by Erin Franklin | Jun 18, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
Many wondered if “Finding Dory” would sink or swim, but in typical Pixar-fashion, the animated comedy gets along swimmingly. Ellen Degeneres’ Dory, one of Disney’s most beloved characters, returns to the screen for her own feature film, providing lots of laughs and delighted squeals — from children, college-aged students who grew up with “Nemo” and adults alike — along the way and teaching some valuable lessons about family and focusing on one’s strengths. Among many good qualities, one of the film’s greatest strengths lies in its voice actors, brilliantly voiced by Degeneres (Dory), Albert Brooks (Marlin), Ed O’Neill (Hank), Ty Burrell (Bailey), Diane Keaton (Jenny), Eugene Levy (Charlie) and newcomer Hayden Rolence (Nemo). For moviegoers who are familiar with Pixar’s 2003 hit, “Finding Nemo,” Dory’s “short-term memory loss” ‘disability’ has often landed her in trouble. For example, she, on occasion, wanders off, then forgets where she has wandered off to — causing much despair for the fish who try to keep an eye on her. She forgets that Marlin has told her she’s not supposed to go on the class trip (making it a very awkward situation for Marlin to tell her in front of the class). She can’t even remember when she’s already told Marlin something in the night, so she repeatedly keeps waking Marlin up to tell him. For a moment, she even forgets why she and Marlin trekked across the ocean a few months ago (it was to find Nemo). It would seem Dory can’t remember much of anything important. One day, though, Dory does remember something important — something very important. She has a family. Somewhere out in the...
by Patrick Carpenter | Jun 16, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson have found a spark in the buddy cop movie genre, and it’s grounded in one theme: being there for others. Calvin Joyner (Kevin Hart) is the All-American high school athlete. He’s the popular kid on the block voted most likely to succeed his senior year. Bob Stone (Dwayne Johnson) is the complete opposite. He’s overweight, mocked, bullied and, as victim of the senior prank, is literally the “butt” of all the jokes. 20 years later, Calvin is seen dealing with issues that many adults deal with. Life has settled in, and he doesn’t see the positives. His life hasn’t gone in the direction he might have imagined back in high school. He was meant for greatness, but, now, he is the accountant for a firm with an inflatable monkey out front. Calvin’s wife, Maggie (Danielle Nicolet), was his high school sweetheart and is considering going to couples counseling to fix their marriage. He almost resents his high school past because he didn’t meet expectations. Bob is quite different. He has lost over 200 pounds thanks to “working out every day for six hours the past 20 years.” Oh, and surprise, he is in the CIA. However, even with his accomplishments, Bob is still dealing with the bullying he endured in high school. Even after 20 years when Bob is faced with his high school bully, he is quiet. The trained assassin only sees his high school past in the mirror. He doesn’t understand who he is. So he seeks out the help of his only friend, Calvin, to help him. Calvin simply gave Bob his...
by Erin Franklin | Jun 14, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
The epitome of a story fueled by justice, the classic American novel To Kill A Mockingbird transformed into a play and opened Wednesday night in Shamblin Theater and ran through Sunday as part of the Christian Scholars Conference. Since the theme of the Christian Scholars Conference was justice, To Kill A Mockingbird was chosen because of its timeless commentary on justice. Professional actors portrayed most of the characters in the story, but Lipscomb student Shannon Clark played Mayella Ewell, the 19-year-old “white-trash” (as called in the story) female who accuses Jim Robinson, an innocent black man, of raping her. Mike Fernandez directed the play, and Bethany Rowland, also a Lipscomb student, was the assistant director. Tessa Bryant, the producer, said she has wanted to tell the story for a long time and was excited she now had the opportunity to do so. “True equality, true friendship, true empowerment requires day-to-day engagement,” Bryant said, adding that she hoped the show would inspire the audience — the “jury” — to make that commitment. The children in the play were skillfully portrayed by Hannah Trausht, starring as Scout, William Hearn as Jem and Charlie Webb as Dill. Chip Arnold starred as Atticus and Arnold’s real-life sister Nan Gurley played Maudie Atkinson. Arnold and Gurley’s father was a professor in the music and drama department for over 30 years at Lipscomb. In 1955, Arnold was in his first Lipscomb play as a boy. “One of the biggest joys I have is that I get to work with my sister again, and together we can honor our father’s legacy at Lipscomb,” Arnold said. This is the second time Arnold has played Atticus...
by Erin Franklin | Jun 11, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Featuring a theme on justice, the Christian Scholars Conference kicked off this week, showcasing a “Tokens” show: “A Change Is Gonna Come,” led by host (and Lipscomb theology and ethics professor) Lee Camp on Thursday night in Collins Alumni Auditorium. Camp created Tokens in 2008 to develop an environment in which he could infuse music, conversation, interviews and humor to successfully discuss academic questions in an inviting setting. The show has featured notable guests such as Vince Gill, Amy Grant and Ricky Skaggs, to name a few. The show Tuesday night spotlighted special guests Ashley Cleveland, Jenny & Tyler, Russell Moore, Linda Pastan, World Fiddle Ensemble, Jenny Littleton, Odessa Settles and The Most Outstanding Horeb Mountain Boys. Throughout the show, Camp said they will be “looking for tokens of a world characterized by a rightful justice.” Along with worthwhile lessons on justice, political jokes abounded and instrumental music filled the room throughout the night. Music varied from Woody Guthrie — as Camp said, “you can’t have a show on justice without a little Woody Guthrie” — to Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence.” Dr. Russell Moore, the president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, was there for the discussion part of the show. Moore told Camp he was wary of talking politics with him, especially presidential politics, to which Camp jokingly responded: “Oh, I don’t want to talk about anything presidential — just Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.” However, Camp mainly focused (seriously and satirically) the show on the conference’s theme of justice. “Probably can’t talk too much about justice without talking about marriage,” Camp joked. “According to...
by Jade Spilka | Jun 10, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
Featuring an impeccable cast and heart-wrenching storyline, the highly-anticipated tearjerker Me Before You is the romantic film of the year. The film, which is based on the novel of the same name by Jojo Moyes, follows Louisa Clark’s (Emilia Clarke) journey as a caretaker for Will Traynor (Sam Claflin), a young, wealthy quadriplegic man. Traynor is initially put off by Clark’s talkativeness and outfit choices, but as time goes on, he finds she is exactly what he needs. A relationship blossoms quickly, but Will’s desire to terminate his life causes a riff between anyone he cares about and himself. Clark dedicates all her time to making Traynor’s life exciting and happy. Though Traynor sees Clark could offer him a good life, he is still hesitant to continue their relationship because he could never have the life he once had. The film keeps you consistently guessing what their fate will be, and it features several tear-jerking moments. Kate Dowd casted the film, and I was impressed by every choice she made. Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin deliver extraordinary performances. Many films and television shows have supporting characters that sometimes overpower the main characters. However, Me Before You had clear stars throughout every scene. Clarke and Claflin shown the brightest while the supporting cast subtlety executed their performances in a realistic way that supported the storyline without stealing the spotlight. In a time where romantic films seem highly predictable and redundant, Me Before You offers a charming, completely unpredictable, fresh storyline. I was captivated within the first five minutes — a statement I rarely make. Me Before You is a must-see. Though you will leave...
by Erin Franklin | Jun 4, 2016 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
A live-action remake of the classic Rudyard Kipling tale, The Jungle Book is the rare family film that engages viewers of all ages, providing timeless storytelling and forgoing typical crude humor. Most of us have seen the original lighthearted Disney cartoon (1967) directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, who also brought us the beloved Disney films Robin Hood (1973) and 101 Dalmatians (1961). I naturally wondered how Disney would stay true to this original film and the Kipling story, while still putting an original twist on its reboot. This sounds like a daunting task, but director Jon Favreau accomplished this with creative skill. One of the film’s biggest assets is its visual beauty. Set deep in the jungle, the film is uniquely and solely portrayed (other than Mowgli) through impressively realistic computer-generated imagery (CGI). It stays true to its Disney roots, too, incorporating beloved songs and characters from the cartoon, such as Baloo’s number “The Bare Necessities” and chief monkey, King Louie (both not in Kipling’s original story), yet, overall, it is loyal to Kipling’s coming-of-age tale about a boy finding his place in his jungle home. The film stars newcomer Neel Sethi as Mowgli, who got the part after auditioning with over 1,000 other children. Sethi is the only non-computer-generated character in the film (other than a brief flashback with baby Mowgli and his father in the jungle), with all other characters portrayed as magnificent CGI animals. The Jungle Book does bring in well-known names as voices for the jungle creatures, such as Bill Murray (Baloo), Ben Kingsley (Bagheera), Idris Elba (Shere Khan), Lupita Nyong’o (Raksha) and Scarlett Johansson (Kaa) to draw viewers. However, much of the film’s success must be given to Kipling since he is the author...
