Well, that was Phil Robertson. Willie's just here because they filmed in Louisiana, I imagine.

I actually like The Passion, and I get why it does what it does.

Christian fundamentalists, who tend to be the public face of Christianity, generally do not.

I imagine it will run six years. That's a fairly typical HBO run.

Well, this is pointlessly mean! It's entirely possible (and, indeed, probable) that Iowa would have rejected me if I had put more effort into my stories. I was 22 and not yet really in control of what I was trying to say, etc. But I certainly bear some of the blame for doing everything half-assed and not putting my…

Eh, it would be different if this were Home Video Hell or something like that, where the point is evisceration. People expect something a bit pithier when they read a movie review.

Other things I could not touch on in this review because of space or spoilers…

I had the opposite experience. I lost my virginity before marriage (because human), and I was so worked up about it, I prayed to God for a sign that I should never have sex before marriage again. I had a random Bible page-a-day calendar that somebody had given me as a gift, and when I flipped the page for that day…

Christianity Livewire has a refreshing citrus flavor.

Yep! I grew up evangelical, in the type of church that would regularly screen Christian films in its basement. (At the time, they rarely saw theatrical distribution, though I think most of them—particularly the 1979 Jesus and the batshit insane A Thief In The Night series—have far better filmmaking quality and on a…

The pastor doesn't so much struggle with his faith as worry that being a local pastor in Louisiana isn't as awesome as being a missionary in Africa.

If you know a better way to prove that you are virtuous than dancing with deadly snakes and daring God to have them bite you for your sins, I'd like to hear it!

More or less deist Episcopalian, but I mostly go to church because I like the community aspects of it, and it does a lot of good in my community. I don't feel any closer to God for having done so.

My mind and heart are more than open enough to consider the possibility of God. They are not open enough to consider this a well-made or enjoyable film.

I am not an atheist.

I thought this would bother me, but the reason it didn't, I think, is that Hannah clearly would have quit her job to go to Iowa, even with the money she was making. Plus, GQ would have been very understanding of her reasons for quitting, because pretty much any aspiring writer would drop everything to go to Iowa. This…

Trope. Acceptance and rejection letters are generally indistinguishable without opening the envelope.

It'll be back shortly.

If you didn't watch this live, it was difficult NOT to be spoiled on it. I watched on the West Coast and had known for a few hours.

No, trust me. There is not a one of us who cares about grading as much as the average commenter. Our grading scale is always going to produce a surplus of B-range grades, simply because of how it's constructed.