Schoolhouse Review ~ FishFlix.com #hsreviews

Our family LOVES movies! And Christian movies are even better! I suppose it is one of the easy ways I have found to momentarily “escape reality” and either laugh, cry … whatever. So, when the opportunity to do a review for a movie through FishFlix.com came as part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was super excited! It was difficult to choose but we ended up with Superbook: A Giant Adventure.

Superbook: A Giant Adventure is a story about David and Goliath, but it isn’t necessarily your typical story. First, apparently Superbook movies have been around for quite some time as the original movie was also provided on the dvd.

I was curious about the original series after watching it on this dvd because I had never heard of it. A quick online search brought out this information from GodTube: CBN created Superbook as part of a campaign to reach Japan nearly 30 years ago. It was a monumental success drawing a weekly audience of nearly 4 million people. During the fall of communism in the 1990s Superbook aired across the former Soviet Union where millions of lives where changed through the Superbook series and more than 100 countries watched the original Superbook series. It was translated into more than 43 languages, viewed by an estimated half billion people.

How cool is that!?!?!?!

So, back to the updated version … it is a 25-minute “computer generated” (not real actors) story about two kids and their robot. It starts out with modern day (today-ish). The boy is too scared to do a band audition so the kids are taken back in time through “Superbook” (the Bible) to walk along side David as he fights Goliath. The boy learns that he is to use his gifts (playing the guitar) for God and to use God’s strength when nervous (audition).

There is a discussion guide provided in the movie case as well but we didn’t use it.

So … have you heard of FishFlix.com? I hadn’t until this review. They carry all kinds of Christian movies! As I was clicking on the different categories I was excited to see a lot of the ones I’ve watched over the years – which means I found a new resource for Christian movies! WOOT!

Another exciting thing to share is that FishFlix.com is offering a giveaway specifically for Schoolhouse Review Crew readers! It is for a 5-Movie prize pack – including War Room, The Ultimate Gift, Superbook: A Great Adventure, My Son, My Savior and Owlegories 2.  Over $80 in DVDs! Head over to their giveaway page!

Ways to keep up with FishFlix.com:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fishflix
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/FishFlix @FishFlix
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/ChristianDVD @ChristianDVD
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/fishflix/

Now hop over and read more reviews from the Schoolhouse Review Crew! (Keep in mind that reviews will be posted any time between 3/22 and 3/24 so make sure to come back and see them all!)

Here’s praying you have fun learning!

 

Movie Review ~ Rumors of Wars

I had the opportunity to review a new movie titled Rumors of Wars. This film runs 89 minutes and is rated PG-13 for violence that may be inappropriate for children under the age of 13. (I know we did NOT let our almost seven year old watch it.)

My 18 year old son and I watched this movie together and we both enjoyed it. I definitely would agree that it is not appropriate for younger children. It is not intensely gory or anything but there are several spots where violence is involved that would be difficult to explain to youngers.

Curious what it is about? Well, basically it is about the end times of the earth as shared in the Bible. We need to remember that this is a FICTIONAL movie and is not portrayed or promoted as being “biblically accurate”. With that said, there was only one part that stood out to me as a definite inconsistency with scripture and that is when it says that “it could be on their forehead or in their right hand” – I believe Scripture only says on their forehead.

So, keeping in mind that this is not shared as something that is to be taken as exact biblical truth – it is a very intriguing movie about what could be the coming of the final days here on earth. This is a movie that definitely held our attention and kept us wondering what was going to happen next.

This movie shares two different stories at one time – flipping back and forth. Initially you have to figure out who is associated with which story and once you have that it is pretty easy to follow along. One life is a young college student who decides not to “get the chip” the government is requiring of everyone and she records everything that happens in her diary. The other story is of a later time (20 years maybe?) when her diary is found as there is war raging against the government requiring the chip and the religious folks who are running from the government. Unfortunately as they get caught throughout the movie many are tortured and needlessly killed. (This is the violence cautioned for youngers.) The entire movie is not filled with violence but it is quite suspenseful. As a turning point in the movie, one of the men from the army finds the girls diary, starts to read it and to believe. This causes more curiosity of what is going to happen. But, I won’t spoil the fun for you!

There are several actors you will recognize in this film if you have watched some of the other fairly new Christian movies out. Actors such as Eric Roberts, Ben Davies and Shannen Fields.

Overall this is a movie we would recommend to others (and again, we would recommend youngers NOT watch it).

Have a wonderfully blessed day!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this movie in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

Movie Review ~ Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas

I had the opportunity to review Kirk Cameron’s new movie Saving Christmas. Honestly I didn’t watch any kind of trailer before agreeing to review this movie…I just saw “the cover” and heard things like “watch it with your family” and thought it was going to be a fun kind of Christmas movie. So our entire family sat down to excitedly watch…unfortunately I was wrong. For starters, this is not a movie younger kids will enjoy in any way…it only took a few minutes before our six year old was off doing other things.

We were only allowed 24 hours to watch the movie once we started it…and since we watched it Saturday evening and have church for the majority of the day on Sundays we didn’t have enough time to watch it a second time in order to be better prepared for this review. So forgive me if I am unable to provide a lot of specifics…I didn’t realize I was going to need them as I was originally watching it…so I didn’t take notes. I did ask to be allowed time to watch it again but that time was not provided.

So, my review…

First, I suppose I should have taken in to account Kirk’s two other movies I have watched, Monumental and Unstoppable, both of which have a ‘documentary’ feel to them and are mostly Kirk sharing his personal thoughts on different subjects related to the Bible. They do offer some good information but they also offer some false information. Saving Christmas is no different.

As I post this review, I feel it is important that you be aware of my overall preference of things related to the Scriptures…I prefer there be no guessing stated as truth. This film, unfortunately, does exactly that. If you are assuming or presuming…I think it MUST be stated in one form or another and not shared as an exact truth. Unfortunately that is not done here.

With that…the main thing I got from this movie is that it is trying to convince Christians who take the Scriptures literally and hold them as very important in their lives and tell them that their opinions and feelings are wrong. But, not only that, but that there are Scriptural reasons as to why those opinions are wrong. Now, I am always open to being corrected and to having my understanding of Scripture challenged. However, I am not at all impressed with someone using the Scriptures out of context to attempt to prove their point. This can be extremely damaging in many different ways. This is a perfect instance where we should check our Bibles for what people are saying. We don’t need to just check to confirm it is in there but we need to check for content, wording, placement and meaning…THAT is what matters.

The movie starts off by saying ‘the time was when the soldiers were killing all the babies at Herod’s command’ as in to the relation of when Christ was born. In actuality, Baby Jesus was TWO when that happened. May sound like a “little thing” but it is presented as a big thing that is accurate in the movie and having that time difference makes what the movie is saying completely wrong. Needless to say, this immediately put us “on guard” for other doctrinal inconsistencies.

Kirk then relates the swaddling cloths from Jesus’ birth to that of His death. We do not know if this is accurate or not. In this movie they are making assertions that this is true without having proven it in any way. Again, something that makes us leery of what is yet to come.

It talks about Santa (aka St Nick). Kirk shares about the history of St Nick, where he “came from” and how it all started. All great things…but still…NOT the point of Christmas. He talks about the good that “St Nick” did and how he gave away presents and how the Lord gives us presents and how giving gifts to our children is a good thing. And feasting…that feasting is good and right and celebrating the Lord. Sorry…not seeing it. Basically just saying we should be happy and think about the the Lord and that is how we are celebrating Him. Although true to an extent, in actuality, it is wrong. THAT is the danger of this film. It is right on the border line of at least being true in one sense but the entire overall point is way off.

He also discusses the tree and how it is meant to be a symbol of Christs death on the cross not something people worship. He talked about the snow globe of the nativity that is ‘shoved in the corner’ and instead of saying how it should have the forefront of the room he shares that everything else going on is celebrating Christ. I don’t know…overall, to us, it was just someone trying to put a “secular twist” on to Scripture. Quite honestly, I was offended.

So, what did we like? We cannot say we do not appreciate a celebrity openly talking about Jesus. That is VERY important. (But we are afraid that people will believe what he is saying just because he is a celebrity.) We did enjoy that there was humor mixed throughout the movie; there were several times that we all broke out in laughter.

Overall, we were very disappointed with many aspects of this movie. This movie will be in theaters for two weeks starting on November 14, 2014. Unfortunately we do not recommend going to the theaters to see it but if you are interested in watching it rent it from the library…but make sure you are prepared to answer to your children as to the questions presented…make sure you are ready to give accurate account of what is mentioned because there are major discrepancies presented as fact.

Have a wonderfully blessed day!

Disclosure: I received a link to view this movie via the internet for 24 hours in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

DVD Review & Giveaway ~ The Boxcar Children {Collector’s Edition}

Personally I have HEARD of The Boxcar Children books but I have never read one myself. {gasp, I know}  I really didn’t know anything about what this DVD would be about when I agreed to review it…I only knew the books were popular. I was very curious about the movie when it arrived in the mail therefore we watched it within just a couple of days of receiving it.

I posted on Facebook about watching it and having a review soon…I was surprised by the amount of comments I got about loving the books and the excitement of it being a movie…more things I didn’t know…I had no idea it had never been on DVD before! (Even more fun for a blogger…to get our hands on something before others, and something others are excited about…THIS is WHAT being a review blogger is about…GETTING THE WORD OUT. LOVE it!)

So…the movie (DVD) is rated G, runs 81 minutes and is full color.

About the movie:

Four orphaned and homeless siblings happen upon an abandoned boxcar, which with a little creativity and hard work, they gradually furnish with all the comforts of home. Fearful that they will be sent to live with the reputedly cruel grandfather they have never met, the children keep their new home a secret – until a serious illness forces them to reveal themselves in order to save young Violet.

Featuring an all-star cast of voice actors, including Academy Award Nominee Martin Sheen (Apocalypse Now), J.K. Simmons (Spiderman), Zach Gordon (Diary of a Wimpy Kid), Joey King (Fargo), Mackenzie Foy (Twilight series), and Jadon Sand (LEGO: The Movie), this is the very first full-length, animated feature adaptation of Gertrude Chandler Warner’s best-selling classic!

Collector’s Edition Special Features 

• THE BOXCAR CHILDREN E-BOOK PREVIEW
• THE BOXCAR CHILDREN GUIDE TO ADVENTURE E-BOOK PREVIEW
• PRINTABLE TOWN MAP
• OFFICIAL SOUNDTRACK
• ABOUT THE AUTHOR/MUSEUM FEATURETTE
• DOWNLOADABLE ACTIVITY KIT
• STILLS GALLERY

The Boxcar Children is coming to DVD on August 19th!  VOD also available!

Preorder at Walmart:http://www.walmart.com/ip/38107477
https://www.facebook.com/BoxcarChildren
https://twitter.com/boxcarchildren #TheBoxCarChildren

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Personally, as someone who is not familiar with what this was going to be about, I LOVED this movie…but it was sad too…the thought of these kids being alone in a boxcar. But by the end of the movie I was very happy and LOVED this movie! My husband, who HAS read the book, said it is very similar to it (which is always good and sometimes not the case). Our family will be getting this book from the library and doing a family read-aloud. I am VERY THANKFUL for this review opportunity, we all really enjoyed this movie!

Ready to enter the giveaway for one FREE copy of The Boxcar Children Collector’s Edition??? Enter below…

Review & Giveaway ~ Unstoppable

We had the opportunity to review Kirk Cameron’s Unstoppable. If you haven’t heard about this movie...it was made to answer the question “why does a good God allow bad things to happen [to good people]?” I think we have all either wondered this question ourselves or had people ask us this question. If you haven’t…you will. This is a good resource for helping to “put it all together”…from the beginning of the Bible to…well…the middle. (The end will be some future day from now.)

Kirk Cameron does a pretty good job of walking through Scripture…introducing where we began – how the Lord created us, where suffering began (Adam & Eve and Cain & Abel). [Some of this part of the movie is not appropriate for younger children, but it only lasts for a few minutes – all the other parts of the movie are okay for all eyes.] And on in to the different kingdoms that reigned. He points out that through it all there is a purpose that can be seen. It concludes with the fact that if God has taken every failure of man and has used it to glorify Himself and bring good for man. This then confirms that He certainly can use the daily things of an individual for good as well, even if we don’t understand it.

More about Unstoppable and Kirk Cameron

In theaters for only two weeknights (Sept 24th and Oct 3th, 2013), UNSTOPPABLE: A Live Event with Kirk Cameron sold a staggering 260,000 tickets and reached a theatrical gross of over $3.2 million dollars. In just two nights this independent project sent a loud message – audiences want thought-provoking and meaningful entertainment.

Kirk Cameron is best known for his memorable role as “Mike Seaver,” a cultural icon of the 80’s, with his mullet hairstyle, cool glasses, and wisecracking comebacks. More recently he enjoyed much success with the No. 1 grossing inspirational film of 2008, Fireproof, and his recent documentary, Monumental. Kirk and his wife, Chelsea, were on-screen sweethearts during their Growing Pains years and are the founders of Camp Firefly, where terminally and seriously ill children and their families are provided an all-expense paid retreat (www.CampFirefly.com). Together, Kirk and Chelsea live in California with their six children.

Visit the official website: http://unstoppablethemovie.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unstoppablethemovie
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/UnstoppableDVD

About Provident Films:

Provident Films, a division of Sony Music Entertainment, produces, markets, and distributes faith-based films. The company is part of Nashville-based Provident Music Group, which has been one of the world’s leading Christian entertainment companies for more than three decades.  Films from the company have included Courageous, October Baby, Fireproof, and Facing the Giants. More info is available at ProvidentFilms.org.

Now…enter below for a chance to win your own copy!

Movie Review ~ The Confession

I had the opportunity to review The Confession which is “Part Two” of The Shunning. Both movies are based on books by Beverly Lewis.

The Confession continues the story of Katie Lapp as she has moved out of the Amish community is was raised in and is living in the city trying to “make a go of it” as well as find her birth mother. In the beginning you are made aware that she has not adjusted to “real life” where people do not mean what the say nor do what they say.

She finally locates her mother but finds that there is an impostor playing her and she ends up being a maid in the house. It is a very interesting plot and is fairly well played out.

It has a happy ending (always a bonus in my opinion) and overall has nothing offensive. It was an enjoyable movie that I would recommend to others.

Have a wonderfully blessed day!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

Movie Review & Giveaway ~ Ring the Bell

If you are looking for a refreshing, family-oriented, Christian movie Ring the Bell is for you! It has a few unexpected twists in it too. I honestly do not have one bad thing to say about this movie, and that is rare!

It is the story of a fast paced “city guy” who works too many hours to make too much money. He ends up going out to the country to get a baseball player to sign a deal with him and his entire life changes as he looks at the lives of those who live there. He realizes there is so much more to life than working and making money.

What would be better? Having Christ in your life? You’ll have to watch to see what happens!

It was an extremely enjoyable movie and I am excited to have the opportunity to give one copy away to one of my readers. Enter below…

Movie Review ~ The Genesis Code

I am always interested in doing reviews that have to do with the Bible as I like to know what is being presented to everyone. So I was really interested to see what the movie The Genesis Code had to offer – with it’s “signature line” being: “Faith and Science…what if both are true?” Could it be – a way to have both be true? Well, let me just sum it up real quick right here with a GREAT BIG ~ NO!

The main story has to do with two college students – a boy and a girl, of course. The boy’s mother is very sick and he has given up on God. The girl is a firm believer, who is also studying journalism therefore ends up interviewing the boy who is a major college hockey star. The “big thing” of the movie is him telling her that if she can prove Genesis is true then he will believe the Bible and trust in God. So, she calls up her super smart brother and his friends to see if they can figure out a way to prove Genesis. They come up with “The Genesis Code”. Here is where I was shocked and almost turned off the movie (but kept it going because it is a review therefore needs to be a complete review…and also in hopes that the movie would “turn around” and NOT go where I was afraid they were going…that never happended, unfortunately).

Unfortunately, “the Genesis Code” was a mathematical / scientific formula they came up with that “proves Genesis is true” and that there is a way that millions of years and just days are the same – therefore everyone can believe the Bible. WHOA! Nope, sorry. Belief comes from the FACT that all words are from the Lord directly – not because “science can prove it” in some way that mans tiny brain can understand. It is hard for me to explain but everything inside of me was SCREAMING – “NO! NO! NO!”

Overall this is NOT a movie my family would recommend for others to see.

<a href=”http://rafl.es/enable-js”>You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway</a>.<a href=”http://rafl.es/enable-js”>You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway</a>.<a href=”http://rafl.es/enable-js”>You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway</a>.Have a wonderfully blessed day!


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this video free from Propeller. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Movie Review ~ Paws & Tales: Being Kind & Caring

Paws & Tales: Being Kind & Caring
Running Time: 50 minutes
Retail Price: $9.99
Release Date: May 2012 

We always enjoy when we can review a Christian children’s video…we love to watch videos and I am always interested in what is “on the market” today. We have reviewed Paws & Tales in the past (see review of God Cares For You) and really enjoyed it so we expected this one to be good – which it was, of course!

We have found we like most of what Chuck Swindoll makes available – they are Scripturally correct and interesting. Two VERY IMPORTANT things! So, to have these intermixed with a childrens item is exciting for us!

This eighth DVD in the series is based on Ephesians 4:32 and Philippians 2:3-4 and includes two episodes that teach kids about being kind and caring. In episode #1, “The Hullabaloo at Hunker Hill,” C. J. and his friends learn a lesson in forgiveness and being tenderhearted toward one another. In “The Great Go-Kart Race,” the team discovers how to work together.

We have enjoyed these videos and would recommend them to others.

Have a wonderfully blessed day!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this DVD from Tyndale in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

Also, check out the Paws & Tales Clubhouse at http://www.tyndale.com/pawsandtales/.

Product Review ~ Awesome Science: Explore the Grand Canyon

I had the pleasure of reviewing a new science DVD series called Awesome Science…and the name calls it as it is – it *IS* awesome science! The videos are done by a homeschooling family {YAY!} and the host is a 14-year-old boy who does an exceptional job!

Think learning about the Grand Canyon from a Biblical world view has to be boring? WRONG! Get this for your kids (recommended for ages 8 – 18, but would not be inappropriate for younger ages) and they will learn A LOT while enjoying the time. The video is 30 minutes in length and comes with (or is purchased separately, I’m not sure?) a 33-page 5 x 8 study guide.

Not only does the dvd cover how the Grand Canyon was formed but it discusses and shows several scripture references. The pictures shared are breath-taking as well. And Noah is a delight to watch. I am always looking for things that teach my kids how to share FACTS about creation with others that are biblically based – so they can share their beliefs with understanding and confidence. This is one of those such items.

The video costs $14.99 and the study guide is $3.99. If both come together I think the $14,99 price is fair. If the price is $14,99 for just the video, I feel it is a little over priced. You can purchase your own copy by clicking HERE.

Overall, I would HIGHLY recommend this video to others – it is an EXCELLENT teaching tool!

Have a wonderfully blessed day!

Disclosure: I received a copy of this in exchange for my honest review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.