Kris Rasmussen: April 2008 Archives

Dancing has always been a movie metaphor for celebrating your spirit and following your dreams. I think that is why shows like "Dancing with the Stars" and even the cheesy ones like "So You Think You Can Dance?" are so successful right now.

So I started thinking about all the great dance movies of years gone by. Here is a list of my favorite and most inspiring movies of all time. I didn't count Broadway musicals adapted to screen, so that leaves out classics like "West Side Story" and "Chicago," but I still had plenty of interesting choices to consider. Feel free to add to my list by posting to in the comment box below.

10. "Singing in the Rain": Maybe it's not technically a dance movie, but it certainly has some of the most famous dance numbers ever put on celluloid.

9. "White Nights": Okay, this is actually a pretty lame movie—not to mention outdated—but the dance sequences between Gregory Hines and Mikhail Baryshnikov are unparalleled.

For me personally, one of the worst side effects of the writers' strike has been the lack of fresh "House' episodes. No other series is so consistently smart, witty, and thought-provoking. On tonight's episode, I will once again able to revel in the sharp barbs of Gregory House as—in typical House fashion—hislatest medical mystery centers around the unusual premise of someone being too nice. Only the acerbic House could consider being too nice a warning sign of a serious medical disorder, but undoubtedly he will be found correct before the episode is over.

Which is exactly what continues to make him the perfect Doubting Thomas for a postmodern age. For all of his atheistic murmurings, House still never stops making the connection between the body and the spirit when it comes to illness and suffering, even as he continues to wrestle with his own physical and emotional demons. All of which provides the audience a much-needed catharsis of epically tragic Greek proportions.

Christian music's big chance to shine happens tonight when the Gospel Music Awards, or the Dove Awards, are given for outstanding commercial--and occasionally critical--success on the airwaves this year. Instead of being televised weeks later, as in years past, the Dove Awards will get at least some live exposure tonight when they are broadcast on the Gospel Music Channel (GMC is available on DirecTV and in some regional areas on Charter or Comcast cable.) I don' t think there are going to be any big upsets and certainly some edgier groups are conspicuously absence, but I have long ago given up trying to figure out the fine print of the Gospel Music Awards' voting process.

Here are a few of my predictions for tonight's major categories. Be sure to leave your thoughts about who was the best--or worst--in the CCM world this past year in the comment box below.

Female Vocalist of the Year:
The nominees are: Amy Grant, Christy Nockels, Darlene Zschech, Krystal Meyers, Mandisa, Natalie Grant, Sandi Patty.

The New York Times published a really interesting top ten list by Daniel Radosh on his "Paper Cuts" blog.

Radosh, a self-proclaimed secular Jew gives a smart, spot-on assessment of Christian music by listing his top ten favorite Christian songs that don't "reduce all expressions of faith to crass evangelism, anodyne praise, or crypto-romance." These are songs he feels everyone can learn from or appreciate--regardless of your own particular religious inclination. The list includes artists such as Larry Norman, Bob Dylan, Over The Rhine, Sixpence None the Richer and a couple of artists I haven't ever heard of! To stump someone who used to make a living covering Christian music, well, that's impressive.

Mr. Radosh, I promise I will be checking these new artists out on iTunes immediately!

Though I rarely see it said explicitly in the press, it has always been obvious to me that Nicole Kidman lost primary custody of her adopted children in her divorce from Tom Cruise and that Scientology no doubt has had something to do with it. But now Page Six of the New York Post is reporting that the Catholic-raised Kidman definitely wants her kids out of Scientology.

While I wasn't really that surprised when I read that theabortion debate somehow wormed its way into the release of the big screen adaptation of "Horton Hears A Who", you could have knocked me over with a tiny, purple flower...

I believe there were a handful of movies last year that served as a type of litmus test for your own personal level of cynicism and disenchantment about the world. "Juno" was one of those movies, but the tiny indie...

How do you know a movie is a cult classic with numerous devout followers? When the announcement of the title of the latest chapter in that icon's history receives attention from every major media outlet. The intriguing title of the...

Who would have thought that the saucy, sassy, soapy "Desperate Housewives" would have returned after a strike-imposed hiatus with a smart and spiritual storyline? Definitely not me. I tuned in last night out of curiosity over any new programming, and...

Five years ago Thomas Nelson Publishers took a chance on a relatively unknown author, Donald Miller, and published a slightly unorthodox memoir, "Blue Like Jazz." The word of mouth for the raw and reflective anecdotes in the book soon had...

Billy Graham, one of the most influential evangelicals in history, is finally due for the big screen treatment. Variety reports that an independent film production has begun shooting the bio pic in Tennessee. Without any sex scandals or other juicy...

There's an interesting discussion going on in the Beliefnet community that ties to a movie I admit I haven't seen, "The Bucket List." The idea is to challenge yourself to think about what is on your own personal "bucket list."...

Though I have a few friends and acquaintances who are die-hard fans of "Battlestar Galatica", I have stubbornly refused to believe the show is as good as they say. They wax poetic about the writing, the acting, the deep spiritual...

It's difficult—if not a little depressing—to believe that the "Real World" franchise is now 15 years old. Love the series or hate it, it undoubtedly has influenced pop culture and had much to do with the boom of reality programming...