James Harleman's Blog, page 9
November 15, 2015
CRIMSON PEAK & Reel World Theology
I joined in with my friend Mikey and others at Reel World Theology for a joint review of Del Toro’sCrimson Peak with commentary on the horror genre. We have some livelydiscussion about J.J. Abrams, Star Wars, the new influential directors in Hollywood, and what truly makes a film a horror film. I also find a […]
November 13, 2015
The Ins and Outs of INSIDE OUT
Enjoy our video review or written review below: “After young Riley is uprooted from her Midwest life and moved to San Francisco, her emotions – Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness – conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house, and school.” – Wikipedia Much has been said about the film Inside Out… […]
July 9, 2015
The REAL Hero of BIG HERO 6
I must have been in the wrong mood when I saw Big Hero 6 in the theater. My recollection was “meh” but when I viewed it again for a Film and Theology event for a room full of junior high and high school students, it blew my mind…visually, narratively, and with all the obvious parallels […]
February 10, 2015
Guardians of the Galaxy Review: part 2
Life and death, frustration and loss..for a fun family film, Guardians of the Galaxy starts off with a a heavy tone that’s quite the contrast to the otherwiserollickingsoundtrack. Are the young PeterQuill’s headphones and upbeat classic rock a metaphor for modern entertainment, as it medicates us and mutes some of the harsh realities of life? […]
February 6, 2015
Guardians of the Galaxy Review: Part 1
It’s rare that we have a guest reviewer for Cinemagogue, let alone one as insightful and discerning as this fella. He also hasa unique insider’sview on The Guardians of the Galaxy, and it’s obvious he’s well rooted in philosophy and meta-narrative. I’d say more, but I think this one speaks for itself. I am Groot […]
January 23, 2015
14 movies for 2014: The Cinemagogue Lineup
Once again, it’s that time of year whenHollywood’s snobbery surfaces with Oscar-sized pats on the back for pretentious cinematic achievements that didn’t make much money… Okay, that’s harsh, but I have an annual sized cinematic migraine every time the Academy looks down their nose atmovies that matter simply because they’re blockbusters, or apparently have too […]
July 11, 2014
The Problem of (Deliver us From) EVIL
The latest horror entry from director Scott Derrickson, Deliver us from Evil, is not the strongest entry in the horror genre. However, as one part police procedural with the added component of the demonic, it’s more accessible to moviegoers who avoid the genre. Scarier than an episode of Sleepy Hollow, it nowhere approaches the creep […]
July 9, 2014
Oh God… You’re in my Fiction?
Nury Vittachi recently published an article on the Science 2.0 website entitled “Scientists Discover that atheists might not exist, and that’s not a joke“ and, while the article talks more specifically about how “a metaphysical outlook may be so deeply ingrained in human thought processes that it cannot be expunged” the article makes the natural […]
June 12, 2014
X-Men: Reviews of Future Podcast
Sometimes you need to do things as a team. Wolverine learned this over the course of seven films, and now goes back to disciple the man who discipled him in X-Men: Days of Future Past. I decided, like Logan, to jump in and do a review as a team with Mikey Fissell and other cohorts […]
June 11, 2014
Cutting to the Core: Finding the Meta-narrative
In 2008 I was asked to write an article for Collide Magazine. In a lot of ways this treatise on story served as a primer for what would eventually become my book(published in 2012), and after six years of hosting the article on the EchoHub website they’re closing up shop… so I thought it would […]
