The Wicker Tree on Bluray

1973 was the year of release of the original cult classic, The Wicker Man starring among others, Christopher Lee. Then in 2006 we had the uninspired release of a newer version starring Nicholas Cage. Now some 35+ years after the original release we have a follow up story. Highly anticipated by many fans of the original, the new story tackles some new ground, in new ways, yet with memorable scenes and connections to the original. Unfortunately, while there are moments of awe, I can’t help but believe that most, just like me will conclude with the feelings that the film falls just short.

Imagine a young Christian couple, soon to be married deciding to leave for a mission’s trip to Scotland. Imagine it especially when you see the young woman in the couple, Beth Boothby, played by Brittania Nicol is a popular Christian Music Singer. She and her cowboy boyfriend drive around in limousines, but are willing to give it all up in order to share their Christian faith with ‘the sinners’ of another country who follow their ‘foolish religious beliefs.’ What transpires next was for me first and best illustrated in the movie titled Jesus Fish directed by Titus Jackson, the naivety of many who call themselves Christian. There is a belief that their faith will carry them through all circumstances, all situations, and that the power of prayer can transcend ones on foolish and naïve beliefs. There seems to be a mind block of verses in the bible for many like; ‘it rains on the just and unjust,’ as well as concepts where poor decision making, even by good people, results in one learning and discovering that there are consequences for actions and the reality that sometimes, bad people do things that impacts good people.

There are brief moments where The Wicker Tree presents brilliance. I certainly have to give kudos to the sound editing of this film as well as to some of the visual images presented on screen. There is thought provoking story, in fact, one may even say at times, a brilliant contemplative story but overall the lapses in quality lead to the demise of the film as does the poor overacting. That isn’t to take away from some of the horrifying and thought provoking images we see presented but there just isn’t the consistency the film needs to make it work.

One of the thought provoking concepts of this film will be to see how many respond to the themes related to people of faith, and the strong questions as to the deciding factors on which faith to follow. There is a very brief appearance of Christopher Lee where he answers a question of his son as to how determine which faiths are true and which aren’t. He concludes that a lot depends on where you have grown up and been taught. While there is truth to that answer, with the disparity among many faiths, and certainly responses and comments from Jesus about himself as being; ‘the way to heaven’ or by others with comments like, ‘there is no other name under heaven where one can be saved,’ there are certainly questions thrown into the viability of all religions. The reality that some religions contradict themselves in such stark ways shows that it takes little reasonability and logic to determine they can’t all be correct in the summation of their beliefs. While there may be common points, the totality of differing beliefs offers stark contrasts. We see this in The Wicker Tree with the perspective that there are consequences for naivety within each of the belief systems presented.

There were things I liked about The Wicker Tree, I can’t technically classify the film as it isn’t really horror, or gore, but it is different, thought provoking and eerie. There is far more story than horror, but there is also comedy and music. It has a little bit of everything and there are components that keep the movie entertaining, it just happens to fall short in the end. There are a few special features on the film and the ‘Making Of’ feature is definitely worth watching. There is little benefit of the Blu-ray version outside of the sound quality and some of the varieties of music involved. Viewers will be surprised by the quality of sound including in much of the score music including The London Philharmonic. As to my recommendation on how to view the film, if available for rental you may want to give it a try, you may like it better than me and it would be interesting to hear your thoughts after viewing the movie. I will say, it certainly perked my interest to go back and see the original, for that, there is some value.

To see the video posted below, click on the video, if the video doesn’t appear or appears in distorted form, click on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO_ZRkDD26A


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A Christmas Snow

A note as per my review, you may even want to call it a full disclosure. I received a note from a friend, Rob Harris about a new movie he was in titled, A Christmas Snow. I know Rob from his involvement in a little independent film called Jesus Fish some time ago. We became friends along the rest of the guys at Tiroma Films. It is good to see Rob and the rest of the folks at Tiroma starting to get more recognition for their work, they deserve it.

With some hesitancy I purchased the movie A Christmas Snow. If it hadn’t been for knowing that Rob was in it, I don’t know if I would have purchased it or not. I was surprised at the story and unique twists that had components of Its A Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street. While there are components of those stories, there is enough originality here to please most Christmas fans. There is quality story and very good to terrific acting in the movie.

A Christmas Snow follows a single father, Andrew, and his young daughter, Lucy. Andrew is a widower who has fallen in love with a scrooge of a girlfriend, Kathleen. In a surprising turn of events, Andrew, played by Anthony Tyler Quinn, has to leave his pesky, and at times, rude daughter, Lucy, played very nicely by new comer, Cameron Ten Napel with Kathleen while he attends an emergency business trip. Kathleen, who doesn’t care much for children, and has reasons to be a scrooge, reluctantly agrees to care for the child for what is supposed to be a couple of days at most. The character of Kathleen is played very nicely by Catherine Mary Stewart. On the first night of Lucy’s stay, Kathleen decides to make a run to the store, along the way, she has two incidents with a homeless man. Sam, played beautifully by Muse Watson is a mystical sort of man despite his situation. As the night progresses, she agrees to take Sam to the bus station where he is attempting to catch a bus to visit his family for Christmas which he hasn’t seen in many years. The bus station is closed so Kathleen invites Sam to stay with her overnight because he had helped her from an attempted robbery at the store. That night, a snow storm hits the community and it changes everything.

As the story progresses we see characters change and a terrific performance by Muse Watson. One of the things we see is that things are not always as they appear and sometimes behaviors can be explained if one takes the time to listen. One of the things I liked was that while seeing this happen with the characters on screen the viewer also has their opinions changed and sees things from a different perspective, thus having their opinions change. I found myself caring for characters I initially didn’t like, and found myself following the story with that traditional, ‘Holiday’ feel I personally like to experience.

As many readers may know, I am also a pastor. As a pastor I follow some traditions of my own. One of those is I always teach on a character in the Christmas story known as Simeon. Simeon is a little known character in the Christmas story. We read about Simeon in Luke Chapter 2. Through the process of A Christmas Snow, some of the lessons, and the story of Simeon come out. It is one of those beautiful things to see in a film, the reality that in a non preachy way, spiritual truths and concepts can be learned and taught in a thought provoking way. The inclusion and importance of a Biblical story, related to Christmas thus provides a Christmas memory and experience that not only entertains, but also causes the viewer to reflect on their own life, their own experiences. We soon realize, that dreams are at times possible, and if we allow, God will find a way to help us realize our dreams and desires. This is a huge part of the Christmas story often left out, or simply not known to many who don’t read the whole story.

The truth is, there are a ton of lackluster Holiday movies that seem to manipulate and take advantage of their audience. It was refreshing to see one that respected the reason for the season, the birth of Jesus, but doing so in a respectful way. While faith is an important backdrop in this film, it is done in a respectful way that will cause the viewer to reflect on their own stories and not insult the person who is not as faithful to the religious associations of Christmas. While only time will tell for the larger movie viewing audience, I expect this movie to become a regular Christmas tradition at my household. There aren’t many of those ‘classics’ in my repertoire of Holiday Films, but A Christmas Snow has as much a chance to become a classic for my home as any holiday movie I have seen in some time.

I expect that A Christmas Snow will be much better than expected for many giving it a chance. It has all of the ingredients to add spice to that Christmas Cider, along with enough touching and tender moments to brighten up the lights around the house. Then, as many families with children known, there are those surprises that come about when some of those presents under the tree are opened. Thankfully, there is also the love among families which we all want and we all desire, but at times don’t experience. Many of us dream though, we dream dreams that all things are possible, and that healing can take place. For those reasons, I will watch this again, not just for my own joy, but for the opportunity to once again, experience some of those good things, some of those blessings if you will, that we all look forward to, especially at Christmas time.

To see the trailer for the film, click on the following video. If the video doesn't appear, click on the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkfcAIXI2Fg


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Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information

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6441 N. Hydraulic
Park City Kansas, 67219

Click on the following links to learn more about The Virtual Pew

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A Christmas Carol in 3-D

How do I even start this? First, let’s look at a few facts; In the past I have acted in a professional rendition of A Christmas Carol, I have worked in the technical department of the professional version no less than 5 times, I have seen at least 3 versions of the play, have seen a different rendition of the movie at least seven times, and have read the book once. All that to say, and please excuse the sacrilegious comment here, I have hated the story, never got anything out of it, seen very little value in the story, haven’t understood it, and been rather bored with this classic from Charles Dickens. That is until today, today I had the opportunity to see the new Disney animated 3-D rendition starring Jim Carrey. Today I saw something that reminded me of the classics of Disney when I was a child, an experience I haven’t had from Disney this powerful since The Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast, in fact, I would say that for the first time in a long time, I got to experience what some of us who are older used to call Disney Magic.

Few films come about that are deserving of being called Epic or Classic. I think the last Christmas style story to display this type of character was The Polar Express. Thankfully, I had the chance prior to the start of this Christmas season another film fitting the mold of The Polar Express when I went to see A Christmas Carol in 3-D.

Most of us are familiar with the story of Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol. In this classic story Ebenezer is an old geezer who has no respect for Christmas, what it stands for, or the people around him. Some seven years later, after the death of his coworker Marley, performed by Gary Oldman, he is visited on Christmas Eve by the Ghost of Christmas Past, The Ghost of Christmas Present, and The Ghost of Christmas Future. He sees his life in a different light and is challenged to do something with it. In many ways, Scrooge is one who represents all of us, all of us who go through life not enjoying life in the fullness life has to offer, including the benefits of a faith where we see others as valuable and deserving of love, love that goes beyond words, love that is moved and motivated by action.

Technically from the exceptional sound to animation, A Christmas Carol is BRILLIANT! Not only is it brilliant technically though, Jim Carrey is exceptional and if awards or nominations could be given for acting in an animated feature, he is deserving of it. Frankly I think Jim Carrey does such an exceptional job in this movie that he should be considered for nomination in major awards. If the animation team could also be considered for the life they give to the characters in this movie, they should also be considered. The life like qualities given to the characters in this film are second to none of any animation I have ever seen, in any style, in any form. Carrey takes on the role of numerous characters in the film, but leave no doubt about it, Ebenezer Scrooge is the character to watch. The work of the animation team is the work to enjoy and admire.

One of the extremely enjoyable components about the film version I saw was the 3-D effects. While a great many 3-D effects in movies go for scare and jump tactics, Disney in their brilliance used the effect to draw the viewer into the story, there are virtually no jump effects in the film, but for the first time, it was as if I was in the film, witnessing the story first hand. From the incredible scenery, to the beautiful characters that fill the screen, the 3-D isn’t just a gimmick here, it is a beautiful part of the story. One of the other things that frankly surprised me was the Disney dedication to telling the story in its original form, being true to the original style, language and concept. Jim Carrey brings the characters to life and the animation and direction brings the audience into the story. A story that for me, for the first time, had me understanding this annual classic.

Charles Dickens was a deeply religious man whose Christian faith was vitally important to him. This version of The Christmas Carol holds true to showing the concepts that are deeply rooted in Spiritual concepts and for me, the change in the life of Ebenezer Scrooge that we see take place is deeply emotional. I have to tell you, I even teared up with joy for the change in life that takes place in Ebenezer. While many still focus on the character of Scrooge and his “bah-humbug” approach, this movie illustrates in a beautiful way the drastic and dramatic change that takes place in the life of Ebenezer, not only does he notice it though, so do those around him. In many ways, he reminds me of the character in the Bible, Zacchaeus, his life is changed and an indication of that life change is his willingness to give massive amounts of money to the poor, and those he has wronged. We see Christian concepts revealed from the songs that are true to the Christian tradition of Christmas to the imagery of crosses, the church, and even what many would consider to be concepts of God displayed in the three ghosts that visit Ebenezer. From the Holy Fire of the Holy Spirit in The Ghost of Christmas Past, to the kingship and attitude of Jesus for the Ghost of Christmas Present and the ultimate judgment rendered by God in the Ghost of Christmas Future. The imagery intended by Dickens is all there. While many may not recognize it, especially those not looking for them, they are entwined in this story just as much as in stories by C.S. Lewis, Flannery O’Connor and many others.

While I was so impressed with this movie, there was one disappointing attribute. I personally felt Carrey was not nearly as strong in his role as The Ghost of Christmas Present. Frankly this part of the story was a bit of a let down and if the quality of acting given to Ebenezer Scrooge had been given to the Ghost of Christmas Present, this would have not been a very good exceptional film; it would have been a close to perfect film. I really hate to say that because this film is so good, but it is a part of the film that was a let down.

I love Christmas, I love the movies related to Christmas, I have already started watching them and this is one I will watch again. I have always appreciated Jim Carrey, and he gives one stunning performance and Robert Zemeckis in his direction does the Charles Dickens Classic justice. Not only does Zemeckis do it justice though, for me, he brought the story to life for the first time in my many, many experiences. I never expected to tear up, I never expected to think that highly of this film but I did and I personally believe so will the majority of people who see it. That is also true for those like me, who haven’t been impressed with the story in the past. I would say one other thing, if having the opportunity to see this film in 3-D do so, the extra cost is worth it and I don’t think you will be disappointed. You will likely not experience magic like this for the remainder of the Holiday Season.

On a scale of 1 – 10, for a movie as close to perfection as one can get, a very satisfying 9

To watch the following, just click on the video, if the video don't appear, just click on the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C50d-2p6ftE


Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

Click here to visit Mosaic Wichita, the Church in Wichita Kansas where Mike is the pastor.

Click Here to Go to The Virtual Pew Daily Verse and Read The Bible in a Year Passages

Click here for booking information to have Pastor Mike come speak or perform, from speaking to music or magic, something for all groups.

Click to visit with Pastor Mike regarding any of your needs. He will respond to each request personally, and if need be refer you to one of our other pastors.

Click to visit and join the new group The Virtual Pew, at MySpace. Become a part of a different kind of Christian group, check out the page for more information,all welcome, including those who are not followers of Jesus.

Click to visit the Virtual Pew Website and become a part of that ministry.

Click to subscribe to my blog

Click to visit and join our sister group at MySpace Hollywood Jesus.

Click to visit Mary Jane Furches' new MySpace Page

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Click on the following links to learn more about The Virtual Pew

Donations to The Virtual Pew

http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

The Virtual Pew

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