Posts from the ‘Arts and Culture’ Category

Three Reasons Why Courageous was a great movie

My wife and I recently saw the new movie by Sherwood Pictures, Courageous. I can honestly say it was the best movie I’ve seen this year. Now, those of you who know me know how critical I am of Christians in the arts. Its not because I don’t think Christians should be involved in the arts; but rather, when Christians are involved in the arts they tend to be really bad at it. That being said, this film was really good for many reasons, but mainly for three I list below.

Production Quality:
Most Christian films have very poor production quality. I’m not hating on Christian film makers but the bottom line is that most christian films don’t have a big budget and don’t have the experience to make a good film. That being said, Courageous was an exception. They still didn’t have a HUGE budget, but the production quality was equal to any other A list movie out there, and the artistry of it was equally as good.

Story:
The story of courageous was great! It was funny, deep, and heart felt. There wasn’t anything ground breaking about the story, but it was sure communicated well and with excellence. Yes, its still corny in parts, but it was still better than any other movie I’ve seen this year! My wife and I left the movie having laughed more than when we saw “Date Night” and cried (at least Windy cried) more than any movie we’ve ever seen!

The Gospel Message:
The movie Courageous had the Gospel message in it. It was so prevalent that it I even felt like it was preaching to me (and not in a bad way). Christian artists will understand just how difficult it is to create a movie that contains the Gospel Message that is neither completely corny and preachy, nor so vague that its drowning in metaphors to an extent that Woody Allen can’t figure out the point of the movie.

Bottom Line:
This was a great movie that I would encourage anyone to see. Its not quite where I would like to see Christian film, but its sure closer than anything else I’ve seen.

Title Sequences

I love film! Its the only all inclusive art form. Something I find profoundly interesting about movies are the title sequences. Its the equivalent of having pre-show music before a play. It immediately sets the tone for the entire movie.It can prepare you to laugh throughout the movie, or it can make yourself brace for the drama that is to come. Below is a title from a movie coming out in 2012 about the first World War. Watch it and let me know your thoughts! You can also read about the making of the title sequence here.

Herbst titles from clemento on Vimeo.