Monthly Archives: June 2010

Joseph Laycock: Vampires and Eclipse

June 30th, 2010 | Posted in Joseph Laycock, Twilight, vampire

Watch this video on YouTubeEclipse recently debuted in theaters, the latest installment in the Twilight series of romance-vampire films, and in connection with this I am pleased to present this video of fellow religion and pop culture scholar Joseph Laycock. He shares some thoughts on the history of the vampire, contemporary vampirism, and the Twilight […]

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i09: Why Won’t Christian Publishers Take on Science Fiction?

June 29th, 2010 | Posted in Christianity, science fiction

The science fiction website i09, recently included an article titled “Christian readers demand more science fiction. Why won’t Christian publishers listen?”. With this post I’d like to suggest some answers. This article, by Charlie Jane Anders, introduces the subject matter with reference to three separate articles, the first by StephanieP, a Catholic, who argues in […]

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THE WOLFMAN: Must the Beast Have Its Day?

June 27th, 2010 | Posted in horror, The Wolfman, werewolf

I recently had an opportunity to watch The Wolfman (2010). It was a film I had been looking forward to seeing as a new version of a Universal Studios horror classic. I did not find it very satisfying, but it did include some interesting elements and food for thought. Like the 1941 version of the […]

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Science and Theological Imagination in Science Fiction

June 24th, 2010 | Posted in religion, science fiction, theology

My daily search for all things fantastic in popular culture resulted in my stumbling upon an announcement for an intriguing conference on Science and Theological Imagination in Science Fiction: Science fiction is a twentieth-century invention. In it writers and readers try to imagine life in a context wider than our present — perhaps requiring as […]

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Cinefantastique Online DVD Review of THE BOOK OF ELI

June 21st, 2010 | Posted in apocalypticism, post-apocalypticism, The Book of Eli

My review of the recent release of The Book of Eli on DVD is now available at Cinefantastique Online. From the introduction: The recent release of THE BOOK OF ELI (2010) on DVD provides an opportunity for a reassessment of important elements within its story. Viewers with religious convictions have interpreted it in strongly positive […]

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Amityville Horror Home and the Paranormal Entrepreneurial Mind

June 18th, 2010 | Posted in 1970s, paranormal

A few weeks ago it was announced that the house where the Amityville Horror events took place was up for sale. In 1977 Jay Anson wrote The Amityville Horror: A True Story which told the story of the Lutz family living in the home in Long Island, New York which was reportedly plagued by paranormal […]

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Do the Wrong Kind of People Like SPLICE?

June 13th, 2010 | Posted in horror, science fiction, Splice

While I haven’t been able to catch a showing of Splice yet in theaters, I have kept up with the reviews and commentary. There have been a few exceptions, but most of the commentary has been very positive. This is especially the case with Steve Biodrowski’s review at Cinefantastique Online, a reviewer and website with […]

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Keep Watching the Skies! American Science Fiction Movies of the Fifties: The 21st Century Edition

June 9th, 2010 | Posted in 1950s, horror, science fiction

Over time I have built up my Amazon.com wish list of various items knowing that I will never be able to afford or have room for most of what I’ve listed. Even so, there are several items that are a priority for me in adding to my collection, and for some time I have been […]

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Gary Varner: Creatures in the Mist and Comparative Mythology

June 7th, 2010 | Posted in cryptozoology, folklore, myths

Mythologist and folklorist Gary Varner was a recent guest here answering questions about the origins, history, and expressions of gargoyles and grotesques. He has researched a variety of subjects and is the author of Creatures in the Mist: Little People, Wild Men and Spirit Beings around the World: A Study of Comparative Mythology (Algora Publishing, […]

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LEGION Review at Cinefantastique Online

June 5th, 2010 | Posted in angels, Christianity, Legion

My review of LEGION is now available online at Cinefantastique Online. The title is “”Action-Horror Meets Postmodern Angelic Apocalyptic.” Here is an excerpt: As might be expected in a film that draws upon characters taken from a religious tradition, in this case Judeo-Christianity, there are plenty of religious elements here for reflection beyond the obvious […]

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