. However, my admiration for Newman goes beyond his connection to and relationship with Redford. Newman made some of my favorite movies and played the kind of characters in films that you remember more so than the actor. 

I once saw a special on televison where Newman critiqued the new age of film-making because nowadays movies conform to the actors rather than the actors to the movies. In other words, what you have is people writing scripts specifically geared to catch a particular actor or actress rather than writing a script and then seeing which actor or actress can best morph into that character. I think in the music business we see the same thing going on too. Instead of asking people who are making authentic music to sign record deals, we are saying to the artists, “Here’s the kind of music we want you to make. You can have a record deal if you can fill these shoes and wear as little clothing as possible.”  

Newman was one of the great pillars of the leading men in the old Hollywood. Not many people even know that he’s been married to Joanne Woodward since 1958. Kind of unusal for that to happen these days, even outside of Hollywood.  I’m going to miss Newman, and I appreciate the legacy he left behind. The world is changing so much, I don’t expect to see movies put out at the caliber of his generation for a long time. It seems that the classic quote from Cool Hand Luke is becoming all the more relevant as this world becomes darker and darker, and sin abounds: “What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” Check out this great slide-show from the NY Times that covers most of Newman’s greatest performances. Also click here to read Redford’s personal thoughts on his close friend’s death.

Paul Newman, Hollywood’s anti-hero, dies at 83 By JOHN CHRISTOFFERSEN, Associated Press Writer

WESTPORT, Conn. – Paul Newman never much cared for what he once called the “rubbish” of Hollywood, choosing to live in a quiet community on the opposite corner of the U.S. map, staying with his wife of many years and — long after he became bored with acting — pursuing his dual passions of philanthropy and race cars.

And yet despite enormous success in both endeavors and a vile distaste for celebrity, the Oscar-winning actor never lost the aura of a towering Hollywood movie star, turning in roles later in life that carried all the blue-eyed, heartthrob cool of his anti-hero performances in “Hud,” “Cool Hand Luke” and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”

The 10-time Academy Award nominee died Friday at age 83, surrounded by family and close friends at his Westport farmhouse following a long battle with cancer, publicist Jeff Sanderson said Saturday.

Paul Newman, Hollywood’s anti-hero, dies at 83 – Yahoo! News

This picture is from our recent trip home. I’m driving the boat, pulling my brother-in-law, Eric Smith, who is wakeboarding in the far left background. Just to put the picture in context, it was raining, and we were refusing to call it a day.

My family and I immediately recognized who I looked like in this picture, so none of them are allowed to particpate in this contest.

What movie star do you think I resemble the most in this picture? Everytime I look at it I die laughing. For everyone who gets it right, you’ll receive a 30 day free subscription to a blog called “Joy in the Journey“. ;)

Me driving my brother-in-law's boat on the 4th of July.

I get the same feeling every time the seasons change from summer to fall and winter to spring. Certain albums or songs, like a seasonal wardrobe, are dug out of the attic or dusted off the shelves and are shoved back into the CD player after laying dormant for months. In my case that is probably not exactly true since what I listen to varies more so based off of my mood than the weather, yet, as the seasons change there is a window of time where I am inclined only to listen to specific kinds of music rather than a conglomerated selection no matter my state of mind.

While Fort Worth tries to make its mind up as to whether or not it wants to be cold or hot, the days are progressively becoming more and more “springish”. Therefore, I’m in the process of reorganizing my iPod, moving songs, artists, albums, and playlists around to form a nice soundtrack that matches the weather and the scenery, and typically, the mood I acquire during this time of year which can be summed up in two classic words: laid back.

In one of mine and Kim’s favorite movies, Elizabethtown, towards the end of the film, the main character takes a road trip to discover the wonder of America, namely, its heritage and countryside. His “possible” girlfriend made him a map for his journey that was synchronized with songs that were suitable for each leg of the trip (by the way, the movie has an incredible soundtrack which was so good that they subsequently released a “Vol. II” for it). Nonetheless, as the girl narrates the personalized map, there is a line that she says which has stuck with me ever since. It was one of those statements that you hear that perfectly describes the way you feel about something, but you were just never inclined to put those feelings into words; but now that you’ve heard them expressed verbally, you know there’s no other way to say it. What she said, overlapping the cue of a song representative of her description, was, “Some music needs air. Roll down your window.”

She’s aboslutely right. There is just some music that you have to roll down the windows to, hang out your arm, and give the music room to breathe. So, here’s a brief list of the songs that in my opinion must be listened to, if possible, with the windows down. Music that needs air.

**What songs do you enjoy listening to that help you relax, and make you forget about the world for a few minutes? What songs do you like to play when driving in your car or with the windows up in your house when it’s sunny outside, a breeze blowing, and 72 degrees? My list is nowhere exhaustive nor would I say that these are necessarily my top picks. They are more so examples and are the ones that are on my mind right now. Don’t forget that you can listen to some of these songs in my Box.net media player in the sidebar.

• Blue Sky ~ The Allman Brothers Band from Eat a Peach
• What’s the World Got in Store~ Wilco from Being There
• (There’s) No Gettin’ Over Me ~ Ronnie Milsap from Ultimate Ronnie Milsap
• Breathing Air Again ~ Robbie Seay Band from Better Days
• Open Skies ~ David Crowder Band from Illuminate
• Sing My Songs to Me/For Everyman ~ Jackson Browne from For Everyman
• In a Daydream ~ The Freddy Jones Band from Waiting for the Night
• The Space Between Living and Dying ~ Jeremy Casella from Recovery
• Give Me Strength ~ Eric Clapton from 461 Ocean Boulevard
• Stormy Monday ~ Eric Clapton from Blues (Disc 2)
• Call it Stormy Monday ~ Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughn from In Session
• Don’t Say Goodbye ~ Third Day from Time
• Doin’ Nothin’ ~ Phil Keaggy from Crimson & Blue
• Sweet River Roll ~ Waterdeep from Everyone’s Beautiful

I just finished reading Dr. Al Mohler’s most recent blog which was written a few days ago on Dec. 4th. He has made comments in the past on The Golden Compass and especially has offered many well-informed insights on the “New Atheist” movement in the country. I only want to direct your attention to his article which is brief, but long enough to get a little technical and critical (in the positive sense of the term) of the issue of Phillip Pullman’s books and their respective forthcoming movies this Christmas. Dr. Mohler has seen the movies and so he integrates his thoughts on Pullman’s story and intention based upon the aggressive atheistic fervor of the books and how that spirit comes out in the movie. Click here to read Dr. Mohler’s blog; I think you will find his treatment of it both fair and wise. We all ought to continue to give thanks to the Lord for men like Dr. Mohler, Alister McGrath, and Charles Colson who are constantly and solidly equipping God’s people while simultaneously standing upright in the firing range of the secular world, admirably defending the faith of Jesus Christ. I pray that God will continue to raise up more and more of us who will take on such a calling.

I’m sure that I am way behind the rest of the internet world, but just the other week I was trying to find a movie trailer for the next installment of C. S. Lewis’, The Chronicles of Narnia series, Prince Caspian (due out May 16, 2008), but none was to be found. Now, I think they have just recently released a full movie trailer for the upcoming film, and it’s not a teaser trailer either. From what I saw, it looked promising. But, I love the fantasy genre anyway, so it doesn’t take much to fascinate me or to captivate my attention. In light of the constant Tolkien and Lewis references on my blog, I thought it might be beneficial to link you all to the movie trailer site so that you can see it for yourselves. Futhermore, you better believe that I will keep up to date with The Hobbit movie, if they ever get serious about making it. Hope you enjoy! Also, I think the poster looks pretty cool too.

• Click here to watch the Prince Caspian movie trailer.
• Click here to visit the official Prince Caspian movie website.

Well, this is my first movie review and endorsement on this blog and I must say, it is long overdue for this one in particular. I’m not as at home critiquing movies as I am with music and books, but that does not mean that they are incapable of moving me in similar fashion. Making movies is obviously an art no less than making good music; there are major differences in the quality and communication of movies such as common summer blockbusters and Jeremiah Johnson (click here to visit my list of top 5 movies in case you’re unfamiliar with this Robert Redford film). There is definitely a specialized skill, refined technique, and creative ability involved in bringing a story to life directly from the black and white of paper and ink and onto the color scheme of a projector and its screen. But, like all good art, and perhaps any type of art at that, movies communicate. They are not simply things that you observe and then make of them what you want. They have a communicative action to them which moves beyond merely setting forth a certain worldview, but is rather told in a way that is intended for persuasion. Still, what they communicate must not be reduced simply to a message or over-arching worldview. Just as in reading a great fictional work, you don’t simply put the book down and say that you only loved it because of its overall theme or underlying message. Instead, you rattle off your fascination with its characters, your passion for its complexities, and even its unapologetic realism. Using The Lord of the Rings again as a prime example of this fallacy, one must not walk away from reading the books or watching the movies and simply write Tolkien’s masterpiece off as just another story of good versus evil. This response does a terrible injustice to the author’s work. But, let me move on from this discussion and into the movie that has truly gripped my heart in a unique way and has also come into my life in a very providential fashion as the Lord continues to teach me about what it means to love my neighbor as myself (Lev 19:18; Matt 22:39).

The Painted Veil is a movie adaptation of W. Somerset Maugham’s book by the same title. Maugham wrote the novel in 1925 which is also the time period that this fictonal work is set. The movie has a very intriguing history and is recounted in great detail on its homepage which I have linked for you above. I also will resist a too indepth review since movies are intended to expose you to their content on their own terms and thereby my own words and descriptions serve as a poor substitution. However, I do want to give you just enough information and persuasion by which you might be inspiried to see it.

The movie begins with an abrupt marriage between Walter (Edward Norton) and Kitty (Naomi Watts) in which Walter’s love is blatantly unreciprocated by Kitty. Walter works as a bacteriologist in China and immediately he uproots Kitty from all that is familiar and settles her down in a foreign land with a man that she does not love. In time, Kitty fills the void of a loveless marriage by means of an affair which she is unable to conceal from her not so foolish and naive husband. Once Walter discovers Kitty’s unfaithfulness, he volunteers to travel into inland China to a village that has experienced one of the worst cholera breakouts that the area has seen. Though Walter’s motivation for willfully putting himself and his newlywed wife in danger of a deadly disease seems to be the desire to punish her for her betrayal, one cannot help but suspect that Walter’s good-hearted nature and contrite sincerity would have emboldened him to volunteer whether or not he had been cheated upon by his wife. And thus, the story begins, or perhaps journey better conveys the unfolding of the rest of the movie.

There are three main things that I want to emphasize as the areas in which the movie absolutely excels in portraying. First, The Painted Veil does a tremendous job of simply displaying the selflessness and willingness with which people ought to love one another, and in this case, the sick and the poor. Walter does not shy away in the least bit from pouring himself out upon this Chinese village in order to assist them in suppressing the cholera breakout. Few movies, or I should say actors (Norton), are able to portray so vividly and passionately the genuine concern and sacrifice which Walter is ready to make so that these villagers can be saved from this disease. After watching this movie, one’s eyes are opened to the reality of life’s hard situations and what it takes to help others in need. Though Walter and Kitty are not Christian missionaries who are traveling inland to preach the gospel (which is actually who this embittered couple replaced in the village; the missionaries contracted cholera and died), the film has a very missionary feel to it, and thus displays some of the same characteristics in its characters, setting, and plot that are typical ingredients of a missions effort in a similar indigenous environment.

Second, The Painted Veil is a breath of fresh air in a world of movies where relationships are depicted in a stagnant and unconvincing manner. The marriage between Walter and Kitty is a brutal thing to observe at times; however, the movie peaks in its ability to distinguish between sexual love and what most would term as true love. Although the story is not underlined with any Christian theological presuppositions, I believe that the film moves as close to showing what the actual nature of love is, as is possible outside of Christ. Thus, the name of this post to me is the most important line in the movie and is perhaps the film’s climax. There’s comes a point when Walter and Kitty finally see each other for who they really are and then she begins to see in him what all along never mattered to her at all. She says the line in response to another character in the film in a rhetorical tone, “As if a woman ever loved a man for his virtue?” But, it is at this moment when the scales fall off of her blinded eyes. The relationship between these two characters is so complex, romantic, and profound that the commentator on the film’s website described the movie as a story about differentiating between “sexual love and spiritual love”. And, the journey of their relationship throughout the film is also labeled “a spiritual journey”.

And third, The Painted Veil has some of the most beautiful cinemaphotography that I have seen in a long time. The grand landscapes and rich, fertile China inland is a wondeful picture to behold. I was captivated by its sheer magnificence and some of the shots are quite breath-taking. If you love movies with majestic scenery, then look no further. The Painted Veil does an honorable job of opening up the natural wonders of China’s inland for all movie-goers to see.

I hope that this brief post has put it into your mind to watch this film though I have in no way done justice to the true force in which the movie comes across. Watch The Painted Veil and you will be reminded of the reality of life and challenged as to what are the things that matter the most.