Remember when Arnold said, “I’ll be back” in that first Terminator film? Well, he wasn’t joking, because he’s back. Again. And he looks old. Apparently, that’s okay though because the T-800 model terminator’s outside organic body ages just like a human’s would.

So, everyone has been sort of hating on this trailer. I actually kind of like it. Granted I have no special affection for this franchise. I was (understandably) not allowed to watch it when a kid, and only this year have I been getting aquainted with the series. There are some things to like and some things I don’t care for. And I’m…

Ridley Scott is one of the most powerful directors working in Hollywood. (If he can get The Counselor made, he can do anything.) Following The Counselor, Scott turned to the story of Exodus, and cast a predominantly white cast for the film Exodus: Gods and Kings. Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II is played by Joel Egerton, who among the least-Egyptian actor working right now. An outcry resulted in part because the “gods and kings” of the title are all white, while the slaves in the film are black. We’re evidently not quite to the point where this won’t happen, but we’re definitely in a place where…

What is film? More specifically, what do films, or the folks who make them, want to accomplish with their film? The answer to this question can be different for every film and every filmmaker out there. But I believe we could find on a very broad overview, that 99% of all films every made intend to tell you a story, and entertain you while doing it. No matter the genre, no matter the subject, no matter true story or fictional, filmmakers want you to be enthralled and engaged and to enjoy the great telling of a good story. Let’s start there for Birdman. Did the film enthrall me? Did it engage…

Most Christians think that holiness in art can be achieved superficially. As in, if it is “safe for the whole family,” then it is free from impurity. This is incorrect. Pure art is not necessarily safe art. Sometimes purity of heart demands a vulgar expression. And judging art on the basis of a superficial rating is misguided. Some of the most innocent-seeming children’s movies are chock full of unholiness. And some of the most disturbing, unsettling, and seemingly “vulgar” things are included in the Bible for our edification.

This is a fantastic article from Michael Minkoff (co-host of

There are a lot of things I’m unsure of. For instance, I’m not sure what attracted Hugh Jackman to this project. I’m not sure why Rooney Mara was cast as Tiger Lily — a native American Indian whom Rooney Mara could not be further from, ethnically. I’m not sure why James Hook appears to be a good guy in this film. A tragic story about a man gone bad?

I am, admittedly, somewhat intrigued by Hugh Jackman playing Blackbeard, but that may be the only thing here I’m interested in. I literally don’t care about anything else going on in this film. But, on the off chance that any of you do, here’s…

James Gunn took to Facebook recently. He did not have kind words for the direction many studios have been headed with their universes. But I didn’t feel that he was overly crtical. And I share his conerns. This is a really short read and worth your time.

CARTS BEFORE HORSES & HOLLYWOOD’S NEW LOVE OF SHARED UNIVERSES

Listen, I love big ass shared universes in movies, as well as huge franchises. But I’m a little worried about the numerous shared universes being planned by the studios, without having a strong base film to grow from - or in some cases, NO base film to grow from. Star Wars had…

We take a look at the impressively large-scale sci-fi adventure of Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. While well-documented as Nolan’s “most ambitious” project to date, it does remind us a lot of things he has done before. Interstellar, although technically brilliant, didn’t blow us away from a storytelling point of view, but it does force us to wrestle with questions about human potential, limitations, society, anti-intellectualism, “our place in the sky”, and “our place in the dirt.” Due to the incredible scope of the film, we increased the scope of the panel– so we are flush with…

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This is the point at which I realize I never got around to writing my written review of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and realize that I have not seen it recently enough to do so. That’s sort of frustrating. Make no mistake, it is always my intention to write a review of every film I see. I am not always able to get around to doing it.

Luckily, I did write a review of the first Hunger Games film. It was very early in the days of MovieByte when these films first began making their appearance. Joe and I also talked about it on episode 7 of The MovieByte Podcast. The first installment was…

Showrunner Bruce Heller revealed that a “prenatal Robin” storyline is in the works for Gotham. Also coming in a future episode is the return of the pint-sized Poison Ivy — though her BFF Harley Quinn will be sitting this season out.

Speaking to EW, Heller revealed his approach to Robin. “We’re going to do a prenatal origin story for Robin down the line,” Heller said. “There are no MRIs involved. There’s an episode coming up where we learn how Robin’s parents got together.”

I checked into this show because, you know, why not. I didn’t expect it to like it much or for it to be particularly…