Pictures from March

Pictures by my sister and myself. All those without my RM on them she took- she got some good ones, methinks!



Now some shots from our photo walk:

REVIEW: Bolt

I'm going to start off by saying that this is not a film about a dog. This is a film about a man, and it's honestly probably in my top 15 favorite films.

What do I mean it's not about a dog? No dog talks. No dog has the depth and range of emotions that humans have. Bolt does. Bolt is a man stuck in a dog's body, and the film is a story of a man's devotion to his woman.

So. The Film.

Bolt, by Disney animation, is overall a remarkable and well-done film. The animation is good- I wouldn't call it great. Not a rivalry to Pixar, and certainly a far cry from that in The Owls of Ga'Hoole. The story is one of the strong points- with a twist at the outset of the film and plenty of tension points thrown in for good measure, as well as some of the most hilarious and clean humor I've seen. There are some moments of distinctive cheese, but overall it is both hilarious and touching. I was choked up more than once.

The score is excellent. John Powell ranges from mickey-mousing (musical mimicry of the on-screen action) and comic parody/location scoring, to action packed, driving music similar to his work on the Bourne films, to heartbreaking and lonely piano themes, to a simply gorgeous, heroic, triumphant and adventurous orchestral motif that emerges a few times- all touched by a kind of homey feel that keeps the whole thing in perspective as really a story, not of some invincible super-hero, but of simply a good man.

It's Mr. Powell's fault that I got choked up so often.

The Worldview

Surprisingly good. There is 1 clear crude joke, and a few other possibilities.

The girl, Penny, is

*SPOILERS*

an actress, who apparently has no father and who disrespects her agent- a jerk. Which makes it all the easier for us to think that she was right to disrespect him. Not so.

We see plenty of working women, one of which is especially manly and feministic. Disgusting.

We also have very short-term vision in the family. The family consists of a single mother, a daughter, and their pets. A widow and an orphan, who act satisfied in their lives because of a few animals that they own. Sad, and bad modeling.

Fortunately, Penny, her mother, her agent, and most of the humans in the film play a small part in Bolt. The film mainly centers around the journeys of three animals.

The dog- Bolt. From him we learn a number of things. We learn that one doesn't need to have superpowers- one just needs to do the right thing. We learn that love and devotion and loyalty are good things. And while Bolt sadly has no concept of The God that claims his ultimate allegiance (remember, this is really a man in a dog's body), he still has a firm grasp of his duty to protect his family- his woman.

The cat- Mittens. Careful with this feline, as from her especially we receive a few insidious slide-ins about bad humans. Now, truly, "A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast," but I shudder at anything that even sniffs (har har) of environmentalism. "The cat has feelings too... in fact, cats are people too, you know." No, they aren't. Beware the "people are evil" messages in these talking animal films...

That said, good owners are shown as a good thing, and so they should be! Mittens also goes on a character journey from a tyrannical Guido to a submissive and respectful helper to our hero.

The hamster- Rhino. I love this guy. From Rhino we learn some great things about manliness. He's also hilarious. I love the vigorous spirit about him, the desire to do great things, the "It's a good day to die!"-ness that lets him do what needs done regardless of consequences to himself- and, indeed, realizing that said consequences, however violent, are glorious, for he did what was right whatever the cost.

Of course, he certainly shouldn't spend so much time watching TV, or worshiping movie stars- he leaves much depth to be desired. Nevertheless, he is a source of clean humor and some great inspiration towards manly behavior.

There was a montage in the middle and sketchy, pop-songed credits. Again.

The moral? You don't have to be a superhero. You just need to do what's right.

I really like this film. Highly recommended on a number of levels. 4/5

Pictures from Prayer Advance

This past month Dad and I, along with some other men from our church, met with brothers from a sister congregation for a time of teaching and prayer in a beautiful desert location. Praise God for men of faith! The instruction revolved around "The Plan"- God's plan for the family, for the state, and so on.

Here are the two pictures that I liked best. Thanks for suggesting the second one, David.

MUSIC - A New Adventure

A New Adventure

This is one of my latest works. I'd love to hear from you- what story does it tell?

I'm visualizing the end of a film, where the hero and his friends must part ways and go on to their destinations. It ends with the hero shouting "I'll be back!", right before the final chord.

What do you think?

Brave New World

Today I finished Aldous Huxley's Brave New World.

It's not a long book, but it's full of theology.

The Good

Mr. Huxley brings out a significant problem with a utopian state, namely that when everything is safe, perfect, and pre-arranged by man, there is no room for innovation, for danger, for heroism, for accomplishment. Now I, as a Christian, may take this and say- of course! Great point! God has created man to take dominion. To go places. To do things. To make his mark on eternity. To, ultimately, advance The Kingdom of God with his life. "Man's chief end is to Glorify God and enjoy Him forever." The degree to which a man does this is, to a large extent, correlated to his satisfaction with life. Mr. Huxley doesn't have this as his basis for his observations, but nevertheless what he says is true.

The Bad

Mr. Huxley associates Christianity with savagery. This is not only a false association, but, honestly, a rather ignorant one. Beginning with Scripture and ending with the visible effects of Christendom on the life and culture of any nation, it is quite obvious that Christianity pulls mankind out of savagery.

The Ugly

(Sorry, couldn't resist)

The book contains a good deal of erotic content, which, while not as detailed as that in, say, Atlas Shrugged, is more pervasive- Mr. Huxley is using it to make a point. If the book were translated literally to screen, it would be rated R or beyond- let's put it that way.

That said, the book as a general rule stays away from detailed description, and, as it is both a famous and influential piece of cultural literature and a good story, I would recommend it for mature readers who like to think.

VIDEO and MUSIC - Blood Duel

Jeffrey Griffith is an excellent young Christian stuntman whom I have been privileged to work with multiple times in the past. One of our recent projects was this video (which does contain some violence):

Blood Duel

I really appreciate how Jeffrey connoted, with minimal physical affection, that the film isn't about some flippant romance, but rather about the relationship between a husband and wife, as well as the true depth of character displayed by victory that goes deeper than that of fists.

I also went back over this score recently and made a few changes. Those interested may hear it below:

Dying Breath

You may say "what about all this blood and death in these titles? What worldview is this connoting?"

To which I reply- for a Christian, there are some things which I value so highly that I would for them sacrifice my life and my fortune, because of my sacred honor. Blood and death and gore- no, I don't love them. But I love the nobility, the courage, the fire-heartedness of a man who can press through the blood and death and gore and, if necessary, give his dying breaths to the cause of The Kingdom.

Maybe it's philosophical warfare. Maybe, as in the cases of William Wallace and George Washington, it's physical. Let us be ready, and wholly committed to serve Christ with all that we are!

"I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death." --Thomas Paine

"And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight."

The Son of God goes forth to war...

MUSIC - Legacy Baptist Promo

I went with the epic choir sound on this one:

Click here to view/hear