OPINION:
“God’s Not Dead: In God We Trust” follows a template many Christians will appreciate — but it may not connect with those with other beliefs. Disney Books releases kid’s show-adjacent book full of occult themes intended for “adult” readers. “LEGO Pixar: BrickToons” is short and simple, telling quick stories contained within a variety of Pixar’s famous franchises.
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Read on to get Plugged In on what’s beyond the movie titles and trailers for faith-filled and family-first reviews from Focus on the Family’s Plugged In.
God’s Not Dead: In God We Trust – In Theaters
The “God’s Not Dead” movies have garnered a great deal of attention and a loyal following by adhering to a well-defined narrative template: You start with a strong, sincere Christian. Pit that Christian against a caricature that embodies a fearsome-and-growing aspect of secular society. Have those two standard-bearers talk and preach and pontificate, and always, always, give the Christian the last word. The mic-drop speech.
Hey, these are Christian movies, right? Absolutely nothing wrong with any of that. And the movie’s central premise is right on: Christians should take their faith into the public and political sphere. Christianity is supposed to be an all-transformative state of being — not something to stuff into a cubby hole and trot out on Sunday mornings.
But make no mistake: These are movies by Christians for Christians. The real Peter Kanes of the world would not, I suspect, feel too threatened by them.
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But “In God We Trust” — like many of the “God’s Not Dead” movies — digs a bit deeper in its own way. Perhaps, sometimes, unintentionally.
When Rev. David Hill is about to throw in the towel, he confesses that he’s feeling pretty low. He wonders whether he made the wrong decision.
“Maybe I wasn’t saving the world,” he says. “But I was happy being pastor.”
But do you know how I think the world is saved? One person at a time. And the movie is at its strongest when David is sitting with one person on a carpet, drinking bad coffee, talking about Jesus.
Yes, “In God We Trust” tells Christians to be politically engaged. No argument here. But our zeal to stand for God’s truth in the public square must always be combined with a sensitivity and genuine love for the person before us, even when they oppose everything we hold dear. There will be times we must speak boldly, even if it might cause offense. But at other times, we should simply listen, or maybe hold our tongue for another day. We need to lean on God’s Spirit to help us discern.
Jesus understood that truth: He told stories. He healed the people around Him. He wept. And when someone tried to pick a fight with him — engage Him in a debate that Jesus surely would’ve won — He often simply sidestepped the argument and went on His way.
Near the end of the film, a character tells us that “God is good, all the time.”
And in a way, I wish the credits had rolled there. Because it’s true. That core truth isn’t impacted by the ballot box. Our faith is not validated by political wins or losses. It’s not altered by how blessed we are or how much we may be suffering.
We know — we know — that God is good. All the time.
Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.
Lego Pixar: BrickToons – Series Streaming on Disney+
Like a house, a good story is built from the ground up, brick by brick. In this case, we mean that literally.
Because in LEGO Pixar: BrickToons, your favorite characters from Pixar films are back in LEGO form, embarking on six-minute episodic adventures. The first season’s five episodes ultimately thrust us back into the worlds of Cars, Brave, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo and Coco, respectively. In one episode, Lightning McQueen must race using unconventional car parts. In another, Merida reunites with the local witch, hoping to find a potion that’ll turn her petrified brother back from stone to flesh.
The five episodes of the show’s first season won’t contain any issues that parents wouldn’t have encountered in the films on which each episode is based. Still, we’ll note that Coco does venture back to the Land of the Dead, and the aforementioned Merida uses a witch’s magic to save her brothers.
Because these episodes are self-contained, however, parents will be able to skip over certain franchises if they find them to be inappropriate.
(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)
Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.
The Book of Bill – Young Adult Fantasy, Fiction published by Disney Books
It’s been a long, tedious trek for a certain dream demon named Bill. He scratched his way up from the second dimension, through the Nightmare Realm and into this 3D world, only to fail in his quest to rule … everything. But now he’s back. And he wants you to let him in.
The “Book of Bill” is derived from the Disney Channel kids’ show “Gravity Falls” — a quirky cartoon series that dealt humorously with crazy supernatural shenanigans taking place in a small Northwestern town. The show ran from 2012 to 2016 and gained something of a cult following.
This book’s central character, Bill Cipher, is an ancient “dream-demon from another dimension” that popped up from time to time in that animated series.
Author Alex Hirsch uses this book — Bill’s demon “biography” — to wink at specific events in history and to poke a forefinger of parody into the chest of everything from the meaning of life to demon possession and witchcraft. Hirsch suggests with a chuckle that the Eye of Providence look-alike, Bill, has been a malevolent force throughout human history.
Despite Hirsch’s constant satirical elbow however, parents should note that this book squelches its way through some very dark, sadistic and sometimes bloody situations. Black magic, blood sacrifices, nihilistic value systems and deals with the demonic may be laughing matters for the author, but discerning parents won’t see it that way.
Perhaps that’s also why Disney believed this kid’s show-adjacent book should be limited to “adult” readers.
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(Editor’s Note: Book reviews cover the content, themes and worldviews of fiction books, not necessarily their literary merit, and equip parents to decide whether a book is appropriate for their children. The inclusion of a book’s review does not constitute an endorsement by Focus on the Family.)
Read the rest of the review here.
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Plugged In is a Focus on the Family publication designed to shine a light on the world of popular entertainment while giving families the essential tools they need to understand, navigate, and impact the culture in which they live. Through our reviews, articles and discussions, we hope to spark intellectual thought, spiritual growth and a desire to follow the command of Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
Reviews written by Paul Asay, Bob Hoose, and Kennedy Unthank.
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