Here’s the latest from the crossroads of faith, media & culture: 12/22/23

Candace Cameron Bure’s full plate. Actress–author–TV executive (not to mention wife and mother) Candace Cameron Bure (who in April can be seen on the big screen in Liongate’s Unsung Hero) is teaming with Generous Family to promote a new series of values-based children’s books. Available now, Jasper G and the Me-Thinking Madness (the first in the series) is an illustrated hardcover work telling the story of a “me-thinking” giraffe who learns to give generously.

Aimed at kids ages 4-12, the book is part of the Generous Kids Book Club, a  subscription service that, besides books, delivers family activities, stickers, collector cards, access to coloring sheets, an eBook animation, family conversation starters, and more on a monthly basis. The activities are designed to drive home the messages of the books which are all aimed at teaching a specific Value of the Month (i.e. gratitude, empathy, compassion, or thoughtfulness).

The stories are written by Betta Tugive (pronounced Better to Give), the pen name for a group of parents, educators, and experts who have come together with the goal of creating meaningful stories for kids.

Generous Kids Book Club Founder and President Brad Formsma says “We wrote Jasper G and the Me-Thinking Madness because we want to help parents teach values in a way that makes learning fun,” adding “It has been incredible to see students, teachers, and families respond positively to the book and its message of giving.”
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Freud’s Last Session hits theaters in limited release today. The Sony Pictures Classics film, based on a play of the same name by Mark St. Germain (who co-wrote the screenplay with director Matt Brown) and the book The Question of God by Armand Nicholi, imagines a meeting between a dying Sigmund Freud (Anthony Hopkins) and Chronicles of Narnia author C.S. Lewis (Matthew Goode) in which the noted atheist and Christian apologist engage in a lengthy and passionate debate about the existence of God and what happens after we die.  My review follows the trailer.

IMHO: Freud’s Last Session is on of those concepts that hooks you right away (particularly if you’re into this sort of stuff): What if, shortly before his impending death, the psychoanalytic trailblazer and world-famous atheist Sigmund Freud met with the equally world-renowned Christian author C.S. Lewis and they engaged in a lengthy discourse about whether or not God exists and what happens to a human being after death? I’m in – particularly when you stir in two very strong performances by Hopkins and Goode in the lead roles. The question is does the movie match the strength of its premise?

My answer to that is that, while Freud’s Last Session boasts solid production values and performances and is highly watchable, it falls into the common trap of movies like this by giving into the temptation to open up the story to make it more cinematic. Frankly, I think this is a classic case where less would have equaled more. What draws you into a movie like this is the clash of ideas and those ideas are best expressed through dialogue. We don’t need all the flashbacks or scenes with Freud’s daughter Anna (ably played by Liv Lisa Fries) that take place outside of the confines of that Freud-Lewis meeting.

I’m reminded of the 1981 film My Dinner with Andre in which André Gregory and Wallace Shawn (known to current TV viewers for his role in Young Sheldon) portray two guys (fictionalized versions of themselves) discussing similarly deeply philosophical questions over dinner at a Manhattan restaurant. The film proved that a movie about a couple of people talking about such things could actually be sorta riveting. Freud’s Last Session has the added hook of being about two historic figures much of the audience is already fascinated by. The movie could certainly include portions where their conversation is interrupted by appearances of a couple of other characters (i.e. Anna) who add some context to the proceedings but, IMHO, holding the script to the immediate bounds of the conversation at the core of the film, would have made for a tighter and more involving screen experience.

The Bottom Line: Freud’s Last Session is a good movie that is worth seeing that could have been even better.
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The Chosen drops its  trailer for Season 4. Unlike previous seasons, all eight episodes will debut in the US and Canada via a Fathom Events theatrical rollout (Episodes 1 through 3 on February 1, Episodes 4 through 6 on February 15  and Episodes 7 and 8).  A consortium of distributors will handle the theatrical releases around the rest of the world. After the full-season run in theaters concludes, the producers will announce debut dates across streaming and linear TV platforms. For further ticket info click here.

Explaining the reason for the theatrical release plan, show creator Dallas Jenkins says “Last year we dipped our toes in the water by releasing a few episodes in theaters. The response was so strong, and Season Four is so big, that we knew we and Fathom had to give viewers the theatrical experience for all eight episodes.”

Fathom Events CEO Ray Nutt adds “This collaboration has been such an amazing experience! Watching the fans come out in such large numbers to watch the story of Jesus on the big screen has been both informative and heartwarming. We look forward to bringing Season 4 to theaters so those fans can continue to share this story together.”

The Chosen has become something of a cultural phenomenon. What began as a pioneering crowd-funded project has now evolved into a global sensation with over 770 million episode views and is reportedly on pace to be the most translated TV series in history.  The show has scored strong performances across streaming platforms such as Peacock, Netflix and Amazon Prime, as well as The CW broadcast network.
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Christmas TV Flashback. Debuting on December 13, 1980 on ABC, Perry Como’s Christmas in the Holy Land is an example of the kind of seasonal specials broadcast networks at their used to produce several of on a yearly basis. This may very well be the best of all of them. Anyway, they literally don’t make them like this anymore. The full broadcast can be seen below. Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

John W. Kennedy is a writer, producer and media development consultant specializing in television and movie projects that uphold positive timeless values, including trust in God.