Category Archives: Movies & Television

We love Jim Caviezel and are avid fans of his current show, Person of Interest. We watch via Netflix only after it comes out on DVD, so we’re seeing Season 4 right now.

I’ve been puzzling over why they chose “Samaritan” for the name of the evil A.I. that is trying to take over the world. After all, the parable is about the GOOD Samaritan, right? Well, we were watching the show the other night and I had this ah-ha moment about how Samaritan is a type of Anti-Christ, while the wrinkly, white-haired guy is a type of the False Prophet.

Like the Anti-Christ, the “good” Samaritan A.I. appears to be all about global peace and prosperity, but it is really a wolf in sheep’s clothing.  Now read John 8:47-49 and keep in mind that, during the last days, the Anti-Christ will be possessed by Satan himself.

Jesus said, “Whoever belongs to God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not listen, because you do not belong to God.”

The Jews answered and said to him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and are possessed?”

Jesus answered, “I am not possessed; I honor my Father, but you dishonor me.”

Ha!

It used to be that mostly left-leaning movie critics could be counted on to put some effort into the way they showed their venomous distain for the assorted conservative, manly themes that continue to feature in James Bond films, including the latest one. But this time they’re really phoning it in. They seem to hate Spectre more than usual, but they can’t seem to express it very coherently or concisely. RogerEbert.com reviewer Matt Seitz wrote what seemed to me about 30 pages of rambling despondency that made me wonder if I should call the suicide hotline in Los Angeles on his behalf. Vox.com lived up to its creative potential and simply wrote the headline: “Spectre is the Worst James Bond Movie in Years.” Read the whole review and it’s not much more specific than that, but one doesn’t read Vox for the intellectual spectacle.
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This documentary is well done … interesting and informative. I found it particularly compelling in light of current events. So much of what they say about Scientology is also true of other groups hostile to Judaeo-Christianity.

My only caveat in recommending it is that the film maker appears to have a bit of an animus against ALL religions. Note how the title says “Scientology and the prison of belief” and not “Scientology: A prison of cult” which IMHO would have been more accurate.

Way back a long time ago, I think about 191, when AMC actually showed CLASSIC films I came across Elia Kazan’s 1957 film “A Face In The Crowd” starring a young Andy Griffith. At the time, I was struck by the similarities between this small town cornpone who turned into a rhetorical Pied Piper and one William J. Clinton. Fast forward 17 years and the media-generated illusion of Barack Obama was foisted on us.

I was reading Cal Thomas’ column today and he equated the Trump phenomenon to the same thing. This is an excerpt; I didn’t think you’d mind my spoiling the end, since most don’t have time. The entire film is available for viewing on Youtube. It co-stars Patricia Neal as the radio host who had fallen in love with him then realized the monster he had become.

“Jeffries has a local radio show on which she interviews interesting characters. She finds Rhodes irresistible and puts him on the air. Rhodes becomes a sensation, eventually climbing the ladder to his own network TV show and then, as politicians approach him for endorsements, a self-described kingmaker.

“I think of Rhodes when I watch Donald Trump. The two have much in common. Rhodes’ view of women seems to mirror Mr. Trump’s. In one scene, Rhodes says, ‘A guitar beats a woman every time.’ He marries more than once and has several affairs during and in between those marriages.

“As he becomes intoxicated with a beverage clearly not the milk of human kindness, Rhodes brags: ‘I’m not just an entertainer. I’m an influence, a wielder of opinion, a force a force!’

“Later as his political and cultural demise approaches, Rhodes says this about his audience when he thinks the microphone is off (Jeffries has kept it on to expose him as a fraud and make amends for creating a monster): ‘Those morons out there? Shucks, I could take chicken fertilizer and sell it to them as caviar. I could make them eat dog food and think it was steak. You know what the public’s like? A cage of guinea pigs. Good night, you stupid idiots. Good night, you miserable slobs. They’re a lot of trained seals. I toss them a dead fish and they’ll flap their flippers.'”

I think the huge difference is that back then character actually mattered. Had something like that happened to Obama it wouldn’t have made a whit of difference.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/sep/14/cal-thomas-donald-trump-is-lonesome-rhodes/print/

This is the official trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lrmxkF-UKM

The long knives will be out tonight during the Trump Show, masquerading as a debate, on CNN. I have plenty to post today and, of course, will have more tomorrow.

ONE BIG REASON FOR HIS POPULARITY

Here at the Gruntington Post, we watch the sucky movies, and warn you about them, so you don’t have to. In the case of the beautifully filmed Serena, starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, which debuted early in 2015, one might be tempted to assume that it’s worth a couple hours. One might be wrong. There’s a reason why a studio sits on a movie starring two A-list actors for over two years before releasing it, and it has nothing to do with ‘scheduling’, which is the excuse the studio gave.

Set in a depression-era logging camp near Asheville, North Carolina during the time the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was being assembled, the film was shot in the achingly beautiful forests of the Czech Republic on one of the most skillfully constructed outdoor sets I’ve seen in a long time. The surroundings are utterly convincing – more so than the acting, which is not terrible. The visuals are worth a look, really.

The acting is not bad, although the decision to have Bradley Cooper use his eastern coastal accent was a terrible one. It comes across as identical to his well-known Christopher Walken impression, which is amusing, but ridiculous. At times you think you’re watching Christopher Walken courting Jennifer Lawrence, and that’s just disturbing. Lawrence handles the part of the disturbed and damaged beauty well, but she’s most convincing when she’s silently staring or having an emotional breakdown.

The real suckiness with Serena comes from the story, which is based on the book by Ron Rash, and possibly its execution by director Susanne Bier. Character development is poor and unconvincing, and the story is just too tragic to be satisfying in any way. It gets a 95% ranking on the “Everybody Dies” scale, and overall, gets 2 out of 5 grunts. It could work as a good date movie, as long as you both fall asleep by the mid-point. I don’t recommend waiting to find out what happens. Hint: Refer to the Everybody Dies Index mentioned above. Don’t go watch this movie thinking anybody but peripheral characters are going to survive and live happily ever after. You’ve been warned.