Chick Fliks on The Brew

I just posted Kennedy Lewis' article, "Are Chick Flicks = To Porn?" on The Brew.

Enjoy.

Oscar Critique Wraps up on The Brew; Depressed Music

I just posted Keith Ever's second part of "And The Winner Is..." on The Brew.

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So I'm in a semi-depressed state after one of those unavoidable times in life. Here's what I've been listening to (though none of the songs accurately reflect that life experience. They just provide the right kind of mood to sail through that kind of time):

Radiohead's OK Computer album
"Hang Me Out To Dry", "Hospital Bed", and "Rubidoux" by The Cold War Kids
"Dekota", "Long Way Around", and "Nothing Compares To You" (Cover) by Stereophonics
"Underground", "Philosophy", "Song For The Dumped", and "Battle Of Who Could Care Less" by Ben Folds Five
The Black Holes and Revelations album by Muse

The Oscars On The Brew

I posted the first part of Keith Ever's "And The Winner Is...", a critique of the Oscars, on The Brew.
Watch for Part 2 on Monday.

Cohen Brothers on The Brew

I posted my short overview of Cohen Brothers' films on The Brew.
Enjoy.

Acting on The Brew; A Christian Will Ferrell; So Many Songs, So Many Issues

I posted Shannon Neffendorf's critique of acting, "Acting To Shatter The Soul" on The Brew.

Watch for more this month. There's still plenty to come.

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I watched Winter Passing last night was amazed. Will Ferrel does another restrained turn (like in Stranger Than Fiction), this time playing a bassist from a Christian rock band, Punching Pilate. His character is so nuanced and subtle, but is the most accurate and sympathetic portrayal of a Christian I've ever seen.

The rest of the movie is a pretty good indie drama. There's some great literary one-liners and great acting. Though, some might be disturbed by a scene where a dying kitten is euthanized (nothing graphic).

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So I bought a subscription to a music service (and am quietly proud to not use I-Tunes) and am obtaining music more legally.

I'm amazed to find the most random tracks ("Super Bon Bon" by the defunct Soul Coughing and a spooky piano and distorted guitar track from the 28 Days Later SDTRK). I also can't believe the wealth of music that is out there. I can get just about anything I can think of (though I'm having some trouble finding some older Christian rock songs: Bleach, Silage, etc.).

I'm also reading through Ecclesiastes with some guys I'm in a Bible study with. I'm digesting the expected "Life if meaningless" and "Only God can provide meaning" ideas. And then I'm seeing those idea apply to my music downloading.

I can download all the music that my laptop can hold, but will it really make me happy? And if I do download all that I can think of, God can add meaning to it all and use it for good.

Oh, the joys of having such a dualistic and complicated faith. But I don't think I would have it be any less complicated.

Hope On The Brew

I posted Lonnie Smith's article on Alphonso Cuaron's film Children of Men on The Brew.

Enjoy.

Christploitation On The Brew; MuteMath and Transformers

Yeah, there's such a word; and such a genre of film. New author Ian North explains it on The Brew.

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I found out MuteMath did the theme song for the new Transformers movie. Don't know what to think of it.

The Brew Goes Across The Pond; Freedom To Fellowship

I posted new author David Wright's "Director Michael Apted's Look At Life, Every 7 Years" on The Brew.
The article explores British director Apted's look at a group of people every 7 years.

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I was journaling the other day (something I’ve started doing less and less).
I wrote a lot about freedom, independence and then on to community and fellowship.

It got me thinking in these big-concept kind of words that seemed like they would make a good one-word-a-line poem. So here is my first attempt at poetry in a long, long time.

Freedom
Independence
Individuality
Interaction
Commonality
Community
Submission
Similarities
Sharing
Fellowship

The Brew Goes To the Movies; Murder Mystery Dinner

I posted the first film article "The State Of Film in America" by Keith Evers (new author) on The Brew.

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Murder Mystery Dinner

So I went to a murder mystery dinner at the Cattleman’s Steakhouse in Dallas for my birthday.

It was pretty cool and not too cheesy. A few actors were mixed in with the sixty or so other dinner guests and slowly died off during dinner.

The guests quickly became just as entertaining as the show throughout the night.
There was a drunk dad there with his two teenage boys. The dad would joke around, scream and yell, “He did it!” while pointing at someone at random. And then he got into an argument with an Indian guy and asked him to step outside with him (the emcees stopped anything from happening).

Then my date and I shared a table with a lesbian couple. They were celebrating their 5th anniversary in Dallas. An ex-husband of one of them was best friends with the other and that is apparently how they met.

During a short time where all the dinner guests were instructed to look around the room for clues to a murder that took place during our salads, some thought they might find a clue in my date’s purse (which she had left hanging on the back of her chair at the table).
She realized that she left it there two or three minutes into the search of the room. The purse was open and sitting on the floor when we got back to the table. Talk about truly frightening.

To make the night interactive, regular guests were made to stand up and be interrogated by the actor playing a detective (other actors mixed in with the crowd were the actual victims and murderers in the show). Because it was my birthday, someone gave the people in charge of the show some dirt on me.

Here’s how my interrogation went:

Detective: “So, I hear you used to be a criminal reporter in Chicago.”
Me: “Yes.”
D: “And you moved around a lot. Sounds like you’re a little shifty.”
E: “Uh, yeah.”
D: “So it seems like you might have a good means and background to be able to kill someone.”
E: “Sure (There was a gasp, some chuckles, and a “That’s a confession!” heard among the other dinner guests.).”

I met an older couple in their 50s who were missionaries in Romania with Christ for the Nations (which is headquartered in south Dallas). It was also the husband’s birthday and he was wearing a bow-tie.

So Many Brews: Clean Sopranos; A Real Post

This week was busy at The Brew. I had three articles that I had to squeeze in in three days. The two I hadn't linked to yet are Lonnie Smith's "Space Between Teeth"; and then my own "4 Easy Steps To Putting Space Between Yourself and an Unhealthy Faith".

I also posted June's editorial on Film.

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If the PAX TV network ever aired The Sopranos, it would look something like this.

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I feel like I haven't been putting out any real posts (as in something with a real topic) and just filler. This last week was pretty busy but maybe next week I can put something together.