do you believe ? is a 2015 christian ensemble drama film directed by jon gunn and stars an ensemble cast featuring ted mcginley , mira sorvino , andrea logan white , lee majors , alexa penavega , sean astin , madison pettis , cybill shepherd , and brian bosworth .

it was released on march 20 , 2015 .

do you believe ? ( film )

do you believe ? movie event kits include your site license and the do you believe ? movie event dvd .
do you believe
will be released in theaters on march 30 , 2015 .
wherever you fall on the spectrum of spirituality , the only answer to
do you believe ?
is
no .
' do you believe ? ' debuts to bad reviews , $ 3 . 6 million at box office
' do you believe ? ' debuts to bad reviews , $ 3 . 6 million at box office | urltoken
“belief takes you to your knees , then raises you to your feet , ” says pastor matthew in this film .
here ' s what other critics are saying about
do you believe ? ,
now playing in wide release .
the author may present a problem and ask you what you think , or might just never come around to saying exactly what you are supposed to believe .
pure flix , the production company behind faith - based hit “god’s not dead , ” is bringing “do you believe ? ” to the american film market next week .
“ ‘god’s not dead’ resonated with audiences because it explored and validated the existence of god , ” “do you believe ? ” producer david a . r . white said . “‘do you believe ? ’ takes christianity to another level…the cross . ”
there are no featured audience reviews yet . click the link below to see what others say about do you believe ? !
do you believe ? ( 2015 ) …review and / or viewer comments • christian spotlight on the movies • christiananswers . net
the film is
do you believe ? ,
a movie that follows the lives of a dozen people as they face their own unique challenges in life and must decide what they believe about god – and then what they ' re going to do about it .
“do you believe ? ” is a powerful , well written and performed , thought - provoking film serving as a testimony and a reminder to all of us… what are you willing to give up for the cross ? i strongly recommend this film for viewing by all christian families .
do you believe ,
the follow - up to the hit film
god ' s not dead ,
will be released on march 20 , pure flix announced on friday .
central messages are that faith has the power to save you and help you out of dark and desperate situations into the light . also presses that you must fight for what you believe in , even if that means going up against people and authorities who will test and doubt you .
this indicates that the adult pirates believe that the children do , indeed , have their own agency .
movies like do you believe ? will not appeal to audiences across the board . still you could take out some of the preachiness in the film and still have a movie that entertains . that might be enough to bring some non - christians aboard .
so you’re not a priest ? scholar explain what they do to outsiders : natasha l . mikles
this stirring new film from the creators of god ' s not dead is in theaters now . more than a movie , it ' s a question we all must answer in our lifetimes : do you believe ?
pure flix , the production company behind faith - based hit “god’s not dead , ” is bringing “do you believe ? ” to the american film market next week . “do you believe ? ” focuses on a dozen different lives that intersect on the streets of chicago , starting with a local pastor ( ted mcginley ) being moved by the visible faith of an old [ … ]
an interview with writer / director boots riley about his incendiary new film ,
sorry to bother you .
“fairy tale” ending shows that if you are a good child then good things will happen to you .
this past weekend i caught the newly released pure flix entertainment feature do you believe ? at my local cinema , which marks the third “christian drama film” to grace the big screen in the last year or so—the fourth if you count son of god , produced by lightworkers media .
for those who enjoy a faith based movie and have been wanting to see one which also entertains ,
do you believe ?
is an answer to prayer .
“‘god’s not dead’ resonated with audiences because it explored and validated the existence of god , ” … “‘do you believe ? ’ takes christianity to another level…the cross . ”
it ' s a movie made for non - christians and christians alike . it forces non - christians to ask
do i believe ?
but urges christians to consider : i believe , but now what will i do ?
do you believe is a christian movie for a christian audience . it is not mainstream entertainment ; it is mainstream sunday school - - which is fine if this is what you want to see at the movie theater .
the text is comprised only fictional scenarios or facts , while the pictures and layout design lead you to believe otherwise .
the digital license only option should be selected if you already own a copy of the film and only need the license to legally show it . when this option is selected , your license will be emailed to you , and nothing will ship to you , as you already have a copy of the film you can use for your event . the price of the license remains the same , as you are paying for the license , not the dvd , but you will not incur a shipping charge .
come out ; the bear will do you no harm ; he is a good , honest creature . ’”
i can see why you say that . let me tell you why i did it this way .
urltoken projected
do you believe ?
to earn $ 27 million during its run . it ' s currently showing in 1 , 320 theaters nationwide , 42 of them in michigan .
do you believe ? is another faith based film from the makers of last year ' s god is not dead . this time however , they have stepped up production values as well as having a much stronger cast . in this film you have actors such as cybill shepherd , delroy lindo , mira sorvino and sean astin who bring a believability to a story concerning hope for the hopeless .
i ' ve thought about what you said and what i ' m going to do is . . .
from the same writers as
god ' s not dead ,
do you believe
follows a dozen different people whose lives unexpectedly intersect , bringing them together by the power of god , whether they believe it yet or not . the film stars mira sorvino , sean astin , and alexa penavega , among many more .
the first look at
do you believe
was released last year , revealing additional stars such as golden globe award - winner cybill shepherd , lee majors , brian bosworth and delroy lindo .
while you cannot charge for tickets , you can take an offering and make your do you believe ? movie event a fundraising event ! licenses are based on a church ' s average weekend attendance ( not on the possible size of the viewing audience ) . all other organizations are covered by the standard license fee .
when even christian film critics are asking “why do christian movies suck ? ” one hopes that the time , money and energy expended on these films could go toward works with actual artistic merit that also spread the message that their makers want to share with the world . but wherever you fall on the spectrum of spirituality , the only answer to “do you believe ? ” is “no . ”
fresno bee , rick bentley :
' do you believe ? ' works because it ' s equally strong as a family drama and faith - based story .
( read full review . )
do you believe ?
, the faith - based movie shot in northern lower michigan , debuted last weekend to primarily negative reviews , and a modest $ 3 . 6 million at the box office .
so i must , reluctantly , say “do you believe” is limited to not only christians , but to very young or very new christians who are not yet ready for the solid food of sophisticated religious films .
in closing , peter pan is a complicated film that displays agency and interpellation .
when the film begins everything seems to be typical when it comes to agency .
much more responsibility and has to learn to believe in himself before others will .
this also leads the audience to believe that she cannot escape on her own .
most of the time when you are tasked with an essay about a book or article you ' ve read for a class , you will be expected to write in a professional and impersonal voice . but the regular rules change a bit when you write a response paper .
families can talk about the popularity of faith - based films . do you think these movies are meant for an audience that already embraces their message or a tool for reaching new believers ? how do you think the filmmakers ' intent impacts the messages they choose to include in their movies ?
welve people . twelve lives . twelve different stories . what do all of these people have in common ? a yearning , a desire , a calling to be more than how the world views them . “do you believe ? ” takes viewers into the lives of each of these people . an ems worker
the stories all seamlessly fit together by film’s end , and the bridge scene is dramatic and powerful . i was not bored once during the movie and was deeply moved on several occasions . the director did an excellent job . the film is peppered with just the right number of humorous moments to relieve some of the tension the characters face . we are happy to award “do you believe ? ” our “faith - friendly” seal for ages twelve plus . see this movie ! this film has it all !
” challenges what we deem as a stereotypical normal children’s film and proves to be progressive .
i think that the film wants the audience to walk away with a feeling of possibility .
basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …
clearly encourages his ideas of etiquette when he writes , “everyone should have good manners . do you ? i hope so . ” ( 9 ) .
society to believe that that is where the power and authority belong in the first place .
the salt lake tribune , sean p . means :
the button - pushing christian drama
do you believe ? ' credits god with ' miracles ' that can as easily be explained as bad screenwriting .
( read full review . )
we have anticipated releasing the trailer for ' do you believe ' to audiences as so many have been looking forward to this project as the follow up release to ' god ' s not dead , '
white said at the time .
poised to become one of the most provocative films of 2015 ,
do you believe
contains themes of the supernatural and symbolic power of the cross of jesus christ . following the staggering success of
god ' s not dead ,
the new pure flix film emboldens christians to be bold in their beliefs and unapologetically share their faith .
delroy lindo stars in director jonathan m . gunn ' s faith - based drama ' do you believe ? , ' about a man who is inspired to action by the visible faith of a street - corner preacher . ( howie simon / pureflix )
“do you believe ? ” focuses on a dozen different lives that intersect on the streets of chicago , starting with a local pastor ( ted mcginley ) being moved by the visible faith of an old street - corner preacher , played by delroy lindo .
this statement reaffirms the idea of interpellation of typical male and female roles in this film . ”
that is the stance “do you believe ? ” takes . powerfully told through good performances , “do you believe” is a film that may shake your soul to the very core ( it was created by the same team behind “ god’s not dead ” ) . as i sat in the theater , i sat on the edge of my seat as i watched each story unravel and intensify . at the end , i felt this pull , this urge inside , to shout , “yes , i believe ! ” each of these stories are genuine , every day stories that can happen , and the fact that they can happen and the power that the cross make this movie that much more riveting and powerful .
portrays typical kids , bored by the rain , wanting to do something wild .
if you always think you ' re right but don ' t get feedback from anyone else , how do you know for sure that what you ' re doing is any good ? whether you ' re selling or performing , whether it ' s a product or service , listening and acting on those honest views will tell you precisely what ' s good and what can be done better . use that information to change your performance , service , exhibition or event – sometimes it will make for uncomfortable listening but it can make your product stronger as a result .
community rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site .
listen carefully to criticism - sometimes you can use it to give you a competitive edge , says mark thomas . photograph : inspirestock inc . / alamy / alamy
constructive criticism can guide you away from bad practices and towards good ones . try to be objective and look at what you ' re providing as though it ' s not yours . this can be particularly difficult when you ' re deeply involved in a project but , if you can take a step back , you might see how to improve your way of working and avoid any negative outcomes down the road . did you need a more specific brief ? was there something you missed in the early stages of the project ? is the performance deadline too unrealistic ?
my wife and i usually disagree on how good a film is , but we both just loved this and would go to see it again . this film raises the bar for all christian films .
alone . a veteran trying to return home . a daughter , abandoned by her own family . a mother and her child fighting homelessness on their own . each of these people will have to ask themselves the ultimate question of all time , “do……you…… believe ? ”
scott foundas , variety :
' do you believe ? ' is agitprop plain and simple , less interested in varieties of religious experienced than in proffering the old televangelical / tent - revival assurances that faith will not just save your soul but also cure cancer , ptsd and whatever else ails you . sometimes , pastor matthew muses late in this overlong ( 119 minutes ) film , it ' s difficult for us to understand god ' s master plan and that we are all uniquely colored threads in his grand tapestry . but when all its threads are finally pulled into place , ' do you believe ? ' proves about as spiritually enlightening as a kmart throw rug .
( read full review . )
think about it : if you can get a customer to tell you – and just you – how to give them the perfect product or service , that ' s information you ' ve got that no one else has . that puts you at an advantage over anyone else in your sector and can be used again in the future to get things right , even faster . find ways to squeeze that information from your client or audience and get them to tell you what they really want .
case in point : megamind cost between $ 130 million and $ 145 to make ( depending on what source you believe . ) but the p & a budget , or the cost of promoting the film , is estimated to be an additional $ 65 million , according to contrino .
producer david a . r . white of pure flix told the christian post that the idea for
do you believe ?
came after the release of
god ' s not dead ,
when he and some business partners were praying about their future direction .
the massive profits earned by last spring’s surprise - hit “god’s not dead” have emboldened christian production outfit pure flix to finance an entire slate of faith - based fare coming soon to a theater near you . first out of the gate is “do you believe ? , ” another dreary ensemble drama from “god’s not dead” screenwriters chuck konzelman and cary [ … ]
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language : h ( as a place ) - 2 ; you fool - 1 .
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“this should have been obvious to you” , is not something a narrator typically says .
on cue , that shift shows up in the critical response to pure flix’s most recent release , do you believe ? my friend and ( atheist ) colleague andrew spitznas concedes in a review at patheos that in comparison to god’s not dead , the film has “many likeable aspects” and “contains improved filmcraft , with better production values and some clever editing of its disparate story elements . ”
or , as sr . rose pacette writes for the national catholic reporter in her mixed but thoughtful and well - reasoned review :
' do you believe ' is a christian movie for a christian audience . it is not mainstream entertainment ; it is mainstream sunday school - - which is fine if this is what you want to see at the movie theater .
interpellation clearly occurs in the beginning of the film while the children are with their parents and aunt millicent .
common sense media , a nonprofit organization , earns a small affiliate fee from amazon or itunes when you use our links to make a purchase . thank you for your support .
i believe this is true , because the text of a book is far more important than the pictures .
for a response paper , you still need to write a formal assessment of the work you ' re observing ( this could be anything created , such as a film , a work of art , a piece of music , a speech , a marketing campaign , or a written work ) , but you will also add your own personal reaction and impressions to the report .
what ' s the best evangelistic movie ever ? by that , i mean the best film that has , at its core , the gospel – and one that makes the message of christ the film ' s theme .
the pirates do not indicate for a moment that these are only children and easily defeated .
when they see information that is true , they do not remember that they are learning .
if you really liked a particular movie , and you ' re hoping it made enough money to warrant a sequel , then the wealth of box - office news can be confusing . how can you tell when a movie ' s a hit ? we asked the experts .
while it is odd to think of a film having both interpellation and agency , i am suggesting just that .
imagery . the entire film is centered on a movie the children go see , called “asses of fire . ”
is continuously viewed as being “practically perfect in every way” which makes people believe that she is the ideal women .
—i loved this movie . i hold pureflix in high regard . i admire their desire to produce and / or distribute christian entertainment . this film is a follow up to “god’s not dead , ” in that now that god exists , what are you going to do about it ? 12 lives intersect in this film , and i love how you see one storyline playing out as a character from another storyline walks right through the shot . unbeknownst to them , god is working in them and through them .
while there are several indications in the film that boys are better rescuers , and that women are just emotional and have to have the assistance of a male , i don’t feel that this is the main message of the film .
books clearly do not hold the listed assumptions as truth , instead presenting the strong , smart baudelaire children to prove each generalization false . right from the first line – “if you are interested in stories with happy endings , you would be better off reading some other book . ” –
all of these injustices build up and annabelle finally has it out with her mother and says : “you are not letting me have any fun and i am sick of it . you are always pushing me around and telling me what to do . how come nobody ever gets to tell
we , as readers , have grown to trust the narrator so much in stories , that when he says something like “you should have already known and believe this completely false fact” , we second guess ourselves .
taking criticism can be a difficult thing . at some point in this arts world so dependant on reviews and opinions , you will encounter a customer or audience member – maybe even a reviewer – who wants to tell you how to do things better . it can be hard to deal with ; after all , nobody likes to be told they ' re wrong . but it ' s not all bad news because sometimes you can use criticism to give you a competitive edge .
, children live with no parents , do as they please , and fight their own battles .
before they can decide what to do , the three are again captured by the horned king .
if you like what you ' re reading , follow @ scottmendelson on twitter , and
like
the ticket booth on facebook . also , check out my archives for older work here .
also , i will explain how the film is adult - centered in spite of the agency the child characters possess .
after all , a young lady should not think of adventure , but marriage according to the interpellation in this film .
however , i am also suggesting that there are two separate worlds in this film in which the two issues occur .
another form of interpellation is the idea of class , which i believe is used a lot in the movie . when
after you have established an outline for your paper , you need to craft the first draft of the essay using all the basic elements found in any strong paper , including a strong introductory sentence .
the power that wendy felt at the beginning of the film seemed repressive to her ; however , it has become ideological .
you might have noticed that studios are pushing a lot harder lately to make a film as big a hit as possible in its opening weekend . and films tend to open on more screens right away — a typical big film will open on 4 , 000 screens , instead of the hundreds of screens it would have opened on in the 1980s .
not only can speak his mind , but he also can do it articulately , like an adult .
the text does not wish for children to challenge the things that their mother tells them to do .
i would rank do you believe’s cinematic qualities at the same level of the everyday hollywood film . as i said the performances by each and every character are powerful and impressive . the camerawork is excellent as well , providing appropriate angles for each of the different scenarios . the pacing of the story is well done , not too fast and not to slow . in fact , i didn’t even notice 90 minutes go by , a rare occurrence indeed .
and how a didactic book strongly pushes a lesson onto the reader , telling them that they should believe this or that .
uncomfortably aping paul haggis ' oscar - winning crash to the point where it ends with , yes , a crash , do you believe ? presents the interconnected stories of twelve souls , i mean characters , whose lives are affected by a pastor , matthew ( ted mcginley ) , who hands out tiny wooden crosses during his sermon and advises his parishioners to do good deeds . he was inspired to do so by an encounter with a street - corner preacher ( delroy lindo ) carrying a large cross who asks him the titular question .
rogerebert . com , peter sobczynski :
clearly wishing to strike while the proverbial iron is hot , the producers and writers of ( ' god ' s not dead ' ) have now returned with ' do you believe ? , ' a film that starts off on a reasonably restrained note but which quickly grows so ridiculously ham - fisted that it almost makes its predecessor seem reasonable and open - minded by comparison .
( read full review . )
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
though there may be some sarcasm meant by the writers of the film it still says to society that it is okay to have your own opinions as a women but when it comes to her husband she better be obedient and believe what he says .
parents need to know that do you believe ? is a faith - based film from the makers of god ' s not dead ; like that film , it has a christian storyline and overtly politically conservative messages . while there ' s no sex or language , you can expect disturbing scenes of violence , including several gun shots , a murder , a chase scene between criminals , and a fatal car accident that kills or injures people . while viewers who agree with the filmmakers ' beliefs may enjoy the film , others could be uncomfortable with the movie ' s political agenda and the stereotypical portrayal of atheists and people of color ( every young person of color in the film is either a criminal or suffering in some way : a pregnant teen , gang members , and a violent former marine suffering from ptsd ) . the violence makes the movie inappropriate for young viewers , but teens in church - going families should be mature enough to handle the content .
anastasia is different then a lot of the disney princesses because she has a lot of agency over her life . she does dangerous things throughout the movie which some would believe a woman should not do . at the end of the movie
tip : a common mistake in personal essays it to resort to insulting comments with no clear explanation or analysis . it ' s ok to critique the work you are responding to , but you still need to back up your feelings , thoughts , opinions , and reactions with concrete evidence and examples from the work . what prompted the reaction in you , how , and why ? what didn ' t reach you and why ?
—if you’re a fan of film and are always hoping for christian - produced movies that rise above the level of a jack chick tract , well… “do you believe” does a good job—not perfect , but very good . the production values are fine , with good direction and cinematography , and the acting is certainly above average for the genre . while the script - writing keeps things interesting , the dialog occasionally dips into cliché , but is saved by the quality of the acting . mira sorvino , in particular , turns in a an affecting , nuanced performance as a recently - homeless single mother with a young child . she never over - acts and elevates the level of the whole film when she’s on - screen .
and in some cases , a studio will actually have less money at stake than the film ' s production budget — sometimes , the distributor will just acquire an already - made film for a small fee , plus marketing costs , says gitesh pandya with boxofficeguru . com . in those cases , the studio can make a profit even if the film doesn ' t make back its production budget .
you have torn my thin little coat all to shreds , useless , awkward hussies that you are ! ’” the girls have saved his life three times and yet the dwarf can only be ungrateful and mean to them .
don ' t take it personally if someone doesn ' t immediately like your work . even if you feel you ' re being criticised unfairly , don ' t retaliate with an extreme knee - jerk reaction or else you can irreparably damage your prospect of working with that client or audience and can even harm your reputation as well .
the views expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the editorial opinion of the christian post or its editors .
although i like typical children’s books , it makes me also interested in books that don’t do what we expect .
however , parts of the story do embody typical ideas about children’s literature ( though sometimes with a twist ) .
meta - textual sources do not offer the experience in which one gets lost in what they are watching or reading , instead it causes the audience to do the opposite and remember exactly what it is that they are doing .
47 of 78 people found this review helpful . was this review helpful to you ? yes no | report this
the massive success of ' god ' s not dead ' proved that audiences want to rally together with their friends and family to see movies that will edify them on compelling issues ,
said david a . r . white , producer and founding partner of pure flix .
with ' do you believe , ' we wanted to create a film whose message will encourage , but at the same time convict , audiences concerning one of the most critical faith questions they will ever be asked .
a frequently ridiculous stew of straw man arguments , stacked decks , an overwhelming persecution complex and an oddly peripheral subplot involving a liberal blogger out to really do a number on those duck dynasty guys—and it received largely terrible reviews . however , it clearly struck a chord with its core audience of evangelicals and kevin sorbo enthusiasts and went on to make upwards of $ 62 million worldwide on an investment of about $ 2 million . clearly wishing to strike while the proverbial iron is hot , the producers and writers of that film have now returned with
do you believe ? ,
a film that starts off on a reasonably restrained note but which quickly grows so ridiculously ham - fisted that it almost makes its predecessor seem reasonable and open - minded by comparison .
budgeted at $ 2 million ,
god ' s not dead
was directed by michigan filmmaker harold cronk , and shot in louisiana . cronk was originally slated to direct
do you believe ?
- which filmed primarily in manistee , ludington and north muskegon , on a $ 2 . 3 million budget - but he handed the reins to director jon gunn .
“do you believe ? ” instead spews its venom upon trade unions , the medical establishment and the american legal system — all variously depicted as secular strongholds hostile to anyone who dares to reveal him / herself as a true believer . … [ it ] is agitprop plain and simple , less interested in varieties of religious experience than in proffering the old televangelical / tent - revival assurances that faith will not just save your soul but also cure cancer , ptsd and whatever else ails you .
the language you use in response to criticism is vitally important . try to avoid getting into an argument . instead , turn the exchange into a discussion about how to resolve the problem . this way you ' re still in a position to get paid and you ' ll waste less time guessing how to put things right . consider phrases like :
is free to say and do what he pleases , to whomever . this scene depicts the role reversal of authority .
mr . banks is the man of the house and tells everyone what to do and everyone in return obeys him .
she seems very rule - oriented and unable to function unless she knows what it is she is expected to do .
now , i remember having this conversation with my own mother , and her response was something similar to ellen andrews’ reply of “…when you’re grown up people don’t tell you what to do ; you have to tell yourself , which is sometimes more difficult” ( 6 ) and it really never answered the question satisfactorily then for me , and in this instance , neither did it do so for annabelle . the argument ends with ellen marching out of the room after annabelle says she just wants to be responsible for herself and her mother responds “we’ll just see about that ! ” ( 7 ) .
most adults wouldn’t tell what happened themselves , but the question is there anyway , and it seems to be really asking children what they believe .
this entry was posted in film reviews , matt sheedy , religion and popular culture , religion and society , religion and theory , theory and method , uncategorized and tagged american humanist association , cybill shepherd , darren aronofsky , do you believe ? , exodus : god’s and kings , god ' s not dead , heaven is for real , james 2 : 17 , mira sorvino , national catholic reporter , noah , pure flix entertainment , scott foundas , sean astin , son of god , sr . rose pacatte . bookmark the permalink .
the writers of the terrible , profitable “god’s not dead” are back with “do you believe ? ” which takes its cues from paul haggis ‘ oscar - winner , making a bunch of disparate characters cross paths while spouting the most on - the - nose dialogue imaginable . the result is another movie that will please some christians , mortify others and utterly fail in its clear attempt to proselytize .
riding on the coattails of the surprising box office success of god’s not dead , which grossed over 60 million domestically in the us , do you believe ? has been marketed as a follow - up of sorts , and was co - written by the same writers , chuck konzelman and cary solomon . as pure flix producer david a . r . white put it in a recent interview :
home alone does a great deal of displaying typical child case prototypes throughout the film . adult perceptions of children are especially construed through the two burglars ,
it may be helpful to imagine yourself watching a movie review as you ' re preparing your outline . you will use the same framework for your response paper : a summary of the work with several of your own thoughts and assessments mixed in .
it stumbles the most with the emt ' s subplot , which stretches the boundaries of believability by stereotyping atheists , unions , and prosecutors . the messages about race are particularly mixed . although pastor matthew ' s congregation is multicultural , the movie ' s central steadfast christians are all white men , and the people of color almost all end up redeemed but dead . bottom line ? yes , do you believe ? has an actual narrative , but if you aren ' t the kind of person who likes seeing literal sermons ( as in , actors playing pastors delivering messages from a pulpit ) , this isn ' t the movie for you .
that sort of success also made it inevitable that we ' d be seeing more such films at the box office . this week , we get one . the evangelical drama
do you believe ? ,
which is from the same writer , producers and studio as
god ' s not dead ,
arrives in theaters , hoping to offer moviegoers a touch of salvation with their popcorn .
“do you believe ? ” is the best faith - based film i have ever seen ! i have seen a lot of them , so this is certainly a compliment . the superlatives will flow from the faith - based community regarding this film . the stories are wonderful , the characters are rich , the acting is terrific , and several characters’ stories meet at the climax on the same bridge during a stormy night . the overriding theme of the film is that god can take things that are not good and weave them into something that is . it is the “god’s eye view , ” according to pastor matthew ( ted mcginley ) , that must be kept in perspective . to anyone who has ever faced death , lost a loved one ( especially a child ) , been at a crossroads or crisis of some kind , this movie will resonate .
a dozen different souls—all moving in different directions , all longing for something more . as their lives unexpectedly intersect , they each are about to discover there is power in the cross of christ , even if they don’t yet believe it . when a local pastor is shaken to the core by the visible faith of an old street - corner preacher , he is reminded that true belief always requires action . his response ignites a faith - fueled journey that powerfully impacts everyone it touches in ways that only god could orchestrate . this stirring new film from the creators of “god’s not dead , ” is more than a movie . it’s a question we all must answer in our lifetimes : do you believe ?
michael foust has covered the christian film industry for a decade and has been a full - time editor and writer for 20 years . he blogs at urltoken
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
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to believe that the main centers of power and authority in our society , i . e . the government , our parents , the president , are inherently good and always right—they ( the powers that be ) do this to try and keep us in our place . they want to keep power in the hands of those who have always had it , and usually on of the only ways to do that is to
to work from this same quote , ( because i feel it encompasses many of the book’s themes in this one quote ) the sheer statement , “this should be obvious to you” , makes the reader second guess whether what you are reading is true or not .
john serba is film critic and entertainment reporter for mlive and the grand rapids press . email him at jserba @ urltoken or follow him on twitter or facebook .
when watching the film and trying to figure out who has agency over whom it seemed difficult because of the fact that there are several characters that are involved .
the book overtly teaches the things adults believe small children should learn ; like distinguishing the four seasons and naming body parts ( 13 - 20 , 11 ) .
the author is not challenging children to do anything ; but rather teaching them that if they are obedient then they will be happy .
however , her desire to fly could also be attributed to interpellation—she wants to be able to do what everyone else is able to .
, a female should not have a mind of her own . in the song “learn to do it” some of the lyrics say ,
annabelle has had enough and is ready to just go ahead and give up . she doesn’t want to do this anymore , she is overwhelmed , and her brother is missing . in her moment of greatest need , she is in her mother’s room , lying on the bed , and admitting her mother was right . “that’s what you wanted , isn’t it ? you wanted to teach me a terrific lesson ?
no character in “do you believe ? ” can ever commit an act of kindness or charity or empathy or compassion without someone stopping and mentioning jesus as often and earnestly as possible . even for a movie with a distinctly apparent point of view , these lines of dialogue grind what little dramatic momentum there is to a halt ; rather than allow the plot to unfold , the writers keep interrupting the story to remind viewers what it’s about .
, not only does the narrator do too much or too little , the lines between the fictional world and the real world are blurred .
i would especially encourage you to notice that most of them don’t have obvious organization ; most of them let their ideas develop and wander .
turn your words into action to show that you can listen to feedback , respond in the correct way and still get the job done .
in the 2003 universal pictures version of “peter pan , ” the children are depicted as strong , independent individuals with their own agency throughout a great portion of the film .
christian post , michael foust :
what ' s the best evangelistic movie ever ? by that , i mean the best film that has , at its core , the gospel - and one that makes the message of christ the film ' s theme . i have a new nomination , and it comes out in theaters march 20 . the film is ' god ' s not dead . ' . . . the majority of movie critics will likely give it poor reviews , partially because it is more overtly evangelistic than any successful faith - based theatrical movie in recent history . but i ' m guessing those who see the film will like it .
( read full review . )
in addition , the parents do not have the ability to direct their children’s lives ; instead their children are directing their lives . much like “
as phil contrino , editor of boxoffice . com , says ,
the mainstream media is guilty of this . they look at the opening weekend — and instantly a movie is a success or a failure .
but the truth is way more complicated than that . sometimes , a film can do well in its first weekend and then stumble in later weekends . or a film can develop
legs ,
like christopher nolan ' s inception , and win a few weekends in a row .
alissa wilkinson is christianity today ' s chief film critic and assistant professor of english and humanities at the king ' s college in new york city . she lives in brooklyn .
—excellent movie and inspiring biblical message clearly portrayed . would hope that all churches promote this film , so that we can continue to have good family movies at our local theatres .
there are some genres of film that do especially well on dvd — like horror films , which are often cheaper to make than other genres to begin with , says dergarabedian . a horror movie might or might not break even at the theaters , but it ' s sure to make lots more money when it hits dvd .
a dozen different souls , all moving in different directions , all longing for something more . as their lives unexpectedly intersect , they each are about to discover there is power in the cross of christ , even if they don ' t yet believe it . when a local pastor is shaken to the core by the visible faith of an old street corner preacher , he is reminded that true belief always requires action . his response ignites a faith - fueled journey that powerfully impacts everyone it touches in ways that only god could orchestrate . more than a movie , it ' s a question we all must answer in our lifetimes : do you believe ?
if someone has a criticism it means they want to give you feedback on what you ' re doing for them – that means an opportunity to learn more about the person who you ' re working for and how to convert them into a satisfied customer or audience member . take a moment to think before you respond to what they ' re saying – in business , working with someone who is patient and able to receive and act on criticism means both parties can work towards a better outcome . for a play or production , it might mean getting to know what your audience actually want .
even the national catholic reporter said the film should surprise no one :
it is what it sets out to be and what christian audiences have come to expect and celebrate .
the percentage of revenues that the exhibitor takes in depends on the individual contract for that film — which in turn depends on how much muscle the distributor has , according to stone .
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a great movie for the family about what christians really believe and sharing your faith . recommend for older kids cause of some scary violent scenes . the movie . . . continue reading
mr . feeney sits down with cory and asks if there is anything he wants to share . he explains that cory will be transferred to an advanced school where the school is committed to giving children all that they deserve . mr . feeney then says , “i think you deserve everything you are going to
she addresses the “problems” of wendy’s need for adventure and desire to become a novelist , neither of which will do for a young lady in high society .
he felt that it was his duty to give commands and do everything in the exact order that they were supposed to be done in a stereotypical sense .
this does not have much to do with that page’s text ( it does , however , pertain the slightest bit ) but it accurately labels the fish .
also supports the contention that books should teach a lesson or moral . while it is not didactic to the point that it specifically says , “eat whatever your parents tell you to eat or whatever they give you , ” that lesson is made perfectly clear when the unnamed main character eats the green eggs and ham and is rewarded by having something new that is good to eat . this lesson is also not given as a directive that should be obeyed without question . rather the lesson is you shouldn’t be stubborn . you should be reasonable—“try them ! and you may ( like them ) . ” ( 53 ) i think this aspect of the book , despite the simple words and pictures , makes the book very adult centered . it is also very adult centered in that the book has a happy ending . in the beginning of the book , the unnamed character very specifically states , “i do not like that sam - i - am”


defiance is a 2008 american war film directed by edward zwick set during the occupation of belarus by nazi germany .

the screenplay by clayton frohman and zwick was based on nechama tec 's 1993 book defiance : the bielski partisans , an account of the bielski partisans , a group led by belarusian jewish brothers who saved and recruited jews in belarus during the second world war .

the film stars daniel craig as tuvia bielski , liev schreiber as zus bielski , jamie bell as asael bielski , and george mackay as aron bielski .

production began in early september 2007 .

after a limited release , e.g. los angeles , new york city , in the united states on december 31 , 2008 it went into general release worldwide in january and february 2009 .

defiance ( 2008 film )

daniel craig and jamie bell battle for survival in edward zwick ' s defiance .
based on the book
defiance : the bielski partisans
by nechama tec .
“schreiber has my father nailed in the defiance film . . . . interesting material in urltoken re defiance boards . the poles and lithuanians with the belorussians want to sue the bielskies for murder re the massacre in naliboki . ”
the group included aron bielski , now known as aron bell , the youngest of four brothers and last survivor of the family that took up arms during a bloody three - year uprising and inspired several books and a 2008 action film , “defiance . ”
in plain sight premieres on usa network , going on to become the no . 1 new cable series of 2008 .
looking for movie tickets ? enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing defiance near you .
my trailer on the amazing movie ' defiance ' ( 2008 ) with daniel craig , liev schreiber , jamie bell . . . from edward zwick . enjoy it , and if you haven ' t yet , go watch it !
however , the biggest flaw of defiance has little to do with zwick or anything he could have done . characters , situations and setting of this film just happen to be eerily similar to come and see , elem klimov’s soviet 1985 film that is arguably the most intense and the most powerful movie ever to be made about ww2 . all those who watched klimov’s film are bound to be disappointed by defiance .
kushner , tony ( 2008 ) . belsen for beginners : the holocaust in british heritage . in monica riera & gavin schaffer ( eds . ) ,
house , produced by universal media studios , premieres on fox . it would be the no . 1 scripted show on television in 2007 and 2008 .
daniel craig plays tuvia bielski , one of four brothers who resisted the nazis in defiance . photograph : karen ballard / pr
“defiance” is rated r ( under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian ) . it has some scenes of brutal violence .
( usa , 2008 ) was directed by edward zwick . the film is set in belarus in 1941 / 42 and based on the book
defiance : the true story of the bielski partisans
by nechama tec ( 1993 ) . it was successful at the box office and received oscar and golden globe nominations , and won a couple of awards .
skillfully balancing intense action and compelling drama , edward zwick delivers yet another impressively crafted and put together historical war film with defiance , featuring terrific performances , engaging characters , and strong writing and direction .
defiance opens in theaters nationwide in december . it was produced at the lithuanian film studio in vilnius where weintraub productions and warner brothers shot the tnt robin hood series starring christopher lee and matthew porretta .
talked about entertainment or enjoyment in relation to the film , which was rejected or justified by many , including those who admitted their enjoyment of the film . for example , in relation to the latter film , sam explained that he
generally good impression of defiance begins to worsen when the film approaches its end . zwick and his co - writer clayton frohman apparently couldn’t provide proper ending to the fascinating real - life story , at least not by succumbing to hollywood cliches at the expense of historical truth , making this film annoyingly predictable to the experienced viewers . however , even the spectacular battle at the end is un - cathartic and defiance ends disappointingly .
daniel craig and liev schreiber in edward zwick’s film of a true holocaust story .
thiele , martina ( 2001 ) . publizistische kontroversen über den holocaust im film .
universal releases its first 3 - d film , it came from outer space .
baumert , anna ; hofmann , wilhelm & blum , gabriele ( 2008 ) . laughing about hitler ? evaluation of the movie my fuehrer—the truly truest truth about adolf hitler .
independent moving pictures company merges with five other film companies to create universal film manufacturing company , encompassing all facets of the movie industry : production , distribution and exhibition .
this embassy has been in touch with defiance ' s only distributor in poland , monolith plus , and we have been told that this film has not experienced any form of booing , let alone been banned by any cinemas . while the historical accuracy of the film is debatable , the film itself bears no association with poland whatsoever - be this in linguistic terms ( german and russian phrases appear frequently throughout the film ) or geographical references . robert szaniawski press counsellor , polish embassy
nechama tec , a university of connecticut sociologist , took up the challenge of fleshing - out the story of the “forest jews” for her book defiance : the bielski partisans — the largest armed rescue of jews by jews during world war ii ( 1993 ) , upon which the defiance film is based . peter duffy followed with his book the bielski brothers ( 2003 ) .
the karabiner 98k is used by german forces and some bielski partisans in the film .
in the film , he is played by up - andcoming british actor george mackay .
defiance is a 2008 world war ii film starring daniel craig and liev schreiber as brothers who decide to take the fight to the enemy during the german occupation of poland while also protecting mass numbers of jewish refugees . the film , based on a true story , was directed by edward zwick ( the last samurai ) and should be noted for the many world war ii - era weapons seen in what appears to be near mint condition , which is correct considering the time frame ( a rarity for the films ) .
the simple , straightforward answer is this : americans do not make many movies about world war ii that do not prominently feature americans . world war ii’s eastern front has a few entries : enemy at the gates , a 2001 film about the battle of stalingrad , took advantage of the wake of saving private ryan to earn back its budget and a bit more . 1977’s cross of iron ( a british - german production directed by american sam peckinpah ) depicted the german side of the conflict . defiance , a 2008 film about jewish partisan activity in belarus , straddled the border between war movie and holocaust film .
defiance isnt as emotional as it should be ( considering its a true story ) but its interesting , entertaining , with strong performances and characters that i cared for throughout its overall a very underatted war film that i highly reccomend checking out .
david denby has been a staff writer and film critic at the new yorker since 1998 .
every film that has ever been nominated for an academy award in any category . enjoy !
future learning and skills – giving everyone the opportunity to build a lifelong relationship with film .
the potentially problematic conclusions that can be drawn from the film are further highlighted in the following passage . i asked sam if he thought that the film held a
message for today
:
nbc saturday night at the movies marks the first regular network showing of a theatrical feature film .
with two films in 2008 - -
leatherheads
( $ 31 million ) and
burn after reading
( $ 60 million ) - - clooney underscored his penchant for unusual and colorful stories .
defiance is a 2008 film directed by edward zwick , who co - wrote the movie with clayton frohman , based on a book ( defiance : the bielski partisans ) by nechama tec . it stars daniel craig , liev schreiber , and jamie bell ( of billy elliot fame ) . it follows the bielski brothers , four belarusian jews who escape the first wave of ss murders in late 1941 , only to decide that they need to fight back . the resulting resistance group grows , taking in more and more displaced jews , until it is a genuine thorn in the side of the nazi advance , forcing the germans to retaliate .
special features : commentary by director edward zwick , return to the forest : the making of defiance , children of the otriad : the families speak , and more .
julie a . baldwin is with the department of community and family health , college of public health , university of south florida . jeannette l . johnson is with the friends research institute , baltimore , md . christine c . benally is with the ft . defiance service unit of the indian health service , fort defiance , az .
spiritual successor : could be said to be so to edward zwick ' s earlier war film glory .
( usa / uk , 2008 ) , mark herman ' s film adaptation of john boyne ' s best - selling 2006 novel of the same name , achieved high box - office results in the uk and internationally . the film depicts the fictitious and unlikely friendship of bruno , the son of a concentration and death camp commandant , and shmuel , a jewish boy who is an inmate of this camp . the award - winning
with
defiance ,
edward zwick assembles the type of film that has become his stock in trade : a rousing , emotionally alive story about war and its effects on those fighting it . zwick weaves together humanity and explosive spectacle , and , though
defiance
is not as passionate and exhilarating as
legends of the fall ,
glory ,
or
the last samurai ,
it is a memorable and impactful piece of work .
, re - evaluated their initial response to the film . they said that in retrospect , they realised that
mca and universal buy paramount studios’ pre - 1948 sound film library in richest tv syndication deal to date .
there is no question about it ; there is no indiana jones without harrison ford . the fourth installment of the adventurer series was one of the biggest blockbusters of the year , bringing in over $ 317 m in 2008 .
deliberately monochrome : at the beginning of this film , we see black - and - white film footage of german soldiers rounding up jews . we cut to a scene which you swiftly realize is not contemporary footage , which then turns into color . at the end of the film , things return to black - and - white .
several mosin nagant m38 carbines are seen in the film , used by partisans . also used by belorussian police .
andrew had a very clear definition of a
holocaust film
which also came with a set of expectations .
nbc universal acquires carnival film & television ltd . , a u . k . - based television production company .
syfy teams up with trio worlds to produce defiance , the first - ever convergence of television and online gaming , featuring an interconnected world and storylines that co - exist on both platforms .
the film is based on the 1993 book
defiance : the bielski partisans
by the holocaust researcher nechama tec , a jew who escaped poland during the war by posing as a catholic . craig plays tuvia bielski , who after the war was a taxi driver in new york and died in 1987 .
jewish brothers ' resistance inspired ' defiance ' the bielski brothers gave shelter and protection to polish jews who , like them , fled into the region ' s forests and swamps to escape german persecution . director edward zwick ' s new film tells their story , but why hasn ' t it been heard until now ?
the timing of edward zwick’s defiance is uncanny . the eyes of the world are on israel , and here’s a true story about jewish resistance – retaliation , too – in the second world war .
the film defiance , which opens next week , is based on the extraordinary story of tuvia and his two brothers zus and asael - played by liev schreiber and jamie bell . between them , they rescued 1 , 200 jews and sheltered them in a village they built deep in a forest in nazi - occupied belarus .
this evening , with three generations of bielskis present , we will share the story of the bielski brothers at duke . the coalition for preserving memory , a duke organization dedicated to the memorialization of genocides in the 20th and 21st centuries , will host a screening of the 2008 film defiance that inspired by the actions of the bielskis . a discussion and q & a with my grandfather , aron , will follow the screening . we invite you to join us for the event in the sanford school of public policy room 04 at 6 p . m . dinner will be served .
that book was nechama tec ' s 1993 work , defiance : the bielski partisans . tec , who was herself saved by polish christians , is a professor emerita at the university of connecticut in stamford .
monotony : this award winning film produced by juris poskus tells the story of a young woman who grows bored with life .
finally , we can see how prejudice and stereotypes directly impacted on film reception . as mentioned above , for many interviewees ,
one of the most recognizable british actors of the year , he was the lead in three films :
quantum of solace ,
defiance
and
flashbacks of a fool .
although the name james bond may have drawn more people to the theaters than that of daniel craig - - the latest bond outing , quantum
, pulled in $ 165 million at the box office in 2008 - - the leading man is still a box office force .
, the film ' s authenticity and factuality was rarely in question due to its realist style . libby saxton notes in this respect that the film ' s
meticulous reconstruction unsettles the distinctions between documentary and fiction
( 2008 , p . 83 ) . its grim , relentless , brutal and violent tone and look found particular appreciation as a realistic portrayal among interviewees , for example , by comparing it favourably to other films . among them was ryan ( administrator , 46 ) , who voiced his clear preference for
a rather good mockup of a panzerkampfwagen ausf . j / 1 was used at the end of the film . it is one of the two vehicles used in the film enemy at the gates . these were built using modified swiss panzer 61 tanks .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
universal ' s furious 7 premieres and becomes the six - highest - grossing film of all time , with more than $ 1 . 5 billion worldwide . the movie is universal’s first film to cross the $ 1 billion threshold during its initial run .
after his 2007 role in transformers , labeouf kicked it up a notch in 2008 . with his role in
eagle eye ,
( $ 100 million ) and
indiana jones and the kingdom of the crystal skull
, labeouf ' s face was all over the big screen . this year looks promising as well for the young actor , with a new transformers film due out .
age lift : asael was the second - oldest of the bielski brothers , and tuvia ' s number two . in the film , he is several years younger than tuvia and zus , and his portion of the film is a coming of age story .
focus features launches www . filminfocus . com , a unique site established as an online destination for film lovers around the world .
in the 2008 holiday comedy
four christmases ,
witherspoon and co - star vince vaughn have generated $ 115 million in box office sales so far . and with over $ 8 . 5 million made in the past week , it looks like witherspoon may have legs .
i wondered all throughout the film , “what was the point and furthermore why did this story need to be told ? ” this film offers nothing but inconsistencies in the characters and self indulgent screenwriting which makes any hope the story has of being good , fail .
was the film which was named most often : at least 48 of 68 interviewees were familiar with it ( the younger participants were less likely to have seen it ) , and between them referred to the film on 73 separate occasions . few , however , were able to recall many details about the film . more than a quarter of them , for example , remembered the film mainly for the emotional impact it had had on them . one of them was faith ( it support officer , 29 ) , who referred to
the film looks even more simplistic when its depiction of events is compared with more complex historic reality . this created some controversies in poland , because the area portrayed in film – part of present - day belarus – used to be part of poland before ww2 ; this fact is ignored in film , just like the rivalry between soviet and polish partisans that made predicament of bielski partisans more complicated .
this list collects every film from the starting list that became they shoot pictures don ' t they ' s 1000 greatest films . this…
and is based on the minutes that remain from the meeting to which the film adds its own interpretation of the event . the aforementioned
bösch , frank ( 2007 ) . film , ns - vergangenheit und geschichtswissenschaft : von
holocaust
zu
der untergang
.
opens in theaters nationwide in december . it was produced at the lithuanian film studio in vilnius where weintraub productions and warner brothers shot the
despicable me becomes universal pictures’ seventh - highest opening film of all time , and one of the most profitable films in universal’s history .
directed by veteran senegalese filmmaker ousmane sembéne , this film goes after the controversial topic of female genital mutilation . based in a small village in burkina faso , one woman decides to stand up to the men and women of her village who believe such practices are purification rights . this film speaks of true defiance and courage , and looks at various themes on what it means to be a woman and those ascribed duties and characteristics that society places on her . spoiler alert : our main character defies them all !
the aforementioned cfhe study on pupils ' responses to this film echoes these findings . students were
aware of the more glaring historical inaccuracies of
for which they interviewed 41 people from the united states and germany after they had been provided with a copy of the film to watch at home . they found , among other things , that viewers ' responses to the same film can be highly varied , and that the reception is affected by preconceptions , styles of narration , and personalities . more recently , the aforementioned cfhe sub - study into the impact of the film
was criticised for its action film aesthetics by many interviewees , it still seemed realistic enough to add to their knowledge about the holocaust . the film is set almost entirely outside the ghettos and camps , which have come to dominate the screens and the popular imagination regarding the holocaust . the majority of interviewees had no prior knowledge about jewish partisans , the nazi killing squads or jews hiding in the forests of eastern europe / russia , prior to watching the film . resistance , fighting , and defiance were among the most - discussed topics . interviewees held that the general historical background it depicted—including jewish resistance , and the representation of the russians and the female partisans—was authentic or factual . among them was maud ( student , 46 ) , whom i asked if she had learned anything by watching this film :
second world war is an event that happened seventy years ago . numbers of those who could relate to it through their personal experiences are dwindling , yet the debates about its causes and aftermath continue like the war happened yesterday . many times those debates revolve about myths , half - truths and attempts to give some sense to global carnage with simple explanations . one of such debates revolve about question why jews didn’t fight back when faced with holocaust . the truth about war was , of course , more complex and those who ask that question ignore situations when jews actually did fight back . one of such examples is subject of defiance , 2008 film directed by edward zwick .
there are three main types of empirical studies , to which holocaust film reception is either central or peripheral : studies , which investigate the effects of a tv series , documentary , or feature film on viewers ; studies into memory transmission and historical consciousness , and the different sources—including film—feeding into memory and historical consciousness ; and studies into individual reception of films in terms of reception processes and interpretations of the history represented in them . [
hollywood stars get paid tens of millions to appear in a feature film , so producers want a healthy return on their investment . but do these actors and actresses draw audiences themselves or is it a combination of factors in creating box office gold ? every year since 1932 , quigley publishing has surveyed theater owners and film buyers to get their take on which hollywood names draw the most people to the theaters . although no single star can be considered completely responsible for a film ' s box office success , theater owners , with their finger on the pulse of the entertainment market , have long been considered the most reliable barometer . click ahead to see the top money - making stars of 2008 ! by paul toscano posted 5 jan 2009
zus is seen using a degtyaryov dp - 28 during an ambush . later in the film , other partisans use it against attacking german forces .
but pop would have loved this film . i promised him when he knew he was dying i ' d get the story out there .
universal enters term deal with chris meledandri ( previous head of 20th century fox animation ) to head up a new animated film division at universal .
working on three big films in 2008 - -
wanted
( $ 134 million ) ,
the changeling
( $ 35 million ) and
kung fu panda
( $ 215 million ) - - jolie certainly demonstrated her versatility , securing the ninth spot on this year ' s list .
, little remains of them in viewers ' memory by way of detail bar a film ' s emotional impact , serving as a frame of reference or adding to one ' s intertextual repertoire . it also appears that the reception and interpretation of a film about the holocaust is not necessarily fixed , but can change over time , which further complicates ideas about how film reception relates to acquisition of , or conversion into , memory and knowledge . [
a film starring daniel craig about a jewish underground resistance movement that took on the nazis has prompted a storm of protest in poland . defiance , directed by edward zwick , which recently opened in poland under the title opor ( resistance ) , has been booed at cinemas across the country and banned from others because of a local perception that it is a rewriting of history and anti - polish .
defiance is a harsh movie . a real story about all those effects of war , that would affect most of us . it is about suffering , death and hope . daniel craig plays the role of hope . a performance way more interesting than in every craig - bond film . besides him , every acting performance is well above perfect . not for relaxing evenings , but really worth it .
the study was designed to capture the immediate responses of interviewees to the films to ensure a degree of consistency and provide a basis for comparison . i therefore spent several hours with the interviewee ( s ) for the joint film viewing and subsequent interview ( on average , three to four hours in total ) . before the film screening , interviewees received a participant information sheet that detailed the project ' s purpose , rationale and method . following the film viewing , interviewees completed a short questionnaire that contained demographic as well as general and film - specific questions , asking , for example , where knowledge about the holocaust was obtained , what the participants expect from a film about this topic , and which other holocaust films or documentaries they had seen . [
rauch , stefanie ( 2017 ) .
the fundamental truths of the film remain
: researching individual reception of holocaust films [ 46 paragraphs ] .
universal pictures’ the 40 year old virgin opens . starring steve carell from nbc’s the office , the film would gross more than $ 175 million worldwide .
the hit syfy original film sharknado takes the social media world by storm , leading to multiple encore presentations , midnight move theater screenings and a sequel .
ed zwick ' s new film , defiance , about the bielski partisans of world war ii , is everything schindler ' s list is not . for one thing , it ' s about jews . schindler ' s list was a story of christian redemption ; the jews were simply there to be acted upon . in defiance , which tells the true story of a group of jewish partisans who sheltered hundreds of men , women and children in the byelorussian woods , jews take charge of history . defiance is in some ways a corrective to the conventional understanding of jewish behavior in the holocaust . for some critics , too much of a corrective : a . o . scott writes that
in setting out to overturn historical stereotypes of jewish passivity , mr . zwick . . . ends up affirming them .
i wasn ' t struck the same way by defiance : the bielski partisans weren ' t the only jews to fight back against their murderers - - jewish resistance in world war ii is still a story insufficiently told . and i wasn ' t left with the impression that zwick believes survival was within reach for most jews who perished .
herskovitz has produced many films directed by zwick , including legends of the fall ( 1994 ) , the last samurai ( 2003 ) , blood diamond ( 2006 ) , defiance ( 2008 ) , love & other drugs ( 2010 ) and more . they earned a best picture academy award ® nomination for producing steven soderbergh ' s traffic ( 2000 ) . herskovitz and zwick continue to enjoy a creative partnership under their production banner the bedford falls company . they will next pair for the discovery channel original series the suck , about the american experience in the vietnam war .
son zvi bielski , 56 , who lives with sonia in brooklyn , new york , revealed the harrowing story had taken its toll on the film stars .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
( usa / uk , 2008 ) was directed by mark herman , and is based on the best - selling novel of the same name by john boyne ( 2006 ) . the film focuses on bruno ( the son of a concentration and death camp commandant ) who befriends a jewish inmate ( of the camp ) , shmuel , and bruno ' s mother , who eventually finds out about the camp ' s true purpose . after bruno has sneaked into the camp to help his friend , the film ends with the killing of both boys in the gas chamber , and bruno ' s parents ' despair about their son ' s death .
the launch of the film has prompted a wave of front page articles and commentaries and thrust the issue to the top of the chatshow agenda . the most scathing attack , which has led to charges that anti - semitism is the driving force behind the criticism of the film , appeared in the conservative daily rzecpospolita .
all but one of the bielski brothers have died , with tuvia giving his account - the basis of the film - two weeks before his death in 1987 .
does not feature anything about propaganda , but interviewees of this film nonetheless frequently cited nazi propaganda as a reason or motivation for germans to participate in crimes or turn a blind eye . this discrepancy between film text and interpretation can only be made sense of when considering interviewees ' preconceived understandings . the following example from an interview about
the hollywood funny man adam sandler took up two roles in 2008 - -
you don ' t mess with the zohan
( $ 100 million ) and
bedtime stories
( $ 65 million ) . people may be flocking to the latter to see sandler in a different light . being a new father , he wanted to make a family film that young children would be encouraged to watch , which cannot be said about much of his earlier work . photo credit : disney enterprises , inc .
edward zwick’s “defiance , ” the beautiful light—a little dryer than life—has obviously been digitally altered . yet apart from this minor shading there’s not much in the film that could not have been done forty years ago . zwick’s film , a true holocaust story that most people do not know , suggests some startling new ideas about resistance , sex , and class in the doomed provinces of jewish eastern europe . but the moviemaking is resolutely old - fashioned—as square as an arthur miller play or an evening of tchaikovsky . does it matter ? in this case , it does not . zwick’s conservative , humanist - sentimental style still has life in its aging limbs . “defiance , ” as it turns out , makes insistent emotional demands , and those who respond to it at all , as i did , are likely to go all the way and even come out of it feeling slightly stunned .
the film was shot in a remote , wooded area in lithuania , about a hundred miles away from the real location of the bielski brothers camp . see more »
, where the female film characters , and especially them being tortured , were discussed by all of the female interviewees , but none of the male respondents . a more explicit link between gender and film reception is expressed in the following passage , which suggests gendered notions and expectations of empathy . asked about the mother ' s development in
matthew mcconaughey and jared leto win the academy awards for best actor and best supporting actor for their performances in focus features’ critically - acclaimed film , dallas buyers club .
but why am i defending zwick ? let him do it his own self . we spoke by phone recently , and we talked about jewish muscle and jewish passivity , europe and zionism , and whether defiance is hebrew for glory . here is an edited transcript of our talk :
red army soldiers are equipped with the ppsh - 41 . towards the end of the film , some partisans have it too , notably asael bielski ( jamie bell ) .
the model 24 stielhandgranate is a german grenade , but it is only seen used by the bielski partisans during the film . zus throws one under a german truck during the red army ambush and later throws one into a german tank . near the end of the film , isaac ( mark feuerstein ) attacks german soldiers with a bag of grenades .
unfortunately , an interesting story doesn ' t make defiance a good movie . neither entertaining nor particularly poignant , its criminally overlong , generic , predicable and unconvincing . the ever solid presence of craig and schreiber and the shameful subject make it watchable but that ' s far from a recommendation .
predecessor companies : paramount communications | warner - amex satellite entertainment company | viacom international | paramount famous lasky corporation | famous players film company | jesse l . lasky feature play company
( usa , 2005 ) is a film directed by terry george about hotelier paul rusesabagina , who saved the lives of more than one thousand people during the rwandan genocide in 1994 .
defiance
is based on the true story of a group of jews in belarus who successfully defied the nazis , hid in the forest and maintained a self - contained society while losing only about 50 of their some 1 , 200 members . the
bielski partisans
represented the war ' s largest and most successful group of jewish resisters , although when filmmakers arrived on the actual locations to film the story , they found no local memory of their activities , and , for many reasons , hardly any jews . edward zwick ' s film shows how they survived , governed themselves , faced ethical questions and how their stories can be suited to the requirements of melodrama .
2008 saw several movies released in the revived format and this year it looks set to take off , with such anticipated blockbusters as monsters vs aliens , a christmas carol and james cameron ' s avatar . the surge in the number of 3 - d films in 2009 promises much considering how well the relatively limited releases of the hannah montana movie , journey to the centre of the earth and bolt did in 2008 . the great thing about 3 - d as far as cinema owners are concerned is they can charge a premium on tickets , just as they do with imax screens . so audiences face another price hike , although all but the most cynical have to admit that 3 - d and imax are taking the theatrical experience in a new direction , something it sorely needs .
jg : the film does have a kind of zionist arc , but maybe it ' s not a zionist movie . after all , the bielskis end up in brooklyn after the war .
fast & furious 6 wins the memorial day weekend box office with $ 120 million , the biggest opening weekend ever for a universal film and the second biggest opening weekend of the year .
ez : i just don ' t see it . it ' s like milk . milk doesn ' t imply that all gay men who stayed in the closet were cowards . defiance is just one movie that seeks to add necessary complexity to the portrait of what happened , because the portrait has been monolithic .
the one thing you can count on in hollywood is that when a studio makes a sudden or unexpected decision , it is almost guaranteed that the official reason for the move is a smoke screen for what ' s really going on . i ' m guessing that ' s the case with paramount ' s surprise announcement late thursday that it ' s knocking
the soloist
out of the awards season scrum ,
dashing any hopes ,
to use variety ' s melodramatic phrase , for the film to win any academy award accolades in 2008 . the film is of particular interest to those of us here at the la times , since it is based on a series of gripping columns by our own steve lopez about his relationship with a homeless musician grappling with schizophrenia .
. this included criticism of the film ' s format and genre . those interviewees who possessed some knowledge on the subject tended to focus on the historical accuracy of the film , whereas others concentrated on cinematic tropes . for howard ( phd candidate , 25 ) , for example , it was the recognition of tropes and formulae that enabled him to doubt the authenticity of certain aspects of
that ' s the kind of whopper you ' d only hear in hollywood . i think the appropriate response to that would be - - when exactly would be a good time to release a film about homelessness ? halloween ? the fourth of july ? having read the script and seen the film being shot , i ' m guessing that only a studio disguising its real motives would call
the soloist
a film about homelessness , when in fact , it ' s a male - bonding love story about a crusading newspaper reporter and a musician with a troubled soul .
emma both reproduced language and tropes from the film (
they thought jews were not humans
,
they thought they were vermin and . . . caused the great war
) and drew on her preconceptions of germans ' knowledge about the crimes and notions of
brainwashing
and being
distanced
from emotions , indicating the interplay of film text and viewer preconceptions . [
despicable me 2 grosses $ 142 million over the july 4 holiday weekend . the hit film goes on to become the no . 1 animated movie of 2013 , crossing $ 900 million worldwide .
universal and illumination’s the secret life of pets scores the biggest opening weekend ever for an original animated film and goes on to garner nearly $ 900 million worldwide with almost $ 370 million domestic .
this means last weekend ' s reigning champions , a boisterous bunch led by fox ' s hit comedy marley & me , can continue to make money untroubled by new blood . the week between christmas and new year ' s eve is traditionally one of the biggest of the year and the gains made by marley & me , paramount ' s the curious case of benjamin button ( it ' s released by warner bros in the uk ) , disney ' s bedtime stories and mgm / ua ' s valkyrie provided a useful year - end boost to the 2008 box office . at the final reckoning , 2008 box office came in at about $ 9 . 6bn ( £6 . 57bn ) , just short of the all - time record of $ 9 . 68bn ( £6 . 62bn ) set in 2007 .
they tell me that my father appeared to be 10ft tall on his giant horse . the movie has stayed close to the truth except there are no horses in it .
screening of defiance .
it was very good ,
said aron , whose role in the forest was to run messages between his older brothers .
i will conclude by reflecting on the study ' s limitations , make recommendations for further research , and consider what can be gained from empirical approaches to holocaust film reception ( section 5 ) . [
the biggest blockbuster of 2008 , and the second biggest of all time ,
the dark knight ,
blew away any competition , with over $ 530 million in us box office sales . although heath ledger ' s powerful performance as the joker as well as his untimely death no doubt drew people to the movie , theater owners placed christian bale ( batman ) at no . 3 in this year ' survey .
with that in mind , the time may have come for a biopic about joseph stilwell , or an action film depicting the experiences of the flying tigers . u . s . studios have greater access to chinese acting talent ( not to mention locations ) than ever before , and a film about the joint u . s . - chinese war effort might enjoy success on both sides of the pacific .
except that in box - office terms , 2008 wasn ' t history . it almost was . studio top brass love their box - office statistics because they create the illusion of success and handily side - step any sort of quality analysis . but the fact is that audiences , faced with an expanding array of alternative entertainment choices , are declining . overall cinema attendance in 2008 actually dropped 5 % from the previous year to just over 1 . 3bn , although hollywood made up for the shortfall by raising ticket prices , as it always does . studio executives – and their counterparts in the independent world – are terrified of the video game industry in particular because it ' s the biggest growth sector in entertainment and steals audiences . cinema owners in particular are feeling the heat , which is why everyone is so excited about 3 - d .
the latter studies are a welcome development and provide important insights . their focus on only one film , however , leaves crucial questions unanswered , such as whether their findings apply to other films too , and the role played by genre and aesthetics , or viewers ' backgrounds . my study , which also belongs to the
reception
type , was designed as qualitative , focusing on a country other than germany , and using five different films to explore which parts of individual reception are linked to a specific film text or mode of representation , and which elements constitute a more general aspect of film reception . [
this was followed by a semi - structured individual or group interview ( hansen et al . , p . 257 ) , which was recorded with the participants ' consent . i loosely followed an interview guide , which ensured some consistency and flow to the interviews . the questions on the guide can be arranged into three groups : questions specific to the individual film the interviewee ( s ) watched ( e . g . , film characters , memorable scenes ) ; general film questions ( e . g . , about other holocaust films ) ; and questions about interviewees ' knowledge about , and interest in the holocaust ( e . g . , holocaust education ) . the interviews always began with the same question asking for a summary of the film to
break the ice
and to explore what the interviewees remembered about the film , and which aspects seemed important to them . i encouraged the interviewees to continue speaking through para - and non - verbal expressions , and through guiding or follow - up questions . [
may be linked to the majority of the respondents being female , and therefore a potentially increased likelihood of empathetic identification with this film character . another indicator for the significance of gender was seen in interviews about
this film was originally reviewed at tiff 2014 . edward zwick is a great filmmaker , but he rarely gives you subtlety . some have criticized his medium - to - large - budget action films – titles that include glory , defiance and blood diamond – as too simplistic , which would have stained those efforts more if they were not so compelling and exciting . so , to hear that the director was behind a film about the introspective game of chess and its most famous player , the complex and controversial bobby fischer , was nerve - wracking . would the film skimp on the nuances of the new york chess sensation ? could the last samurai director figure out a way to depict the game in an inventive way onscreen ? well , although zwick has still not managed to find a way to visually communicate the game of wits and cunning , he has still made a biopic and thriller that should entertain those who do not even know how to play chess .
gluchowski thinks polish audiences will view the movie defiance differently from their american counterparts . in his view , the bielskis were communists who were organizationally under the command of the soviet government . stalin was using the partisans not only to drive out the germans , but also to make sure the region would not revert to polish control after the war .
there’s been something of an overload of holocaust movies in theaters over the past few months ; each offers something different for its viewers by way of attitude toward the atrocity . the boy in the striped pajamas centered solely on the victims . the reader discussed the phenomenon of individual humanism and capacity for forgiveness . valkyrie attempted to create a thriller without the possibility of suspense , since we already knew the plot to kill hitler failed . where defiance falls short is its script , written by zwick and clayton frohman and based on the 1993 novel defiance : the bielski partisans by nechama tec , as the screenwriters have bogged it down with sappy love subplots and melodramatic power struggles within the makeshift community .
( e . g . , to explain the mother ' s or bruno ' s ignorance about the camps , which was also seen in the cfhe ' s study of pupil responses to the film ) .
revealed problematic interpretations . few of these , however , appeared to have come directly from the film but instead resonated with existing ideas . its impact should therefore not be a foregone conclusion . the warnings issued regarding
i think a holocaust film is a film which would make the , the viewer emotionally attached and , and emotionally affected . . . and you sit down at the end as the credits roll and , and you are touched in your heart and your soul and you feel that was something , a powerful experience , something which has deeply affected me and something which has changed my life . . . a bit like
perhaps the most diversified 2008 money - making actor , downey jr . starred as billionaire - turned - superhero tony stark in
iron man
and multi - ethnic actor kirk lazarus in
tropic thunder
, grossing $ 318 million and $ 110 million , respectively . downey jr . is expected to make at least two films per year for the next two years , including
iron man 2
, currently in pre - production .
the genius of shameless is its subtlety in capturing both the elan of underclass transgression and its darkness . abbott ' s drama doesn ' t glorify or sentimentalise deprivation , but it does celebrate its spirit of defiance . and for all his anger towards his childhood , and the distance he has travelled from it , his loyalty to that spirit seems unassailable .
their story is surely worth dramatizing — and may indeed be well served by this director’s square - jawed narrative style — but mr . zwick is not simply adding a chapter to the cinematic annals of the holocaust . “defiance” presents itself as an explicit correction of the cultural record , a counterpoint to all those lachrymose world war ii tales of helplessness and victimhood .
that was the film mostly referred to , e . g . , by comparing paul rusesabagina , the hotelier who saved the lives of more than one thousand people during the rwandan genocide in 1994 , which is depicted by
tuvia was the eldest of the brothers . he died in 1987 in new york and was largely unrecognized for his heroism during his life . he was portrayed in the edward zwick - directed film by actor daniel craig .
nbc universal finishes its first full calendar year with double - digit growth in operating profit to more than $ 3 billion , driven by strength across a number of business segments , including cable entertainment , parks and film .
defiance manages to keep the viewer barely involved for its 137 - minute running time , hanging on to the basics of the human drama and actionized plot through zwick’s intelligible and straightforward direction . certainly , the film’s fundamental popular entertainment swing gets the viewer right in the gut . forgiving the mundane story for its limited capacity may prove more demanding , as the production undoubtedly had the potential to be something grand and epic , but instead chose to be routine . when there’s nothing customary about the narrative , indeed the real bielskis deserved much more unconventional and artistically worthy filmmaking to tell their story .
the significance of gender , age , education and political attitudes for the effects of media influences has been examined in a number of empirical , quantitative studies ( baumert et al . , 2008 , p . 45 ) . qualitative approaches can illuminate some of the mechanisms of this in practice ( e . g . , reading , 2002 , pp . 158 - 59 ) . for example , the widespread characterisation of the character of hanna as a victim in interviews about
it would be crass and frankly dangerous to press extended parallels , but you’d have to watch this with fingers in your ears to miss the echoes across history . still , whether zwick’s film benefits from the coincidence is debatable .
this type of research has highlighted the links between political attitudes , emotions , and film reception . it succeeds in demonstrating how powerful the impact of a film can be , especially in a setting as highly politicised as that of post - war germany and its complex relationship to the nazi past , at least in the short term . what it could not tell us was how people interpret the history represented by the films , and how film reception works on the individual level . whether using quantitative or qualitative approaches , and despite taking into account personalities and demographic backgrounds , studies of the first type tend to conceptualise viewers as more or less passive receivers of media messages . [