the good book movie review

Get news & reviews in your inbox

• Prime Video
• Documentary
• Producers Corner
• Watch Lists
• More Than A Movie Night
• It’s Dove Approved – Family Movie Trivia Game
• Dove Ratings
• Privacy Policy

The Good Book

Dove review.

This movie shows the power of the “Good Book”, the Bible. As it is passed from one person to another we see the remarkable hope that it offers various people during some of life’s most difficult moments. A young boy, Daniel, accidentally sets his home on fire and runs away due to the shame he feels as his parents and sibling search for him. He is angry at first and wants nothing to do with the Good Book but he changes and he soon experiences a very happy moment.

The other stories in the movie include a young couple who have a son and love their infant baby very much. The child tragically dies and the parents deal with the hurt and pain that stems from their horrendous loss. Yet they manage to find happiness in a way they would not have thought of and God’s mercy is clearly revealed. Also included in the film is a homeless lady who finds her way to church and a woman who has her purse stolen and yet later returned to her house. This DVD clearly shows the power and miraculous events that follow those who look to God’s word. It illustrates the true world of hurting people, including a woman that is shattered when her husband cheats on her. But hope is always offered and it is always offered via “The Good Book”. We are pleased to award this DVD our Dove Seal for ages twelve plus. Watching “The Good Book” would do you anyone some good! See it soon.

Dove Rating Details

A teen boy cuts man with knife; a man says he robbed and shot a man that wound up dead but that "God saved me".

A woman finds her husband with another woman in his office as the movie shows the pain that can be thrust on people; wife kisses husband on cheek.

A man is seen sleeping with a liquor bottle by his bed; a man says he used to drink and do drugs but was saved.

A runaway boy steals clothes from woman's clothes line as he needs them badly; homeless people are shown; a boy throws a Bible down in anger but he later looks to God again; kids tease boy that has Bible; death of a child and grief; a boy is wrongfully accused of having cut a man; a woman steals another woman's purse but she gets it back; there is a Bible burning that takes place but one of the Bibles do not burn.

More Information

Film information, dove content.

Faith Film Producer DeVon Franklin Steps in Front of the Camera for ‘Jesus Revolution’

Cyrano: Love is a Verb

Redeeming Love: Grace Rising Up Out of the Dirt

Filmmakers Highlight the Hope and Heroism in “Gi...

Tell the Next Generation

Review of Christian Movie: THE GOOD BOOK & a Giveaway

Usually, I only write book reviews, but when I was contacted about reviewing the Christian movie: THE GOOD BOOK, a one-hour silent movie, I was intrigued enough to say yes. Read this review and see what you have to say about it. Plus, check out the giveaway!

The Writer/Director & the Producer

THE GOOD BOOK film was written and directed by Sharon Wilharm. It was produced by her husband, Fred Wilharm.

Released in 2014, this multi-award-winning movie has received the Dove Foundation’s highest award of five doves.

I put great stock in the Dove seals. Still, I was curious if acting, without the bracings of dialogue, could bolster enough story to hold viewers attention.

The Wilharm dynamic duo did not fail as they literally applied the top rule of writing: show, don’t tell.

Multiple Stories in THE GOOD BOOK

THE GOOD BOOK begins with a young boy’s tragic experience of a house fire. He eventually ends up at a homeless camp. That’s where the “main character,” a small New Testament Bible, is introduced.

Viewers watch the closing of the homeless child’s story, but the journey of the little, red Bible continues.

Fourteen people come in contact with the red Bible. Some reject it; others allow God to speak to them through it. As their lives transform, some write their names inside the cover of the Bible, before passing it along to others.

Believers and non-believers will probably identify with at least one character in the movie. And like the real world, everything isn’t all neat and tidy. The film packs plenty of surprises.

The Characters

The characters you think will cling to God’s Word, don’t always do so. And when you’re thinking here comes trouble , they actually turn into blessings.

THE GOOD BOOK is excellently presented by a talented cast including Evan Fielding, BK Bomar, Apolonia Davalos, Amanda Pentecost, Jenn Gotzon, Rebecca Lines, Torry Martin, and Josh Childs.

Overall View of THE GOOD BOOK

The film moves at an attention-grabbing pace. Just as you’re wondering whose life will be changed next, BAM , you’re hit with a powerful, gut-wrenching ending.

But like He often does, God takes what we view as an ending, and begins anew. THE GOOD BOOK ends with a vision of hope.

This is a film that leaves a lasting impression…something you’re pondering over for days. Hopefully, it points you to the truly good book, God’s Holy Word, and changes your life forever.

It amazes me how the Wilharms, the actors, and the cast projected such a powerful message without saying a word. And they did it with excellence.

I highly recommend this movie for ages twelve and up. It’ll generate conversations on various views of the Bible . You can find it at LifeWay, ChristianBookDistributors.com and other locations. Check out the GoodBookMovie website to watch movie trailers and read more about the movie.

The Giveaway

Here’s your chance to win a free copy of the DVD! For each person who leaves a comment on the blog, we will write their names down and put them in the honest hat. (Trust me, it’s an honest hat.) We’ll shake them up and randomly draw a name and announce the winner Saturday, March 21, 2015.

Inside the cover of the DVD, I’ve placed a note card. I’m hoping people will write their first name on it before passing the movie along to others. Just like the little Bible in the film, let’s see where God takes this movie!

*Congratulations to the winner: Madonna!

And thank you, Sharon Wilharm , for donating the movie in exchange for an honest review. Check out another story about the Wilharm’s filmmaking in Tennesse’s The Baptist and Reflector.

You May Also Like

FAITHFULLY DIFFERENT {Crain} Book Review & Giveaway

Book Review: MY TENDER HEART BIBLE (Sassi)

5 ADAPTABLE IDEAS for Summer Bible Time with Little Ones

I can't image a silent movie. It is so hard to find good Christian movies these days that are accurate.

Deborah Freeman

Hmm…now I am also intrigued, a silent, evangelistic movie! I would love to show this to our youth group. Thank you for the review and the giveaway. 😊

Sally Matheny

Perhaps you'll win, but if not, pick up a copy at Family Christian or Lifeway or order one on-line. I think your youth group would enjoy it. Thanks for commenting, Deborah.

Sometimes words can interfere with the Holy Spirit's working. This movie sounds like it may be perfect for those who struggle with ADD, ADHD, auditory perception weaknesses, Autism, and/or other special weaknesses/struggles.

You're right, Saundra. I think the list of the various audiences this film may reach will continue to grow. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

Madonna, I also couldn't imagine an hour of silence (well, there is music). But, they do an amazing job! Think of the language barriers that are removed. The movie does show a few Bible verses (in Englsh) as some of the characters read them (silently, of course). But if those are translated, the movie makes an exceptional evangelistic tool.Thanks for stopping by, Madonna. Perhaps you'll win the movie and decide for yourself. 🙂

And the winner of the movie, The Good Book, is Madonna. Congratulations! Madonna, please private message me where I need to mail the DVD. Send message via my facebook page at : https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sally-Matheny-Encourager-Writer-Speaker . Thanks.

By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy . We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Essential Film Criticism Books for Any Film Lover’s Shelf

• Share on Facebook
• Share to Flipboard
• Share on LinkedIn
• Show more sharing options
• Submit to Reddit
• Post to Tumblr
• Print This Page
• Share on WhatsApp

No cinephile’s bookshelf is complete without a well-curated selection of film criticism books to complement their robust movie library. After all, criticism exists to enhance our understanding of art, and really any creative endeavor. The art of film criticism is almost as old as film itself, and has evolved just as film has over the past century or so.

The below selection of film criticism classics includes a wide variety of literature that helps enhance the filmgoing experience, from in-depth histories of specific films to exhaustive analysis of filmmakers and actors; from essay collections of famed critics to histories of film movements and eras. They’re both historical and contemporary, with original release dates spanning nearly eight decades. These books aren’t only covering classics, either — sometimes the zero-star reviews about notorious flops are just as illuminating as thoughtful takes on some of film’s most revered movies.

See our selection of best film criticism books below.

“The Age of Movies: Selected Writings of Pauline Kael : A Library of America Special Publication”

There have been many collections of Pauline Kael’s work, but a great deal of them — “For Keeps” and “I Lost it at the Movies” included — are hard to find or out of print. This 2016 collection features the sharply opinionated New Yorker critic’s takes on “The Godfather,” “Bonnie and Clyde,” “Last Tango in Paris,” and more seminal works, and spans her entire career.

“Negative Space: Manny Farber On The Movies”

Another seminal and divisive critic with a very distinct style of prose, Farber, an accomplished painter, deconstructs films and scenes with a unique eye. His definition of “termite art,” as opposed to “white elephant art,” opened up a whole new discourse around appreciating the aesthetic greatness of B movies and genre films that don’t necessarily telegraph their artistic intent with the literalism and obviousness of “prestige” efforts. This collection comes with seven essays he wrote with his wife, the artist Patricia Patterson, along with an in-depth interview.

“Better Living Through Criticism: How to Think About Art, Pleasure, Beauty, and Truth” by A.O. Scott

Longtime “New York Times” film critic Scott examines the discipline of criticism as a whole, using his own work as a lens to demonstrate how criticism allows creativity to thrive. This particular volume was inspired by the author’s own Twitter feud with Samuel L. Jackson, following Scott’s pan of “The Avengers.” Everyone’s a critic, because critical thinking informs all aspects of life, from art to politics and everything in between.

“Leonard Maltin’s Movie Guide: The Modern Era”

Maltin stopped updating his annual movie guides a few years ago, but the 2015 edition serves as a capstone of sorts and includes nearly 16,000 entries of essential information on films from the modern era — box office record-breakers, cult classics, and complete bombs alike.

“I Hated, Hated, HATED This Movie” by Roger Ebert

Yes, you should definitely add any volume from Ebert’s “The Great Movies” collection to your bookshelf. But just as important as the Pulitzer Prize-winning critic’s raves are the scathing takedowns that, in many cases, are even more fun than the movies themselves. This is the first best-selling collection of Ebert’s one-star (or less) reviews, followed by the equally entertaining “Your Movie Sucks” and “A Horrible Experience of Unbearable Length: More Movies That Suck.”

“Murder and the Movies” by David Thomson

In his latest volume, film historian Thomson investigates film’s obsession with murder and what that says about us as viewers through the lens of classics including “Strangers on a Train,” “The Godfather,” and “The Shining.” (Also shelf-worthy: The most recent update of his comprehensive “The Biographical Dictionary of Film.” )

“Seduction: Sex, Lies, and Stardom in Howard Hughes’s Hollywood” by Karina Longworth

The creator of the essential film podcast “You Must Remember This” reminds readers that the film industry’s obsession with sex and power predates the #MeToo movement. Before Harvey Weinstein there was Howard Hughes, and “Seduction” shows how Hughes’ wielded his power via the stories of ten women who had relationships with the mogul.

“Hollywood Black” by Donald Bogle

Bogle’s overview of Black filmmaking, from the silent era through “Black Panther,” tells the history of Black Hollywood, including its films, stars, and filmmakers, and includes a foreword by the late John Singleton.

“From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies, Third Edition” by Molly Haskell

Originally published in 1974, the latest update to Haskell’s classic piece of feminist film criticism was released in 2016. It includes an insightful investigation into the way women are portrayed on screen versus their status in society, plus a new introduction about how Haskell’s views have evolved since its initial publication.

“What is Cinema?” by André Bazin

This foundational text of film studies comes from one of film criticism’s most influential voices, the French critic Bazin, who championed filmmakers such as Jean Renoir, Orson Welles, and Roberto Rossellini.

“From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film” by Siegfried Kracauer

This defining history of German expressionist film, first published in 1947, examines how the Weimar Republic produced such politically charged work as “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari,” “M,” “Metropolis,” and “The Blue Angel.”

“Pictures at a Revolution” by Mark Harris

Harris focuses on the best picture nominees at the 1967 Academy Awards — “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” “The Graduate,” “In the Heat of the Night,” “Doctor Doolittle,” and “Bonnie and Clyde” — to show how the cultural revolution of the 1960s changed Hollywood forever.

“Made Men: The Story of Goodfellas” by Glenn Kenny

Kenny’s history of Scorsese’s classic mob movie arrives on Sept. 15, just in time for the 30th anniversary of Martin Scorsese’s seminal 1990 film. This behind-the-scenes story features interviews from Scorsese and star Robert De Niro and sheds light on why the film’s legacy has endured over the past three decades.

“Make My Day: Movie Culture in the Age of Reagan” by J. Hoberman

“Make My Day” chronicles the relationship between politics and cinema in Reagan’s 1980s, and is the third volume in Hoberman’s trilogy (after “The Dream Life,” about the 1960s, and “An Army of Phantoms,” about American movies in the first decade of the Cold War).

“Tom Cruise: Anatomy of an Actor” by Amy Nicholson

Nicholson investigates the career of the all-American superstar, from his first role (in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Outsiders”), his rise to super-stardom in the ’80s (in “Top Gun” and beyond), and his enduring status as modern-day action hero (in the “Mission Impossible” series).

“David Lynch: The Man from Another Place” by Dennis Lim

Lim digs into the career of the director not by trying to de-mystify his mysterious mind, but by embracing the strangeness of the multi-hyphenate artist.

“Movies That Mattered: More Reviews from a Transformative Decade” by Dave Kehr

Film critic Dave Kehr’s work is compiled in this second volume of criticism, compiled from his time at the Chicago Reader and Chicago magazine between 1974 and 1986, which features some of the in-depth, nuanced essays for which Kehr is known.

Returning the Gaze: A Genealogy of Black Film Criticism, 1909-1949 by Anna Everett

“Returning the Gaze” is an exploration of Black film criticism, from the first half of 20th   century. The book shares film commentary through the writings of W.E.B. DuBois, Langston Hughes, and Zora Neale Hurston, in addition to pieces written during the Great Depression, and the pre-and-post-war era. The book looks at how Black media pushed back against racist themes in film, and called attention to the use of lynching footage as examples of both a commercial, and callous, act of exploitation.

Regarding Film Criticism and Commentary by Stanley Kauffman

Released in 1993, this collection of writings from late critic Stanley Kauffman includes films from major established directors, musings on cinematic adaptations of Mozart’s operas, and independent cinema, in addition to exploring changing public attitudes towards film as an art form.

Ambiguity and Film Criticism: Reasonable Doubt by Hoi Lun Law

As the title suggests, Hoi Lun Law’s book makes a case for ambiguity on film and why it’s a vital concept to cinema. Broken into two parts, the book features seven chapters that include: “Difficulty of Reading, “Depth of Suggestion, “and “Threat of Insignificance.”

Most Popular

You may also like.

The Good Book

Where to Watch

Jenn Gotzon (Ruth - The Church Woman) Bella Higginbotham (Ruth's Daughter) Donald James Parker (Church Member) Abigail Rhyne (Vanna) Rebecca Lines (Leah) Jaylon Gordon (Funeral Family) A. Michelle Harleston (Photographer) Torry Martin (Esau) Johnnie Gordon (Funeral Family) Joshua Childs (Caleb)

Sharon Wilharm

A small New Testament passes through the hands of 14 strangers. For seven of them, their lives will never be the same.

Recommendations

Advertisement

• Daily Devotions
• Ignite Your Faith
• Peace With God
• The Power of Prayer
• Encouragement for the Soul
• Church & Outreach
• Inspirational Videos
• Main Courses
• Cooking Videos
• Health & Diet
• Christian Homemaking
• Interior Design
• Crafts & DIY Projects
• Gardening Tips
• Outdoor Living
• Celebrity Interviews
• Breaking Christian News
• Movie Reviews
• Movie Trailers
• Uplifting Music Videos
• Christian Film Festivals
• Love Stories
• Relationship & Marriage Advice
• Parenting with Purpose
• Education & Homeschool
• The Bible & Money
• Blended Families
• Career & Leadership
• 12 Steps Christian Recovery
• Forgiveness
• Overcoming Fear & Anxiety
• Strength For Tough Times
• Divorce & Remarriage
• Heartbreak & Loss
• Codependency & Boundaires
• Home & Kitchen
• Dining and Entertaining
• Decorative Accessories
• Grocery & Gourmet Food
• Christian Books & Bibles
• Shopping Blog

The Good Book | Movie Review | Sonoma Christian Home

As a lifelong student of film, I love visual storytelling. I believe the more you can tell through the visuals, the better the movie will be. And I hate voice-overs telling me what I am looking at on the screen.

So I was excited about seeing The Good Book , a feature film without sound (except for the music soundtrack). Of course, telling a story silently isn’t the easiest thing to do, but The Good Book handles the challenge well.

Daniel (Evan Fielding) running away from home; Photo Courtesy of Mainstreet Productions.

The story is incredibly ambitious; in fact, it is not one story, but several stories revolving around more than a dozen characters. The Good Book follows a copy of the New Testament on a journey that begins with a young boy named Daniel (Evan Fielding), who runs away from home after causing a horrible accident. He finds sanctuary in a homeless camp and is befriended by Esau (Torry Martin).

From there, the Book is handed off to a public defender (BK Bomar) and his wife Marion (Apolonia Davalos in a moving and strong performance). It goes from person to person, including Sarah the homeless lady (Amanda Pentecost giving a standout performance herself), Jenn Gotzon as a woman scorned, and Leah (Rebecca Lines), who is dealing with addictions. When the Book makes its way overseas and into the hands of a persecuted missionary (Josh Childs), the impact of this Book truly hits home. It’s enjoyable to see how a book and its message can have a ripple effect, touching lives wherever it goes.

See the trailer below:

The film is written and directed by Sharon Wilharm and is produced by her husband, Fred Wilharm. Rick Holets composes the music for this film, which underlies the action quite well.

The Good Book is one of the most ambitious movies I’ve recently seen, and my hat’s off to the filmmakers for pulling it off as well as they did. With so many stories and actors, especially for an independent film, some acting is stronger than others. A couple of the characters seemed a bit over-the-top, and a couple of the transitions are strained.

All in all, though,  The Good Book is a solid production. You will not be disappointed; it’s an ambitious and well executed undertaking.

Alex & Marion (BK Bomar & Apolonia Davalos) hold their child close; Photo Courtesy of Mainstreet Productions.

The Good Book has been making a well-deserved and successful journey around the film festival, and it is now available on DVD.

The Christian Worldview

The Good Book has a very strong Christian worldview, and the driving theme behind the picture is the impact that Scripture can have on every day life and the world at large.

Sarah & Ruth (Amanda Pentecost & Jenn Gotzon) at church; Photo Courtesy of Mainstreet Productions.

Biblical Discussion

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” Isaiah 55: 1

The Good Book is a mighty example of the power of the Word of God. Sometimes we can find ourselves (due to our sin and our own personal motives and agendas) getting in the way of the Word of God and the power of the Spirit. However, no words can give better guidance or provide better comfort than the Good Book.

“Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.”  Isaiah 55: 3

There is no better place to look for God and His guidance. Other people and things are helpful, but the Word of God is sufficient.

“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.” Isaiah 55: 6

David on the set of The Good Book; Photo Courtesy of Mainstreet Productions.

His Word does not go forth and return void.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace;” Isaiah 55: 8 – 12

Seek joy. Seek peace. Seek God in The  Word of God.

For more information about this author, movie critic, and filmmaker, visit Dale Ward’s Official Website .

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Subscribe me to your mailing list

At this time, we ask you refrain from purchasing on the Sonoma Christian Home store. We are in the process of performing updates and in the meantime we would ask you hold off on new orders. We will make an announcement once our store is back in action! Dismiss

• Rent or buy
• Categories Categories
• Getting Started

The Good Book

Customers also watched.

Cast and Crew

Other formats

21 global ratings

How are ratings calculated? Toggle Expand Toggle Expand

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Start Selling with Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Host an Amazon Hub
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

Letterboxd — Your life in film

Forgotten username or password ?

• Start a new list…
• Add all films to a list…
• Add all films to watchlist

Add to your films…

Press Tab to complete, Enter to create

A moderator has locked this field.

Add to lists

Where to watch

The good book.

1997 Directed by Matthew Giaquinto

A dark, futuristic tale of society's doomed near future.

Bryan Campbell Barry Gerdsen Chris Paine Alan Ambron Mark Banks Todd Casale Mike Lynch Russell Scott Ed Farmer Macy Melendy Matthew Giaquinto Michele Napiorski Robert Burt Borian Christine Orlando

Director Director

Matthew Giaquinto

Writers Writers

Matthew Giaquinto Barry Gerdsen

Drop Dead Films

Science Fiction Horror

Releases by Date

06 oct 1997, 05 jan 2000, releases by country.

81 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Justin LaLiberty ★★½ 2

the type of SOV sci-fi movie where a dweeby dude walks into a room and says "ladies, I need to know where your computer is" and then they start stripping and turn into vampires because why not

Review by 13beersl8r ★★★★

Obnoxiously ambitious. I mean, holy shit. Testosterone fueled incel sci-fi daydream manifesto community theatre audition tape. High fucking drama inside the matrix where teleology and poor film skills collide. This thing has a message. I have no idea what the fuck it is but I feel like it punched me in the face and then gave me a beer. Everybody in this is committed and earnest. But then again so was that weird kid you sat next to in math class in 7th grade. Kind of a big swing for sov. Enjoyed the effort. Honest art. VALIS approved.

Review by ItsLV ★★★★★

Set in 2023... It's ambitious... it's obvious... it's talky... it's university student or Letterboxd user attempting to sound "smart"... it's fucking dark (night-time is never ending baby)... Plenty of ?cow noises... I loved it? Internet bad.

Jesus and Satan be smiling.

Review by Dakota Noot ★★★★

The laziness and cost-cutting of our capitalist hell is not captured by big budget science fiction: it bubbles up from the underground SOV in sublime art-trash wonder. No one should be as good looking as a Hollywood star - nor should the future be polished in its human rights violations. 

Like the Saturn’s Core prior release  No Resistance , there’s ideas here. Has technology eclipsed the need for God? Similar threads appear in anime from this time - in the ultraviolent 80s/90s to something like Serial Experiments Lain. 

Justin’s comment/review of the film is funny yet misleading: the porn scene serves a purpose (it’s government-produced propaganda in film that could also serve as a parody of other SOV films). This movie is just as cynical with porn as Sixteen Tongues albeit briefly (our lead is bored and falls asleep). 

A time capsule beyond time 🖥️

The forced-indoor plot is so pandemic-relevant lol.

Review by John ★★½ 7

Apparently I've now plowed through the entire filmography of Matthew Giaquinto. THE GOOD BOOK is a semi-ambitious, bizarro no-budget techno thriller that seems to be going for a general vibe of "FAHRENHEIT 451 with Jesus and zombies for some reason." (Though really, isn't Jesus the original zombie?) It doesn't make a lot of sense, and like a lot of techno-thrillers, is most entertaining as a time capsule of the bizarre ideas people had about The Internet when it was still in its infancy.

The plot concerns a computer repairman who has to venture out into the post-apocalyptic wasteland to fix people's machines. The world government has seized control of and unified the Internet, and the populace at large remains indoors…

Review by Nick FW ★★★

My brain is absolutely fried from having watched dozens of music videos from The Great Kat throughout the day. My eyes can barely coordinate with my thumbs to write these very words down, which I must do though because not only have my senses been decimated by the shred diva, but I've also watched the cerebral SOV cyberpunk film The Good Book . Needless to say, it was a day for outsider art.

In a bleak future when those who DON'T use the internet are zombies and everyone else is a shut-in, a disgruntled government IT tech is approached in his dreams by God to upload a computer virus called "the Satan Bug" to destroy the 'net once and for all.…

Review by Shea Mossefin ★★★★

Imaginative and weirdly prophetic DIY from New Jersey taking place in 2023, this pushed a lot of my buttons for minimalist sci-fi with simplistic props and set design and a massive backdrop of a story. Slammed by a pandemic, survivors are sifted either indoor, which requires 100% compliance and reliance on digitized communication (they show an early version of Zoom or video chat) and outdoor, which allows you total freedom but exposure to all elements, including fallout and virus which turns you into a zombo…who moos! A long haired blonde mystery man in a poet’s shirt has a deal to strike with him, and turns out he’s (redacted) and builds to an effects-laden climax. This is a Philip K. Dick soaked ambition that throws a lot of ideas at the wall, further and harder than you’d expect, and I’ll be damned if they didn’t stick! A cool find and reissue from Saturns Core .

Review by SemperConstance ★★★★½

Sits alongside Scooter McCrae's "Shatter Dead" as the two most original and well-made SOV features to come out in the 90s. Where most of the releases of this time period were predicated on heaps of gore and T&A, these two films offered their own perverse worlds, original stories and asked thought-provoking questions. Glad to see Saturn's Core giving them their due after all these years.

Review by ed ★★★★

the newest season of fort**** boasts chills AND thrills! download the community created corporate IP pack (creators compensated in exposure) and play as joseph, a computer repairman who believes god is telling him to destroy the internet. or show up to our ai-generated movie night, where you and spider-punk can enjoy vampire roommate girlfriends part 5. 

the movie suffers from going full prophecy at the end, instead of toying more with the irony of satanas ex machina, recognizing that regardless of our individual actions, we’ve already built our own hell. loved this.

Review by DerichHeath ★★★½

This may be the most ambitious shot-on-video production ever mounted.

In a desolate future environment, a single world government controls people through the internet. Citizens are given two options: 1) remain indoors, never venturing outside for any reason, all necessities delivered on a regular basis by armed government employees (the only people with permission to freely roam the outdoors), or 2) live outside, where no help is provided and you're effectively shunned by society. Those who elected this option, usually against their will, have gradually devolved into mutant-like zombies.

It's a world where people spend all of their time inside, staring at computer screens. In-home entertainment is downloaded from the internet. Physical human contact is extremely limited. The Good Book…

Review by Pluto Gash ★★★★

Wicked ambitious, great atmosphere/ambiance!!! It's got a neat concept, solid no-budget execution and I didn't even think the acting was half bad!!!

Intro cue cards are narrated, informing us that after environmental and economic disaster, the govering bodies of the world united to create GVC which is scary NWO type ish. GVC took over the internet, and the world.

GVC TV channels were cool idea, interdimensional cable type beat/sort of 23&me type parody almost...

Anyone looking for an action-packed or gorey ride will be disappointed, but anyone into atmospheric slowburn conspiracies/sci-fi type concepts just might find enough charm to enjoy this obscure piece of SOV history!!

I know I sure dug it!! I say worthwhile watch and not only can I see myself throwing this one on again for the ambiance, I can see myself potentially rating it even higher upon rewatching... Only time will tell!!!

Thissa big brain mood piece.

Review by SnakeyMacCready ★★★★½ 1

HUGE fan of this movie and I give Saturn's Core many points, they continue to be one of Vinegar Syndrome's best partner labels. I don't know how they found this obscure sov 90s release, but they upconverted the image to HD and put together one of the best "making of" I've seen (I've got a lot of time on my hands lol).

To be honest, it feels like the director (and writers) were so determined to be completely different and original from oh I don't know, every other movie out there (?) that they went so bonkers off the beaten path, it takes a while to truly digest and understand everything the director is trying to say.

First this movie…

Select your preferred poster

Log in or sign up for Rotten Tomatoes

Trouble logging in?

By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes.

Email not verified

Let's keep in touch.

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

• Upcoming Movies and TV shows
• Trivia & Rotten Tomatoes Podcast
• Media News + More

By clicking "Sign Me Up," you are agreeing to receive occasional emails and communications from Fandango Media (Fandango, Vudu, and Rotten Tomatoes) and consenting to Fandango's Privacy Policy and Terms and Policies . Please allow 10 business days for your account to reflect your preferences.

OK, got it!

Movies / TV

No results found.

• What's the Tomatometer®?
• Login/signup

Movies in theaters

• Opening this week
• Top box office
• Coming soon to theaters
• Certified fresh movies

Movies at home

• Netflix streaming
• Prime Video
• Most popular streaming movies
• What to Watch New

Certified fresh picks

• Monkey Man Link to Monkey Man
• The First Omen Link to The First Omen
• The Beast Link to The Beast

New TV Tonight

• Chucky: Season 3
• Mr Bates vs The Post Office: Season 1
• Fallout: Season 1
• Franklin: Season 1
• Dora: Season 1
• Good Times: Season 1
• Beacon 23: Season 2

Most Popular TV on RT

• Ripley: Season 1
• 3 Body Problem: Season 1
• Sugar: Season 1
• Parasyte: The Grey: Season 1
• A Gentleman in Moscow: Season 1
• Shōgun: Season 1
• The Regime: Season 1
• We Were the Lucky Ones: Season 1
• The Gentlemen: Season 1
• Best TV Shows
• Most Popular TV
• TV & Streaming News

Certified fresh pick

• Ripley Link to Ripley
• All-Time Lists
• Binge Guide
• Comics on TV
• Five Favorite Films
• Video Interviews
• Weekend Box Office
• Weekly Ketchup
• What to Watch

Best Movies of 2024: Best New Movies to Watch Now

25 Most Popular TV Shows Right Now: What to Watch on Streaming

What to Watch: In Theaters and On Streaming

Awards Tour

CinemaCon 2024: Day 1 – WB Showcases Joker: Folie à Deux , Furiosa , and More

TV Premiere Dates 2024

• Trending on RT
• Play Movie Trivia

The Good Book Reviews

No All Critics reviews for The Good Book.

'The Book of Clarence' review: The Good Book gets a rewrite

Lakeith stanfield stars in ambitious comic-drama that isn't quite sure what it is..

A big, bold biblical epic that lands roughly half the time, "The Book of Clarence" is admirable in its scope and vision, even if those ultimately outweigh its execution.

The always interesting LaKeith Stanfield stars as Clarence, who is down and out in Jerusalem, where he's deeply in debt to Jedediah the Terrible (Eric Kofi-Abrefa) after losing a chariot race to Mary Magdalene (Teyana Taylor). It's 33 A.D. and Clarence — twin brother of Thomas, he of the 12 apostles (also played by Stanfield) — is skeptical about the whole Jesus thing. So in order to make some quick cash, he decides to start calling himself a messiah, and he amasses his own following, and the riches that come with it.

But to what end? Writer-director Jeymes Samuel, who both upended and embraced Western movie clichés in his 2022 outing, "The Harder They Fall," is taking a crack at making his "Ben-Hur," or his "The Passion of the Christ." But in so doing, the movie occupies an unsteady space between comedy and drama, where the comedy isn't outlandish enough to make it an all-out romp, but the humorous elements are interrupted by moments of shocking intensity. One of the chapters in "The Book of Clarence" should be titled Whiplash.

The film's look, costuming and production values are all outstanding, and the cast is full of notables, including RJ Cyler as Clarence's sidekick, Alfre Woodard as Mother Mary, David Oyelowo as John the Baptist and James McAvoy as Pontius Pilate.

Samuel's dialogue-heavy script can be a lot to chew on at times, and he lightens the mood with comic elements, including a scene where clubgoers dance to Detroiters the Jones Girls' "Nights Over Egypt," a full 1,948 years before it was released. Blunts are smoked throughout, and one scene plays like "Up in Smoke" or "Half-Baked," further blurring the lines of Samuel's ultimate intent: is he sending up the Bible, or honoring it?

Mainly, he's asking questions. "The Book of Clarence" will give theologians and Bible study groups plenty to discuss and dissect, though it might miss the mark with mainstream audiences looking for something more down the middle. It's about belief, faith, denial and acceptance, issues that are well worth examining, even if the answers aren't as easy to come by.

[email protected]

'The Book of Clarence'

Rated PG-13: for strong violence, drug use, strong language, some suggestive material, and smoking.

Running time: 129 minutes

In theaters

Maintenance in progress

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

The Good Book

A dark, futuristic tale of society's doomed near future. A dark, futuristic tale of society's doomed near future. A dark, futuristic tale of society's doomed near future.

• Matthew Giaquinto
• Barry Gerdsen
• Bryan Campbell
• Chris Paine
• 1 User review
• 3 Critic reviews

• Joseph Cyrus
• Mike Sturges
• GVC Three …
• Computer Guy
• Man In VGRP5
• Vampiress 1 …
• Master Control …
• Soap Opera Girl …
• Soap Opera Guy …
• Receptionist …
• Psycho Girl
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

More like this

Did you know

• Trivia Director Matthew Giaquinto, while making this movie, was a (staff) Documentary Producer for AMC American Movie Classics. With an office in central Long Island, on Friday nights, Giaquinto would wait until the office had emptied out, he would then back up his truck and load up with as much equipment as possible. He would then drive several hours to North New Jersey, film all weekend, and on Monday morning, he would return all of the equipment before anyone else came in.
• Connections References The Satan Bug (1965)
• Soundtracks Think Punk Written by American Standard Performed by American Standard

User reviews 1

• Apr 25, 2000
• United States
• Hibernia, New Jersey, USA
• Drop Dead Films
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $7,000 (estimated)

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 21 minutes
• Black and White

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• See more gaps
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed

Home » TV Service

Is the Book Better Than the Movie?

90% of the time, the answer is a resounding yes

We may earn money when you click our links.

It’s an age-old debate, which is better, the book or the movie? We analyzed over 1,100 books and compared them to their movie adaptations to see which fans prefer.

From Harry Potter to The Lord of The Rings to James Bond , we took a deep dive in an attempt to solve the book vs. movie debate.

Once you’ve finished comparing, be sure to check out some of the top streaming services to see where you can catch up on these great films.

Which is better, the book or the movie?

The TL;DR is that the book is almost always better than the movie.

In our review of over 1,100 books, we found that the book was rated higher than the movie 89% percent of the time—that’s 9 out of 10 book-to-movie adaptations!

Readers also came out in higher numbers to rate their favorite books. Most written works had over 265k ratings, while most movies had only 109k ratings.

Curious what books made it to the silver screen more than others? James Bond is the clear winner in this department, having 15 more movies than the next runner-up, Harry Potter .

Popular book-to-movie franchises

Let’s dive into some of the most popular book-to-movie franchises to see how they fared—the ultimate battle of Hollywood versus the mighty word.

Harry Potter

The original Harry Potter series was made up of seven books but translated to eight movies, as the final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows , was split in two.

The highest scoring Harry Potter film was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 with a rating of 8.1/10, but that didn’t even come close to the book series.

When it comes to the book series, the lowest-rated book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets , scored 8.9/10.

Lord of the Rings

There is one ring to rule them all, but Sauron didn’t go to Jared to get it.

From The Lord of the Rings to The Return of the King , none of J.R.R. Tolkein’s books scored below an 8.7 rating—that’s quite an impressive feat!

While nearly all of Tolkien’s books were beloved more than the films, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring did score an 8.8, while the book scored an 8.7. These two titles came very close, but we need to give it to the film for this one.

In another creation of J.R.R. Tolkien, we dive into a world of fantasy with The Hobbit . Originally a single book titled, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again , the book was expanded into three modern films.

When it made its way to Hollywood, The Hobbit became a trilogy, splitting into An Unexpected Journey , The Desolation of Smaug , and The Battle of the Five Armies .

There should be no surprise that while the book scored a rating of 8.6, the average film score was 7.7—an admirable effort, but still not better than the books.

The Hunger Games

No, this series isn’t about a delicious meal; the hunger within the series’ name refers to an annual event in which children fight to the death—harsh.

Author Suzanne Collins crafted three books in the Hunger Games series, but Hollywood translated the works into four movies, splitting the last book into two parts.

Reviews found all of Collins’ works to be rated better than the movie series with the last book scoring 1.5 points higher than the film adaptation.

Sparkling vampires, attractive werewolves, and a huge serving of paranormal romance—that’s how to describe Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga.

While both the books and films served as a cultural phenomenon, critics didn’t hold back any punches. None of the movies scored above a 5.5 rating with the worst film, New Moon , scoring only a 4.7.

If you’re looking for a romance with a teenage vampire or werewolf, you’re likely to find a better experience within the books.

Jason Bourne

To viewers of the films, Matt Damon is the spy-gone-rogue, Jason Bourne, in Robert Ludlum’s series of heart-pounding adventures, but the series started on paper.

Originating in the 1980s as a series of novels, Ludlum’s series made it to the big screen in 2002, introducing us all to Operation Treadstone.

Even if you’ve seen the movies, you’ll want to pick up the books as they all score higher than their film counterparts by an average of 0.4 points.

Bond, James Bond.

This martini-drinking man needs no introduction. James Bond is quite simply the world’s most well-known spy, which considering his occupation probably isn’t an advantage.

British writer, Ian Fleming, brought the character to life in 1953 within his novel Casino Royale . Since Bond hit the silver screen in 1962, there have been over two dozen films produced with the latest actor to portray the spy being Daniel Craig.

While the majority of Fleming’s novels were found to be better than their film adaptations, three films stood out with higher scores: Casino Royale , Goldfinger , and The Spy Who Loved Me .

Grab that book and start reading

Sorry movie-goers, when it comes down to an analysis, the majority of books score higher than their film adaptations. It appears readers win this argument over film buffs.

Then again, who says you can only enjoy your entertainment a single way? Work your way through a series of novels, then hit up Netflix to watch the latest adaptation.

If you find that your movie-watching experience isn’t streaming so smoothly, you may also want to check out the best internet providers for a more reliable connection.

Methodology and Sources

To determine whether the books or movie adaptations are better, we sourced ratings and lists from Goodreads. To compare, we sourced movie ratings from IMDb.

To determine whether the books or movie adaptations were better, we sourced seed lists of book to movie adaptations from Goodreads.

After removing duplicate titles, we normalized the Goodreads ratings on a 1-10 scale and sourced the movie ratings from IMDb to compare.

In total, 1,168 titles were analyzed.

• Goodreads seed lists - List 1 , List 2
• Movie data sourced from OMDB

This analysis was conducted by Reviews.org and is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with any of the entities listed above or their affiliates.

Related Articles

Our Methodology

Go to Reviews.org AU edition

Internet in your area

Internet in Los Angeles

Internet in New York City

Internet in Atlanta

Internet in Houston

Stay updated on the latest products and services anytime, anywhere.

By signing up, you agree to our  Terms of Use  and  Privacy Policy .

All content © 2023 Reviews.org. All rights reserved. Disclaimer

The Good Book

Cast & Crew

Movie details, popular drama movies.

Movie Reviews

Follow Moviefone

Movie trailers.

Movie Reviews

Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, the good lie.

Now streaming on:

You heard of a feel-good movie? This is a feel-right movie. The truths that are rooted in “The Good Lie” are exactly what set it free from the trap of being the latest example of Hollywood-generated inspirational hogwash. Not that this intimate account of how a band of Sudanese orphans survived a bloody civil war (which raged on for more than two decades starting in 1983) and managed to forge a fresh start in America years later isn’t uplifting. How could it not be?

But instead of settling for being simplistic and condescending, this moving story possesses an honesty that compensates for any of the more obvious tugs on our tear ducts, most of which arrive in the latter part of the film.  The primary source of this authenticity is a cast populated with South Sudanese actors who captivate without pretense. Two of the three male leads, as well as the actress who plays their sister, were caught up in the conflict before fleeing their homeland for asylum elsewhere. One was a child soldier, the other two lost relatives in the war.

An innate understanding of what their parts entail pours forth from their very being. You can sense it in their faces, their body language, in the distinctive cadence of their speech, and in their humble though dignified stances. Even the younger versions of their characters are the offspring of the so-called “Lost Boys of Sudan.”

The trailers and poster for "The Good Lie" give the impression that Reese Witherspoon is the star and that her plucky Midwesterner is yet another cinematic incarnation of a white savior coming to the rescue of struggling black people, similar to the role that earned Sandra Bullock an Academy Award in 2009’s “The Blind Side.”  But that’s just a marketing ploy that relies on its own good lie as a selling tool: promoting an Oscar-winner as bait for a drama full of unknowns. 

There does exist a 2011 film, “ Machine Gun Preacher ,” that fits that clichéd description in the manner in which it uses the Sudanese unrest as a backdrop. The biopic verges on B-movie exploitation as it features Gerard Butler as a reformed drug-abusing outlaw biker who becomes a missionary and pledges to defend the African orphans against guerrilla forces. The outcome isn’t exactly awful, but the movie’s biggest mistake is telling the wrong story about the wrong hero.

Instead, “The Good Lie” honors its subject matter by devoting its first half-hour or so to events that unfold in Sudan, starting with a sudden and brutal attack on a rural village. Bullets are fired from a swooping helicopter, killing everyone save for several children. Related or not, they form a makeshift family and embark on a grueling 1,000-mile barefoot trek across punishing terrain where the threat of danger is around every bend.

Hoping to draw a wider audience with a PG-13 rating, Canadian director Philippe Falardeau (“ Monsieur Lazhar ,” a 2011 nominee for best foreign language film) skillfully finds a way to keep graphic violence at bay and still get the point across with a harrowing sequence that involves crossing a river strewn with floating dead bodies to evade the vicious rebels nearby.

Starvation, a lack of water and illness claim the lives of several of the companions. As for Theo, who inherited his late father’s status as chief, he allows himself to be captured to save the rest, who eventually find sanctuary at a Kenyan refugee camp. And there they will stay for 13 years, until humanitarian efforts abroad allow them to seek a permanent home in Kansas City, Mo., where three of Theo’s brothers–gentle giant Jeremiah ( Ger Duany ), handyman Paul ( Emmanuel Jal ) and Mamere ( Arnold Oceng , a standout who knows how to express a lot with little apparent effort)–are sent.

Enter Witherspoon, with long brown locks that put her natural glow on a dimmer switch. She’s Carrie Davis, a free-spirited single lady (afternoon trysts and all that) and take-charge job recruiter tasked with finding work for the trio. Unfortunately, when a rep from a Christian charity group (bouncy Sarah Baker ) can’t pick them up at the airport, Carrie soon becomes a reluctant chauffeur and ambassador for the three young men.

It is a good thing these actors are charming enough that they aren’t too hampered by a long string of fish-out-of-water gags. Everything from escalators to telephones to lemon-lime Jell-O rings serve as  sources of culture-shock humor. However, it is kind of cute when Mamere thanks Carrie for her help by saying, “May you find a husband to fill your empty house.”

But the moment that best expresses the joy of their newfound freedom is when Mamere shares a joke he heard at work that day: “Why did the chicken cross the road?” The well-known punchline – “To get to the other side” – results in fits of glorious laughter. When Paul starts chuckling again minutes later, he explains with a grin, “I am thinking about that chicken.”

Not everything goes smoothly, of course. There are on-the-job misunderstandings, tensions between the brothers, and homesickness that is somewhat eased whenever the trio visits the farm belonging to Carrie’s boss, Jack ( Corey Stoll , always a welcome sight) and hang out with his cows as they used to do in their village. Falardeau and screenwriter Margaret Nagle (who developed TV’s new “Red Band Society”) lend a somber weight to their travails by relying on silent flashbacks of past ordeals to suggest pangs of trauma, guilt, grief and longing.

A double whammy of complications closes the movie, one of which involves sister Abital (the lovely Kuoth Wiel ), who was forced to live with a family in Boston when they all first arrived and has been separated from her brothers ever since. Carrie, who finds herself becoming more and more attached to the threesome, goes full pit bull and makes a reunion her personal mission, red tape and post-9/11 regulations be damned.

Susan Wloszczyna

Susan Wloszczyna spent much of her nearly thirty years at USA TODAY as a senior entertainment reporter. Now unchained from the grind of daily journalism, she is ready to view the world of movies with fresh eyes.

Now playing

God Save Texas

Matt zoller seitz.

Girls State

Tomris Laffly

Lousy Carter

Clint worthington.

Peyton Robinson

Film credits.

The Good Lie (2014)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some violence, brief strong language and drug use

110 minutes

Reese Witherspoon as Carrie Davis

Arnold Oceng as Mamere

Ger Duany as Jeremiah

Emmanuel Jal as Paul

Corey Stoll as Jack

Kuoth Wiel as Abital

Sarah Baker as Pamela Lowi

• Philippe Falardeau
• Margaret Nagle

Latest blog posts

The Zellner Brothers Take a Walk in the Woods with Sasquatch Sunset

The Scene That Clint Eastwood Cut to Make Unforgiven a Classic

Ape Shall Not Kill Ape: A Look at the Entire Apes Franchise

​Criterion Celebrates the Films That Forever Shifted Our Perception of Kristen Stewart​

Netflix’s ‘Ripley’ is a scrupulous, stylish adaptation with Andrew Scott as its star

• Show more sharing options
• Copy Link URL Copied!

“Ripley,” which premieres Thursday on Netflix, is a straightforward and involving, if somewhat cold-blooded, adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 novel “ The Talented Mr. Ripley .” It alters some minor details, expands some portions, and follows the line of the book nearly to the end. (It has a slightly different idea of where to land.) In other words, it’s like every literary adaptation ever, if more scrupulous than most.

Not to give too much away to those who haven’t read the book or seen two previous adaptations — the René Clément 1960 film “ Purple Noon ,” which made a star of Alain Delon, or Anthony Minghella’s 1999 version with Matt Damon and Jude Law — this is the tale of a man who takes on the identity of another man, with the result that he has to spend the rest of the story devising elaborate strategies, or taking impulsive action, to protect himself.

Andrew Scott (Moriarty in “ Sherlock ,” the hot priest in “ Fleabag ”) plays Tom Ripley, a New Yorker barely getting by on small-time scams; out of nowhere, he’s offered the opportunity to travel to Italy to convince one Dickie Greenleaf (Johnny Flynn), with whom he has a tenuous connection, to return home and join his father’s shipbuilding business.

Dickie, possessor of an irrevocable trust fund, has settled in Atrani, a hillside seaside village on the Amalfi Coast, where he paints (poorly), swims, sails, sits in cafes and hangs out with Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning), the only other American in town, who’s writing a book about the place. Dickie has no desire to return to America, and who can blame him? After a couple of non-coincidental encounters, he invites Tom to stay at his roomy villa. Marge is doubtful. A sort of isosceles triangle is formed, which will eventually collapse.

Director-screenwriter Steven Zaillian , whose screenplays include “Moneyball,” “The Irishman,” “Awakenings” and “Schindler’s List,” has set his adaptation in 1961, six years after the book was published, and shot it in black and white. Cinematographer Robert Elswit, whose credits include “Good Night, and Good Luck,” also in black and white, and “There Will Be Blood,” which netted him an Oscar, is the series’ secret star.

Andrew Scott and Dakota Fanning say their ‘Ripley’ characters aren’t rivals, ‘they’re frenemies’

The stars of Netflix’s “Ripley,” an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel, talk about why we can’t get enough of con artists, how they’ve been duped and all those stairs in the show.

April 2, 2024

Zaillian has said he was inspired by the black-and-white cover of his copy of the novel, and it is of course the default look of film noir. But I would note, too, that 1961 falls between Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” — the title of the series’ fourth episode, not incidentally — and “8 1/2,” and at the midpoint of Michelangelo Antonioni’s great “trilogy” of “L’Aventurra,” “ La Notte ” and “L’Eclisse,” their last films before turning to color, masterpieces of tonal control and composition. There’s barely a frame of “Ripley” that isn’t thoroughly considered; it’s conspicuously stylish, but never mannered.

The action travels from Naples to Rome to Venice (and up and down many stairs — it’s a motif). We’ve grown so accustomed to seeing the world in color, through movies and travel shows and such, that much of the romance of those pictures has been washed away; the monochrome images paradoxically refresh these scenes, sharpen edges, invite your examination. The camera — like Tom, by extension — takes pleasure in the texture of a pitted wall, in the smooth marble of Baroque sculptures, and looks lovingly on all manner of objects, appropriate to a story partially about the power of things to define taste, furnish a life, create a self. (They can be dangerous too: a glass ashtray purchased in one act will crack a skull in another.)

Tom, whose sense of self is variable, even if his sense of entitlement is not, wants what Dickie has, which in essence is to be Dickie. The Italian instruction record that plays in the background as Tom ambles about his host’s art-filled villa mirrors his ambition: “How much money do you need?” “It’s not enough.” “What’s the matter with you?” “What happened?” “Who said so?” “Who is he?” “Who knows?” “Whose is this?” “It’s yours.” … “It’s mine.”

At 47, Scott is nearly twice the age of Highsmith’s Ripley, which puts a different spin on the character. (This might be convenient, however, if Netflix continues the series, as the stripped down title suggests it might; the fifth and final Ripley book, “Ripley Under Water,” was published 36 years after the first.) His vaguely lined mien suggests premature strain, which feels at odds with a character we’re to take as an expert dissembler, not to say a sociopath.

Still, it’s not easy to portray a person whose constructed public self is at odds with the private, and who can’t always tell the difference between the two. Highsmith’s novel is written from Tom’s complicated, contradictory point of view, which allows the reader to identify with him, even as his behavior grows increasingly unacceptable; seen from the outside, he feels more like a case study than a protagonist. The effortful, pasted-on smile Tom wears in the early episodes comes off as creepy and pitiful; and though Tom is creepy and pitiful, it’s hard to credit him charming his way into Dickie’s company, let alone establishing the perceived friendship upon whose fortunes the plot will psychologically depend. Later, when he has achieved his goal of becoming someone else, he does seem to relax, to become better company.

Zaillian’s most significant addition to the text centers around the paintings of Caravaggio, which Dickie introduces to Tom, and Tom continues to visit on his own. This might be a subtle linking of the painter’s bisexuality, which is not discussed, to Tom’s confused sexuality, which is barely noted — “Ripley” is the antitheses of homo-eroticism — but also his violent life. As Tom views Caravaggio’s “ David With the Head of Goliath ” at the Galleria Borghese in Rome, a docent explains how the painter has linked “the killer and his victim by portraying David as compassionate, even loving” and, most applicable to Tom’s situation, using himself as the model for both. It might also have something to do with Caravaggio’s use of darkness and light, as a comment on Tom’s character and aspirations. Or it could just be that Zaillian wanted to visit those paintings himself, and to photograph the extraordinary settings where they’re hung — it’s a plus, anyway.

Most felicitously, Zaillian has expanded the role of the police inspector (sad-eyed Maurizio Lombardi) who comes to investigate some unexplained absences and brings a weary, workaday warmth into the show. For a time, we are in the familiar moral universe of a detective story, which might make Tom nervous but provides the viewer some relief. For that matter, the clerks and waiters, maids and landlady and other regular Italians who fill out the action provide a counterweight to our screwy American hero and tether “Ripley” to the ordinary, less disturbing world.

The landlady has a cat, too, that gets a lot of screen time, and is quite good.

More to Read

An 18th-century Englishwoman takes on toffs, and toughs, in winning ‘Renegade Nell’

March 29, 2024

Review: ‘Io Capitano’ captures the harrowing plight of African migrants in all its extremity

Feb. 23, 2024

Through many different lenses, the Frankenstein myth endures. Teen rom-com, anyone?

Feb. 15, 2024

The complete guide to home viewing

Get Screen Gab for everything about the TV shows and streaming movies everyone’s talking about.

You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.

Robert Lloyd has been a Los Angeles Times television critic since 2003.

More From the Los Angeles Times

For ‘Abbott Elementary’s’ Chris Perfetti, ‘tragic circumstances’ are comedy gold

Todd Chrisley is ordered to pay Georgia investigator $755,000 in defamation lawsuit loss

April 9, 2024

‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ finale and its ‘Seinfeld’ moment: ‘A joke 26 years in the making’

April 8, 2024

A stairwell at Cartoon Network Studios captured 20 years of history. Now you can see it, too

Things you buy through our links may earn  Vox Media  a commission.

There’s Really Nothing Else Like The Beast

Léa Seydoux and George MacKay play thwarted lovers over three different lifetimes in The Beast , but I wouldn’t describe Bertrand Bonello’s unsettling feature as a romance. It tries out different genres, from period drama to science fiction, but it’s closest in spirit to a horror movie. This is acknowledged by the opening scene, in which Seydoux steps out onto a green-screen set to enact being threatened by a monster that will be added in post. An off-screen voice guides her through the blocking and directs her to her mark. Can she pretend to be afraid of something that isn’t there? She can, and she does, producing a show of animal panic as an ominous score strikes up and the camera closes in to capture her wild eyes. The power of her fear makes it an eerie sight, even knowing there’s no actual threat — an idea that The Beast echoes and remixes as it leaps from period to period and mode to mode, flinging its characters together in different doomed scenarios.

Seydoux’s character, Gabrielle, is a model and aspiring actor in 2014 Los Angeles, which explains the green screen — she’ll later book a gig on a similar set to shoot a grotesque safety video in which she’s flung around on wires in a simulation of a car accident. In Paris in 1910, Gabrielle is the aristocratic wife of a doll-factory owner, while in the hollowed-out future of 2044, she’s a dissatisfied worker in a world dominated by AI, where professional advancement requires submitting to a procedure that rids you of strong emotions by regressing you through your past lives. That last scenario is, in theory, the film’s present day and the point from which The Beast starts. But there’s a case to be made for each timeline being the dominant one, which keeps a viewer off-balance. The earliest story line is most directly related to the film’s loosely cited source material, the 1903 Henry James novella The Beast in the Jungle , about a man who refuses to marry or allow anyone into his life because he’s convinced that some unspecified doom is coming his way. For me, though, the 2014-set scenes exert the greatest pull, because of a daredevil bold choice: They draw inspiration from a real, and recent, mass shooter.

In each of the entwined segments, Gabrielle encounters MacKay’s character, Louis, and is inexorably drawn to him despite it always leading to her destruction. In 1910, he’s an Englishman she reencounters at a party after meeting him at a dinner years before, and in 2044, he’s another candidate questioning whether the “purification” process is right for him. But in 2014, he’s an incel with violent intentions who stalks Gabrielle back to the sprawling place where she’s house-sitting, representing a direct threat to her life rather than one to her stability or to her heart. The paralyzing fear in James’s book becomes a specifically masculine one in the movie — a fear of vulnerability and getting hurt. In flooded Paris, Louis pursues the now happily married Gabrielle, having been too intimidated to express interest in her when they first met. In the future, where everyone wears gas masks to walk through city streets so desolate that wildlife freely roams, Louis looks like a fellow holdout against the numbing bargain offered by AI but can’t be relied upon to hold strong.

In 2014, he’s channeled his apprehension about rejection into rage, which he expresses in misogynistic video rants that draw from Elliot Rodger. When Gabrielle approaches Louis in the wake of an earthquake that brings everyone outdoors, he’s stiff and unreceptive to her advances, unwilling to accept that she might genuinely be interested. This Louis is significantly more extreme than the others, and The Beast flounders a bit in trying to link the fears holding all three back. But that’s also what’s so engaging about the movie — it overflows with intriguing ideas, even if they aren’t all fully explored. Different elements recur like rhymes: The doll factory in 1910 is mirrored by an animatronic toy that keeps Gabrielle company in 2014 and by the gynoid, played memorably by Saint Omer ’s Guslagie Malanda, assigned to watch over her in 2044. Gabrielle is rejected by a trio of women at a Hollywood Boulevard nightclub in Los Angeles, only for the exact same encounter to happen at a retro disco in the future. There are repeat run-ins with clairvoyants, bodies floating in water, and admiring touches of hands. Throughout all this, Seydoux, an absurdly watchable actor who came close to stealing last month’s Dune: Part Two with only a handful of scenes, shifts seamlessly between corseted melodrama and dystopian sci-fi.

Still, it’s in the period closest to the present day where she’s most impressive. Bonello cribs heavily from David Lynch for the 2014 segment, which is suffused with dreamlike dread as the lonely Gabrielle haunts dance spots and drifts around the fish tank of a mansion she’s been living in, her desire for human connection overcoming her sense of self-preservation. It’s difficult to make a character feel tangible and human while also allowing them to do inexplicable things. But even when Gabrielle is in the grip of forces she seems hopeless to control, Seydoux finds warmth and a kamikaze openness that allows room for hope even amid several existences’ worth of pain. Better to be contradictory and messy and feel too much than to be dully consistent — praise that also applies to The Beast as a whole.

More Movie Reviews

• Monkey Man Is a Solid Action Thriller, But It Clearly Wants to Be More
• Behold, an Actually Good Omen Movie
• With The Old Oak , Ken Loach Goes Out on a Hopeful Note
• vulture section lede
• vulture homepage lede
• movie review
• george mackay
• léa seydoux
• bertrand bonello

Most Viewed Stories

• Cinematrix No. 33: April 10, 2024
• Shōgun Recap: A Funeral in Edo
• Prosecutors Say Alec Baldwin Had ‘Absolutely No Control’ Over Emotions on Rust
• Curb Your Enthusiasm Finale Recap: A Free Man
• The Hollow Puzzle
• Every HBO Show, Ranked
• Below Deck Recap: Paris Peace Talks

Editor’s Picks

Most Popular

• Vanderpump Rules Recap: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Breakup

What is your email?

This email will be used to sign into all New York sites. By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy and to receive email correspondence from us.

Sign In To Continue Reading

Create your free account.

Password must be at least 8 characters and contain:

• Lower case letters (a-z)
• Upper case letters (A-Z)
• Numbers (0-9)
• Special Characters (!@#$%^&*)

As part of your account, you’ll receive occasional updates and offers from New York , which you can opt out of anytime.

‘The Fall Guy’s First Reactions Are In and the Action Rom-Com Is Living Up to the Hype

A fresh batch of reactions have arrived hot off the press from the film’s screening at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

The Big Picture

• Critics are praising The Fall Guy as a pulse-pounding, laugh-out-loud action rom-com with impeccable chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt.
• Steven Weintraub calls the movie awesome, tweeting about his third screening, showcasing the film's undeniable appeal.
• The Fall Guy follows Colt Seavers, a stuntman pulled back into the industry to save a film and reunite with his ex.

Audiences are now just one month away from witnessing David Leitch’s latest action-packed flick , The Fall Guy , and first reactions are rolling in from the festivities at this year’s CinemaCon in Las Vegas, Nevada . The movie has been one of the most hotly anticipated titles of 2024, and it’s easy to understand why. Along with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt , the feature is overflowing with notable names, while Leitch has promised that it will be his biggest project yet - kicking things into high gear and pushing the boundaries of his cast, crew, and stunt team. With Perri Nemiroff as our boots on the ground during the film’s world premiere at SXSW ( of which she gave a glowing review ), we now have our first pieces of insight from others in the industry as well as Collider’s Britta DeVore , who was in attendance at the film’s CinemaCon screening.

According to DeVore, “ The Fall Guy was a pulse-pounding thrill ride that you’ll want to catch on the biggest screen possible. For every explosive action sequence, there’s a laugh-out-loud moment, and not only do Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt take center stage with their electrifying romantic tension, but the supporting characters absolutely steal the show. Kicking off the season of summer blockbusters, this one will be tough to follow. ”

While Collider's Steve Weintraub hasn't shared his full opinions on the film yet, he did share that he was on his third screening of The Fall Guy , which certainly speaks for itself.

What Are Critics Saying About 'The Fall Guy'?

While CinemaCon isn't the first time that The Fall Guy has screened for critics this month, it is the first time that we're getting to see a lot of reactions from moviegoers last night. Most seem to be in agreement that the film is a lot of fun, including Germain Lussier who echoed Weintraub's sentiments about wanting to see the film more than once.

Hunter Bolding and Doug Jamieson both praised Gosling and Blunt's "immaculate" and "electric" chemistry. That chemistry appears to be a vital aspect of The Fall Guy , considering Daniel Howat called the film an "action rom-com" which is certainly a selling point to audiences that are starved for more rom-coms.

What Is ‘The Fall Guy’ About?

Stealing its premise and title from the Lee Majors -led 1980s TV series of the same name, The Fall Guy tells the story of a washed-up stuntman named Colt Seavers (Gosling) who finds himself back in biz on the set of a major film . But this isn’t just any gig, as Colt will be working alongside his ex-girlfriend, Jody Moreno (Blunt) - the film’s director. When things go horribly awry after the leading man seemingly vanishes into thin air, Colt risks life and limb to find the star and bring him back to set in hopes of saving the movie and reigniting the spark with his ex.

Along with Gosling and Blunt, The Fall Guy brings in a slew of other gargantuanly talented names including Winston Duke ( Us ), Hannah Waddingham ( Ted Lasso ), Stephanie Hsu ( Everything Everywhere All at Once ), Aaron Taylor-Johnson ( Kraven the Hunter ), and Teresa Palmer ( A Discovery of Witches ).

Learn everything there is to know about Leitch’s ode to stunt performers here in our guide and check out the trailer below. The Fall Guy crashes into cinemas on May 3.

The Fall Guy

Colt Seavers is a stuntman who left the business a year earlier to focus on both his physical and mental health. He's drafted back into service when the star of a mega-budget studio movie, which is being directed by his ex, goes missing.

13 Cases Where the Book Was Way Better Than the Movie

Posted: January 18, 2024 | Last updated: January 18, 2024

Leave It On the Bookshelf

Plenty of popular books have made for incredible movies: the “Harry Potter” series, “The Notebook,” “The Help” — the list goes on. Some readers and viewers even prefer the movie versions of their favorite stories. On the other hand, some film adaptations are better left in their original, written form. Here are some of the most notable, well-known, and well-loved books that were made into cringeworthy films.

‘The Hobbit’ | J.R.R. Tolkien

Film Adaptations: “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (2012), “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (2013), and “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” (2014)

Critic Quote: “‘The Hobbit’ is just one book, and its expansion into three movies feels arbitrary and mercenary.” — The New York Times

Despite “The Hobbit” being only one book, the 310-page novel was split into three different movie installments, resulting in some serious overkill. J.R.R. Tolkien’s lighthearted fantasy is full of action and adventure, but stretching the story across a trilogy of films bogs down the impact, deviating from the original, simple plotline.

‘The Scarlet Letter’ | Nathaniel Hawthorne

Film Adaptation: “The Scarlet Letter” (1995)

Critic Quote: “Read the book. Forget this movie.” — CNN

Arguably one of the most well-known stories of all time, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” completely falters from the original intention of the story and deviates to an over-sexualized romance instead. Even stars Demi Moore and Gary Oldman as the unlucky lovers can do nothing to salvage this mangled interpretation.

‘The Time Machine’ | H.G. Wells

Film Adaptation: “The Time Machine” (2002)

Critic Quote: “So much effort has been put into creating a believable world for the traveler to come from and a creditable back story for his trip that what happens 800,000 years in the future seems to belong to a completely different — and less interesting — picture.” — Los Angeles Times

H.G. Wells’ classic novella “The Time Machine” was penned in 1895. In 2002, Wells’ great grandson unveiled the film adaptation, but missed the mark. While the original story’s plot line revolved around an inventor creating a time machine in an effort to save the life of the woman he loved, the movie contained too many bells and whistles and muffled the point of the tale.

‘The Lovely Bones’ | Alice Sebold

Film Adaptation: “The Lovely Bones” (2009)

Critic Quote: “In this case, though, he has changed the focus and characters to such a significant degree that his film might resonate more with those who have not read the book.”— The Hollywood Reporter

Alice Sebold’s “The Lovely Bones” is a haunting, yet beautiful story about a young girl who is murdered and watches over her family as they grieve her loss and try to find her killer. While the book exudes an eerie beauty and focuses on the healing process, the movie leans more toward a suspenseful thriller that is a little disturbing. Despite earning an Oscar nod for Stanley Tucci as the murderous neighbor, the movie was considered a fail by lovers of the book.

‘Paper Towns’ | John Green

Film Adaptation: “Paper Towns” (2015)

Critic Quote: “Teenage angst has been a lucrative movie racket for years, but what happens when the kids are pretty much all right? Not a whole lot, at least in ‘Paper Towns,’ a serenely bland adaptation of the John Green young-adult novel about a regular boy in love with the mystery girl next door.” — The New York Times

After the success of the film adaptation of John Green’s “The Fault in Our Stars,” it made sense to try for another box office hit and turn “Paper Towns” into a movie. Unfortunately, the movie didn’t measure up and wasn’t able to effectively convey the charm of the novel.

Related: The Bestselling Book That's Set in Your State

‘A Walk to Remember’ | Nicholas Sparks

Film Adaptation: “A Walk to Remember” (2002)

Critic Quote: “‘'A Walk to Remember’ proves that a movie about goodness is not the same thing as a good movie.” — The New York Times

Plenty of Nicholas Sparks novels have been translated over to film adaptations, many of which became commercially successful. “A Walk to Remember” ended up being quite underwhelming, however, despite featuring a pre-”This Is Us” Mandy Moore. While the movie follows the same general plot of the book, it lacks some of the more detailed conflicts that occur in the novel, making it less captivating.

Related: The Worst Movies Ever Made, According to Critics

‘Twilight’ | Stephenie Meyer

Film Adaptations: “Twilight” (2008)

Critic Quote: “Bella’s decision to get hot and heavy with a hot-and-hungry vampire, far from seeming like an act of mad, transgressive passion, comes across as merely stupid and ill-considered.” — Variety

While Stephenie Meyer’s “Twilight” novel was able to dive into character development and provide insight for readers, the movie did not spend enough time allowing viewers into the minds of characters, making their actions seem confusing and at times, comical. As a result, the movie didn’t quite land the way the book did, though it was successful enough at the box office to turn Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart into stars and fuel four sequels.

‘Gulliver’s Travels’ | Johnathon Swift

Film Adaptation: “Gulliver’s Travels” (2010)

Critic Quote: “The film feels rushed and slight at every point.” — The Hollywood Reporter

Jonathon Swift’s 1726 novel “Gulliver’s Travels” is a beloved classic for adults and children alike, but the big screen adaptation is cheesy and lacks the whimsy and charm that the novel exudes. Critics everywhere agreed that the film had a lazy, lackluster script and star Jack Black did little to salvage it.

‘The Great Gatsby’ | F. Scott Fitzgerald

Film Adaptation: “The Great Gatsby” (2013)

Critic Quote: “Arguably, the movie reaches its orgiastic peak 30 minutes in, with the first full reveal of Gatsby himself (Leonardo DiCaprio), accompanied by an explosion of fireworks and the eruption of Gershwin on the soundtrack. Where, really, can one go from there?” — Variety

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless masterpiece, “The Great Gatsby” has now been adapted into film four different times, with the most recent rendition debuting in 2013. The film, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, focused too much on the style and pizazz of Gatsby’s world rather than emphasizing the actual substance of the story. While everyone looked the part and there was no shortage of glitz and glam, the plot just wasn’t as engaging and well-executed as it should have been.

‘Eragon’ | Christopher Paolini

Film Adaptation: “Eragon” (2006)

Critic Quote: “Even the scaly star, a Delft-blue beastie whose tint suggests either royal lineage or hypothermia, seems unsure of her motivation.” — The New York Times

While Christopher Paolini’s “Eragon” is a book full of rich mythology and fantasy, the film adaptation was underwhelming at best. The movie lacked creativity and missed so many opportunities for humor, charm, and flair. Despite stars like John Malkovich and Jeremy Irons, there was no cure for terrible dialogue and nonsensical plotting.

‘A Wrinkle In Time’ | Madeleine L'Engle

Film Adaptation: “A Wrinkle in Time” (2018)

Critic Quote: “‘A Wrinkle in Time’ is wildly uneven, weirdly suspenseless and tonally all over the place, relying on wall-to-wall music to supply the missing emotional connection and trowel over huge plot holes.” — Variety

The film version of Madeleine L’Engle’s fantasy “A Wrinkle In Time” rushes through the story and doesn’t spend enough time developing characters and the plot, jumping from scene to scene too quickly. The film is overdone to the point of tackiness and the theme of the story becomes muddled with all of the background noise despite Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which and lush special effects.

‘The Cat in the Hat’ by Dr. Seuss

Film Adaptation: “The Cat in the Hat” (2003)

Critic Quote: “For an alleged comedy, “Cat” pulls few real laughs out of its hat, but does have the effect of putting the viewer into a state of low-level stupefaction, a condition that can cut either way depending upon one’s mental and physical constitution.” — Variety

Dr. Seuss’ “The Cat in the Hat” is a children’s classic, full of fun and whimsy. The book is the perfect amount of cheeky and is entertaining for both kids and adults. The movie, starring Mike Myers, might amuse children but will leave adults feeling overwhelmed by the chaotic scenes and underwhelmed by the humor. 

Related: Awesomely Bad Holiday Movies Starring A-Listers

‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief’ | Rick Riordan

Film Adaptation: “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” (2010)

Critic Quote: “What’s really lacking in ‘The Lightning Thief’ is a genuine sense of wonder, the same thing that brings viewers back to Hogwarts over and over again. Percy’s world seems like a decent place to visit, but it’s just not magical enough to make you want to live there.” — The Hollywood Reporter

Book lovers everywhere are often skeptical when their favorite stories are turned into movies. In the case of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief,” the story deviates from the book quite a bit, ultimately rubbing viewers and readers the wrong way. The movie has a weaker plot line than the book and bland characterizations, making it an overall flop.

This article was originally published on Cheapism

More From Cheapism

• The Cost of a Beer and a Hot Dog at Every MLB Ballpark
• Unusual and Rare Items That Sold at Auction for Serious Money
• 27 Most Iconic Cars on TV Shows and in Movies
• The Most Terrifying Haunted Houses in America
• Screw Ticketmaster: Here's How to Get Cheap Concert Tickets

Like Cheapism's content? Be sure to follow us .

More for You

GOP squeezes Dems on Mayorkas: ‘I would not want to be them’

Biden holds 4 point lead over Trump, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows

First-Quarter "Safe-Harbor" Quarterly IRS Estimated Tax Payments: Why and How to Make Them

Robert Pattinson Confronts Robert Pattinson as Bong Joon Ho Debuts Wacky, Bold ‘Mickey 17' Trailer at CinemaCon

Apple Targets New Miami Office Space Following Amazon, Microsoft

NFC East news: Commanders, Giants draft prep; another Eagles legend officially retires

10 Best Times Star Wars Appeared In Other Movies

Source: Orioles calling up top prospect Jackson Holliday

Beyoncé's ‘Cowboy Carter' Collaborators Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy & More Score First Hot 100 Hits

Six Exercises for Better Balance From a Trainer Who Lives on a Paddleboard

Scalise brings in eye-popping $12M as GOP kicks off 2024 battle to keep House

NASA Solves Moon-Crossing Object Mystery

A period piece, a contemporary drama, and a speculative sci-fi movie all in one

UN nuclear watchdog's board sets emergency meeting after Zaporizhzhia attacks

Why were shadows left behind after the Hiroshima atomic bomb?

Thousands of Social Security numbers stolen from government firm

25 Incredible 1980s Films You Forgot

Here’s How Long You Should Walk Every Day to Keep Your Heart Healthy

US Marine Corps Begins 'Comprehensive' Revamp of Retired Fighter Jets

Seattle pastor claims newspaper canceled church's Easter service ads last minute after CEO objected