The 2010 "Clash Of The Titans" remake was an enjoyable, yet forgettable movie for me. It certainly didn't live up to its potential as a sword and sandal fantasy flick. I was surprised to learn a few months ago that a sequel would already be coming out this spring. I was skeptical of the idea, but the trailer gave me hope. It looked like they were pumping more money, effects and monsters in to this second attempt, and so I entered the theater daring to hope that "Wrath Of The Titans" would scratch all the itches the first one neglected. The story picks up 10 years after the events of the first movie. Perseus, the half-man/half-god, is raising his son alone after the death of his wife, hoping to live the quiet life of a fisherman. But his father Zeus arrives and warns him that the gods are in trouble and need his help. Perseus refuses his father's request, but is later pulled into the epic struggle as his son and the entire world are placed in peril. ...

In the last few years the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins has rapidly gained an audience in the mainstream market consisting of both male and female readers, despite the fact that the genre is science fiction and the perspective is an uncommon first person present tense. My younger sister, who got me to read most of the Harry Potter books, also somehow convinced me to read all three of the Hunger Games books, although I should say that I found them moderately enjoyable. And when I heard news of the movie in development I became very curious as to how they would adapt this kind of book to the screen. The premise of the film is the same as that of the books. In the future the United States has been divided into Districts, all ruled by a Capitol. At some point, the blue collar people of the Districts, whose sweat and labor give a life of self-indulgence to those in the Capitol, rose in rebellion against the Capitol and lost. As punishment, the Capitol greatly restricts th...

I'm not familiar with the writing of Edgar Rice Burroughs or his character, John Carter. So I went into this movie only knowing that it was based on some stories written at least 50 years ago or more. (Actually closer to 100.) My ignorance was aided by the nearly non-existent marketing campaign for this movie. Was this just a big "whoops" on the part of Disney, or did they realize this was a terrible movie and didn't want to waste any more money on it? "John Carter" is about an American Civil War veteran who lost his family after the war and now bitterly lives only for selfish gain. He is whisked away to Mars, where he discovers that it is not airless and lifeless as humanity had believed, but home to large civilizations on a downward spiral of self-destruction. Carter is captured, but escapes, only to find himself in the middle of a war that will decide the fate of the entire planet and all who live on it. His alien anatomy and the low gravity of ...

This week I've started playing a new (new to me anyway) fantasy table top game called "Thunderstone". It's something of a card-based dungeon crawl, though I'll let you check it out for yourself for more details. But playing the game got me thinking about the concept of adventure. In fiction, adventure always seems to come with evil. Adventure never seems to exist in RPGs, video games, comics, books or movies without evil being in the mix somewhere. There's an evil enemy to overcome (moral evil), or dangerous circumstances to avoid (natural evil). Two verses I've been trying to memorize recently describe what eternity with God will be like for those who choose to trust him in this life. Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Revelation 21:4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourni...