Faith & Family August-September 2008

NEWS

Movieguide puts faith in film ratings
Moviemaking has become a lot more faith-oriented than one might think. Judging from the work of Dr. Ted Baehr, studios have made great strides in offering the types of films that conservative Christians want to see. Full story

Mapping out the U.S. religious landscape
Retailers gathering for the International Christian Retail Show July 13-15 in Orlando, Fla., might be interested in the results of a recent Pew Forum survey on religion. Full story

Online DVD sales still dominant over downloads
Online sales and rentals of Christian DVDs have become well-established, but as in the mainstream, downloading Christian videos has yet to become a significant business. Full story

REVIEWS

When I Find the Ocean
This family drama has the look, feel and casting of a Wonderful World of Disney movie from the ’60s. Full story

Adventures From the Book of Virtues
Conservative politician William J. Bennett scored big in 1993 when he published best-selling The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories, which drew on well-known stories to illustrate what Bennett believes are the core virtues of a moral character, including responsibility, friendship, courage, honesty and faith. Full story

For Heaven's Sake!
Feisty, fun-loving septuagenarian author Sarah Miller (Florence Henderson) suffers a fatal heart attack just before celebrating the 11th birthday of her adoring granddaughter Katie (Stephanie Patton). Full story

NEW RELEASES

VeggieTales: Where’s God When I’m S-Scared? (street Aug. 19, prebook July 8; DVD $12.93) teaches that regardless of the circumstances, one is always in God’s hands.

Several versions of the Bible will be available Aug. 26 with a prebook of Aug. 1, including King James Version (KJV) Signature Edition Bible on DVD ($39.95), New Living Translation (NLT) Signature Edition Bible on DVD ($39.95), New International Version (NIV) Signature Edition Bible on DVD ($39.95) and The Message: Numbered Edition Bible on DVD ($29.95).

Apostles of Comedy (street Sept. 9, prebook Aug. 5; DVD $19.95) is an inventive mix of four comedians—Jeff Allen, Brad Stine, Anthony Griffith and Ron Pearson—that weaves live performance and documentary to show how they express their faith through comedy.

Coming Aug. 5 (prebook now), Bobby Jones Comedy All Stars Vol. 2 (DVD $19.98) is the latest installment of Dr. Bobby Jones’ clean-content comedy show. In The Case for Faith (street Sept. 2, prebook Aug. 6; DVD $19.98), journalist Lee Strobel investigates two of the most emotional objections to Christianity: Why is Jesus the only way to God? And, how could a loving God exist if there is evil and suffering in the world?

Hermie & Friends: A Fruitcake Christmas (street Sept. 30, prebook Sept. 2; DVD $9.99) explains that the celebration of Christmas is not about gifts or special food; it’s about God’s gift to us.

A directionless young man has only one clear goal in his life: to give his ailing mother, a devout Catholic, the chance to meet the Pope before she dies in the coming-of-age drama Pope Dreams (street Aug. 26, prebook July 23; DVD $24.98).

Available Aug. 19, Reverend I’m Available (prebook July 18; DVD $16.98) is about a recently widowed reverend who becomes the hottest commodity at his church, as the ladies line up to win his heart.

The Searching Generation (street Aug. 1, prebook now; DVD $19.99) is a documentary that opens a dialog between traditional religious communities and the emergent generation. Somebody’s Daughter (street Sept. 1, prebook Aug. 15; DVD $19.99) confronts the challenging issue of pornography.

The Saddle Club: Season 1 (street Aug. 5, prebook now; three-disc set $19.98) includes all 26 episodes of the first season of the acclaimed Australian TV series about three teenage girls in equestrian competitions.

Thomas & Friends are coming to DVD again in the series Totally Thomas, with three more volumes arriving Aug. 12 (prebook now; three-disc sets $19.95 each). Vols. 4, 5 and 6 each include more episodes from the children’s series along with bonus features.

My Three Sons Season One, Vol. One (street Aug. 19, prebook now; three-disc set $42.99) stars Fred MacMurray as a widower who is left to raise three sons on his own.

A re-imagining of Morris Engel’s 1953 classic, Little Fugitive (street Sept. 16, pre-book Aug. 5; DVD $24.95) is the story of a prank gone awry among young brothers who must look out for each other.

Aug. 19 is the day to head to Camp Rock: Extended Edition, featuring the Jonas Brothers (prebook now; two-disc set $29.99, BD $34.99).

A young elephant goes on an extraordinary adventure and learns important lessons along the way about friendship, love and courage in Blue Elephant (street Sept. 2, prebook July 22; DVD $19.97).

Bob the Builder On Site: Houses & Playgrounds (street Aug. 26, prebook July 30; DVD $19.98) is live-action and animated, including the fun Bob the Builder animation paired with custom footage of kids’ favorite places under construction.

Ki-Kids: Policemen and Cooks (street Aug. 5, prebook now; DVDs $14.99 each) is a fun and educational animated series in which preschool children discover different professions and important values while learning how to be bilingual.

Coming Sept. 30, Short Track (prebook Sept. 8; DVD $24.95) exposes the daily life experiences of Blake Beckett, a five-time stockcar racing short track champion.

Bill Harley takes listeners on a hilarious trip through the fun and foibles of family life in Bill Harley: Yes to Running! (street Aug. 12, prebook July 21; DVD $14.99).

Dinosaur King: The Adventure Begins… (street Sept. 23, prebook Aug. 26; DVD $14.99) follows three dinosaur enthusiasts who discover some mystifying artifacts and are pulled into a world of adventure, danger and dinosaurs.

—Compiled by Barbara Wexler

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