Matt's Musings

"You have all these rules and you think that they'll save you." — The Joker, "The Dark Knight." Today I get to be the featured speaker at our Oasis service. The passage being considered today is Mark 7:1-23, a section where the Pharisees question Jesus about the fact that his disciples aren't following the letter of the Kosher laws. Jesus hits them back, questioning whether it's the rules or something more that is more important. In fact, the central question for the passage is are we saved by the law or by faith? As believers, we should know the answer to that question. But the Pharisees were slavishly devoted to the law, and they thought that devotion to the law would save them. In the process, they'd forgotten why we had the law in the first place. Sometimes we think of this as the spirit of the law rather than the letter of the law. As humans, we struggle with this idea. My wife watches two little boys during the week. As part of her job, she tal...

Mainline Christian denominations are dying. It's a fact. Membership is declining and the average age of members is increasing. If the trend continues, the church is in big trouble. So there has been a lot of talk about how to bring in young people and grow the church. This often leads to discussion of content and style. And, while I'm sure style of music and type of worship matter, I'm not sure that's the only factor. Our world has changed. Our society has changed. The way people engage the world and each other has changed. So when we focus on making stylistic changes, how does that match the way people communicate today. In the movie "Wall-E," which is ostensibly for kids, we get a depiction of the future of humanity. We all zoom around on our personal vehicles, we are constantly plugged in, and we are badly out of shape. Most probably laughed that off. It is funny. But it might also just be a projection of the path we're on. This is where I get stumped w...

"What I suggest is you go to an execution, and see a man be killed. You watch him die, and you watch him beg!" — Ellen Roark, "A Time to Kill" Sunday has long been a big night for premium cable fare, and this summer is no exception. The final season of "Dexter" is nearing its mid-point, and the third season of "The Killing" is nearing its end. While "Dexter" has long been a popular cable drama, what's more surprising has been "The Killing." After two mediocre seasons, the show was cancelled. Then, when AMC had a hole in its schedule, the show was uncanceled. The producers of "The Killing" have used that late game save to re-boot the show creatively. The core of what worked — Linden (Mireille Enos) and Holder (Joel Kinnaman) — remained, and the rest changed. And it's been a superb season, delivering on the promise once contained in the show's pilot. It's also been a season of tackling big issues. First...

Today I continue my look at guilty pleasure films this summer with a "B" movie gem. Tremors (1990) Starring: Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward, Michael Gross, and Reba McEntire About: Lately "Sharknado" has been getting a lot of press because of it's "B" movie horror qualities. That's because people love a good, cheesy horror film. In 1990, one of the best offered was "Tremors." It's set in a small town, populated by quirky characters with good hearts, and has a cheesy plot. But all of that works in its favor. As the leads, Bacon and Ward do a good job of bringing the characters to life and adding a little fun to the mix. This is a film that's in the tradition of monster movies from the 1950s, and it works. It's got the trappings of small town life, some fun and eccentric characters, and all the good things you'd expect from this kind of cheesy monster movie. Everything about it works as light, "B" movie fare. It's even...

"We can't just wait here for sharks to rain down on us." — Fin, "Sharknado I think the picture above sort of sums up "Sharknado," the latests action epic produces for the SyFy channel. By now, at one point or another, we've all seen one of these over-the-top shlock epics. But when "Sharknado" blew up the Internet, I decided to give it a try. I am no stranger to "B" movies, especially "B" horror movies. I also love shark movies. I have seen almost all of them, and while they leave me fearful of the ocean, lakes, and rivers, it's still usually a good time. So I was curious as to what this film would be like. That curiosity ended on Saturday when I made it through the whole presentation. This film has developed a cult following. SyFy is working on a sequel, Regal Cinemas plans to air the original in theaters this coming weekend, and "Sharknado" GIFs dominate the Internet. And why not? It's a ridiculous concep...

The end of summer is here. August is always a tough month, but this year we have a strange combination of action films, comedies, and the first wave of movies that might be around come award season. So, in other words, it's a mixed bag. Friday, August 2: 2 Guns — This is an action film starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. It's hard to tell exactly what the plot is or how good this film will be. It's odd to have it dumped in early August, but the pedigree is good. The Spectacular Now — Sometimes modest teen shows offer a start for really talented actors. "The Secret Life Of The American Teenager" wasn't a great show, but its star — Shailene Woodley — is very talented. She showed that in "The Descendants," and it looks like that trend will continue alongside an equally talented Miles Teller with this film. The trailer is awesome. Hopefully the movie will match it. Wednesday, August 7: Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters — This is a sequel meant to ...

Here's a look at the new movies I saw this week. Despicable Me 2 Starring: (Voice talents of) Steve Carrell, Kristen Wiig, Steve Coogan, Russell Brand, and Benjamin Bratt Synopsis: This film has been wildly successful so far, and why not? It's a fun kids movie during a period where explosions and destruction seem to be the calling card of most films. I am an adult — well outside the target demographic for this film — but I couldn't wait to see it. I love the Minions. In fact, I'm pretty sure a 90 minute Minion movie would be one of the greatest animated films of all time. And the portions dedicated to the Minions in this movie were awesome. The rest of it is just OK. The sequel doesn't have as interesting a story. Gru (Carrell) is no longer a bad guy. Now he's a father of three, a bit eccentric, and looking for a wife. That's fine as a story — though I wonder about the wisdom of doing a romantic comedy for a film aimed primarily at kids — but it's not th...