Pauline Media Studies

Film & TV Reviews

Examined through diverse lenses – human, artistic, religious

Stronger – Suffering with grace

Stronger begins with Jeff Bauman (Jake Gyllenhaal) at his job as a chicken roaster at Costco. He begs off...

First They Killed My Father – Remembering where we came from

Angelina Jolie’s latest directorial effort, First They Killed My Father, captures the horrors of the Khmer Rouge regime in...

Wind River – suffering with = compassion

Wind River almost defies genre definition. It’s ultimately a murder mystery thriller but it’s also a drama about family,...

9/11 – A disaster film that exploits the tragedy of 9/11

I live in Staten Island, NY, right on the north shore that overlooks New York Harbor. From my balcony,...

Mully – Love alone changes the world

With all the hatred and craziness in the world stories about the simplicity of authentic humanity stand out like...

All Saints – Community at work

All Saints tells the true story of Pastor Michael Spurlock (John Corbett) and the community of All Saints Episcopal...

Detroit – Learning from history

There’s the famous saying that those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Director Kathryn Bigelow’s...

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power – Caring for our common home

Former Vice-President Al Gore’s follow-up film to 2006’s “An Inconvenient Truth,” “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power” updates the...

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets – Love lights the way

Based on the French comic books “Valerian and Laureline,” Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets leaves much...

Dunkirk – Longing to Survive

Director Christopher Nolan creatively captures a period of World War II history that focuses less on action and more...

“The Big Sick” is a touching love story and true American tale

It’s official. After seeing “The Big Sick” I know my family is “toast,” that is, boring, as Mr. Portokalos...

Spider-Man: Homecoming – finding your way

The movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been getting darker of late but with Spider-Man: Homecoming we get...