~Real Review~

She’s the Man
Starring Amanda Bynes, James Kirk, Laura Ramsey, and Channing Tatum.
Rated: PG13 (for some sexual material)

Here are two very different takes on the same movie:

YouthMinistry.com – Review by Brian Belknap

Excerpt: She’s the Man provides goofy ridiculous fun with a wealth of undeniable laughs. Though the initial plot machinations that enable Viola to take Sebastian’s place appear contrived, they come straight from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, so I guess we should go with it. (Hey, it’s passed muster for 400 years, right?) Beyond that, the filmmakers pile on heaps of humor by relying on conflict rather than crass sexual innuendo (even more surprising since it’s a film about gender roles), injecting a kinetic visual and emotional energy that keeps the story zipping along. . . Read more

Planet Wisdom — Review by Christopher Lyon

Excerpt: First of all, is it just me or is every high school student in this movie played by someone in their mid-20s? Only Bynes, nearly 20, looks as if she could still be in high school. I can only assume the rest of these students either have severe glandular problems or are really bad at academics. That would make sense, because the only class any of them actually attend is science lab. And none of them are able to figure out that “Sebastian” is the weirdest looking, talking, walking “dude” ever. Seriously, who would believe Bynes’ performance as a fella? Still, she’s better at looking like a guy than she is at looking like she knows how to play soccer.

Okay, I know all that stuff isn’t the point. It’s about the laughs and the romance, right? After all, this a flick for tween and teen girls. And, yes, there are some yuks buried in this awkward little movie. David Cross is funny as the quite odd headmaster. Some of the twisty situations Viola finds herself in are giggle-worthy. But mostly, it’s just completely unbelievable without being obnoxiously “bad.” Read more.

~Real Issues~

I dislike the word intolerance because I believe it is creating a culture of reverse intolerance.

I watched Politically Incorrect, a program that has run its course, a few years back. A celebrity, comedian, a politician, and a pastor sat on the forum.

The celebrity got angry when the pastor shared his point-of-view. He stated it with grace. He was gentle, kind, not condenscending.

The celebrity stood to her feet and screamed, pointing in his face, “You better shut up. You better respect me. You better think before you start talking that trash.” For the next few questions, she called him names, one of them intolerant.

I looked at her behavior, her screaming, the anger in her face and I wondered. Did she realize that it was she who was showing intolerance?

Reverse intolerance: don’t touch or talk about the things that make me uncomfortable, but let me act and speak against you in any manner I wish. (more…)

Check this out. Andrew Jensen has created a creative niche for Christian teens. You can share your videos, your art, your writing and more with teens from around the nation.

That’s exactly what we hope to do with Real Teen Faith and why we’ve changed to a blog format.

There’s a lot of great stuff on Mission Firefly. If you are a writer or artist, this is a cool place to let the world have a look. . .

http://www.missionfirefly.com/

Five stars!

Suzie

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Survivor winner Danni Boatwright sticks to her beliefs

Danni Boatwright won a million bucks on my favorite show, Survivor. Any fans out there?

The Last Christian Generation by Michael J. McManus

Author says that you are the last generation of believers. Only 1/3 of teens who say church is part of their life believe that it will be a part of their life in the future.

Personally? I don’t think God can be eliminated from the hearts of those who follow him. And yet I see that perhaps we need to talk more about an amazing God. We need to make faith more than just church or following rules. God is powerful. God changes lives. (more…)