Recently in Beliefnet Movie Highlights Category

Be sure to check out Beliefnet's quiz on movie quotes. I got 16 out of 20 -- can you beat my score?

It was a special treat to talk with Beliefnet's own Martha Williamson about her beloved and groundbreaking television series, this week's DVD pick: Touched by an Angel: Inspiration Collection

NM: What is it like to be an open believer in Hollywood?

MW: It has always been a challenge to be a person of faith in Hollywood for a number of reasons. One is that up until Touched by an Angel Hollywood has not considered spiritual programs to be especially commercial. It's "show business," not "show fun." If they don't see an upside for it, then they're not interested. Also, you can't afford to get sentimental when you're making television. And people often equate spiritual matters with sentiment or fantasy and weakness. It was always a challenge to show that I am a person of faith and a good producer and writer.

You always have to find a good balance for keeping that line between your personal life and your work. What I discovered was that it all came crashing into each other when I was asked to do "Touched by an Angel." When I was being interviewed by the LA Times even before the show began the first words out of his mouth were, "What do you believe in? What is your faith?" And I'd been interviewed all kinds for other shows and no one asked me "What do you believe in?" Suddenly people were asking and I realized I had to stand up and say I am not making a Christian show but I am a Christian making a show about angels, and I cannot compromise my beliefs.

NM: Is there an episode that is especially precious to you?

MW: The "151st Psalm" is one of my favorites. It was very tightly written. It was about a boy who made a list of things he wanted to do before he died. He was more reconciled to his dying than his mother was. His mother had a real journey of faith and learning how to praise God at the most difficult of times. TV Guide had a survey and that was the favorite episode. There are others I am really proud of. We did one about slavery in the Sudan. We actually screened that one for Congress before they introduced the Sudan Peace Act. Those are times when you look back and see we had an opportunity to be used for good. If this series is successful, there will be more and I would love to do those that are particularly dear to my heart from a personal level. When my father passed away I basically re-created the last episode and it was so powerful that when we shot we kept having to stop because everyone was crying. With some of those episodes I was working out my faith in fear and trembling before 20 million people.

NM: Do you feel that you do with the shows what the characters are doing? The shows, like the angels in them, bring a message of hope, grace, inspiration, and honor.

MW: You put your finger on it! I was raised by a man who was born in 1901, rather Victorian values, a Baptist from Southern Illinois, a loving, kind man, who made honor and integrity and grace and sacrifice the paramount values in our family. I can't say I always successfully lived up to those, who has? But those are the standards we reached for and I wanted to encourage other people to walk that journey, too, that it's worth it, that "whatsoever is good and true, think on these things."

NM: What feedback did you get from viewers?

MW: One of my favorite examples is a fellow who was in prison for murder. He wrote to me to say that everybody in the cell block would gather around the TV that was nailed to the wall and watch "Touched by an Angel" because it was the only time they ever heard that they were loved. And I actually had the opportunity to visit him just to say, "You are loved." I want to send these DVDs to him and say, "You are not forgotten."

NM: You've touched on what I think is the heart of the show. This is not someone waving a wand and fixing things. It's not "Fantasy Island" or "Bewitched." This is about angels delivering a message of hope and support.

MW: That's exactly what I said to CBS. They wanted to categorize it as a fantasy. I said "This is a one-hour drama based on something I believe is true." I have to approach it with the same responsibility and accuracy as a medical show or a legal show. I'm not going to play fast and loose with what I believe to be true. I literally had the Bible and Billy Graham's angel book. These are not recycled dead people. They don't have to wiggle their noses or do tricks or turn into something else or do three good deeds before they can get their wings. We want to replicate as closely as possible what a real angel experience might be.

NM: Do you have a favorite movie angel?

MW: There are bits here and there, Wim Wenders is one. But I like "The Bishop's Wife" with Cary Grant. He was attractive and sexy without being sexual, he was responsible. His job was to mend this marriage and to bring love back. I did not base our angels on anything but my own experience of what I would do or say if I were an angel or what I would want an angel to be like. But when I look back, there is a connection to that movie. And with Roma Downey and Della Reese, there was such chemistry. Roma was like what I want to be and Della was like my mother. And John Dye was like my dad. I wrote for my family, literally.

Be sure to take a look at Beliefnet's gallery of Jewish television characters by Sharon Udasin. I like the range it covers -- animated and live-action, comedy and drama, observant and cultural.

Paul Asay has a terrific gallery list of life lessons from movie monsters. It is witty, erudite, and very insightful. Indeed, I think he has done a good job of setting out the reasons that monster movies are among the most enduring and beloved genres. Like the ancient myths, they help us process and better understand hubris, fear, and even intimacy.

I am honored to share coverage of popular culture with the thoughtful posters over at Idol Chatter. Two posts I have especially liked this week are Ellen Leventry's commentary on the new homeless American Girl doll and the Mont Blanc $25,000 pen commemorating Mohandas Gandhi, a concept so stunning that at first I assumed it was a parody. She says:

Sure, American Girl has been working with HomeAid America, a leading national nonprofit provider of housing for the homeless, since 2006, and they have successfully addressed important social issues with other dolls, including Addy Walker, an escaped slave who is trying to reunite her family, and the Depression-era, penny-pinching Kit Ketteridge. But, American Girl is taking a problem that is less safely historical and merchandising it in the same way. In this recession, with more and more individuals and families becoming homeless, surely the Mattel-owned company could give a generous percentage of the sales of the even-in-economically-good-times-exorbitantly priced doll to charity?

That would certainly reinforce the learning experience of this doll. And I agree, too, that while Mont Blanc is giving some of the profits from this pen to charity, including one approved by Gandhi's great-grandson, there is something fundamentally inconsistent in the idea of honoring a man whose possessions could be contained in a shoebox with a pen that costs as much as a car.

I also loved Esther Kustanowitz's post on "The Family Goy," about an episode of "The Family Guy" that explores Lois' Jewish identity. There's a link to the episode, too, so take a look.

Be sure to read Paul Asay's entertaining and enlightening discussion of the lessons we learned from Saturday morning cartoon shows like "Scooby-Doo" (be careful of strangers) and "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" (television can teach moral lessons). I especially...

My fellow Beliefnet blogger Susan Gregg, has a new post about her favorite angel characters in movies and a link to a Beliefnet gallery about angels in movies and television in the past 20 years. These are all good choices...

Be sure to check out my Gallery on the best summer camp movies!...

Be sure to check out Kris Rasmussen's great gallery on the top Hollywood underdogs (if that's not a contradiction in terms). She includes some of my favorite movies, like "October Sky" and "Babe." Some of my other favorite movie underdogs...

Douglas Howe has a great list of rain scenes in movies over on Idol Chatter, including two of my favorites, "Singin' in the Rain" with Gene Kelly and "Say Anything" with John Cusack. Cusack for some reason is always getting...

My fellow blogger (and movie maven) Ron Dreher is compiling a list of Crunchy Con movies on his blog, which promotes the ideas of traditionalist conservatives who support environmental conservation, frugal living, and the preservation of traditional family values. Take...

Thanks so much to Dena Ross for making my list of inspirational movie quotes into a gorgeous gallery!...

Be sure to check out Paul Asay's great gallery of movie aliens. I was very pleased to see that he included my beloved Galaxy Quest along with classics like E.T., "Cocoon," and the original The Day the Earth Stood Still....

Brent Marchant has written a book called Get the Picture: Conscious Creation Goes to the Movies, about movies that demonstrate the the idea that "that through our thoughts, beliefs, and feelings, we create our own reality." For Beliefnet, he has...

The results are in! Beliefnet's movie awards have been announced. The judges picked: "WallE" for best film, Richard Jenkins in "The Visitor" for best performance, and "Lord Save Us From Your Followers" for best documentary. Audience picks: "Gran Torino," Queen...

Be sure to check out the nominees for Beliefnet's Spiritual Film Awards and vote for your favorites....

On Idol Chatter, Kris Rasmussen has come up with a two-part list of haunting moments in movies that is well worth exploring and every one of the films and those added by the commenters is a worthy addition to your...

I love Beliefnet's gallery of Memorable Movie Nuns from Paul Asay. He includes some of my favorites like Lilies of the Field, with Sidney Poitier building a chapel under the direction of flinty Lilia Skala and Susan Sarandon as real-life...

My gallery about the best movies to watch when you're in bed with the sniffles or flu has been posted. The right movies can help you pass the time until you feel better. They can even help you recover faster,...

I love Kris Rasmussen's list of favorite holiday movie moments from Idol Chatter. Some of my favorites are included and I was especially happy to see one most people overlook, the Cary Grant/Katharine Hepburn movie "Holiday:" Made by the same...

Be sure to look at the wonderful gallery of "Twelve Lessons Horton Taught Me" by Hillary Fields. Inspired by the upcoming release of the DVD, Fields describes the spiritual lessons of the Dr. Seuss classic from "a person's a person,...

Kris Rasmussen's comfort movie list from Idol Chatter is filled with great choices, including You've Got Mail (and don't miss the two earlier versions, The Shop Around the Corner with Jimmy Stewart and In the Good Old Summertime with Judy...

An incredible bonanza for "High School Musical" fans -- Beliefnet's Idol Chatter is giving away some special HSM3 treats. Post a comment (on Idol Chatter, not here), answering this question: Have you ever been separated from a close friend? How...

Steve Russo, author of Wildcats in the House: Spiritual Stuff You Can Get From High School Musical, has given Beliefnet 10 Biblical lessons from "High School Musical," like relying on faith, gratitude for God's gifts, and keeping your priorities clear....

Idol Chatter has a great post with a list of the best movies about putting your faith in love (and cry in the process). I don't agree with all of the choices -- I find "The Other Sister" and "Stepmom"...

Be sure to check out this terrific Beliefnet gallery from Mark I. Pinsky on the best Simpsons episodes about religions. It includes "Like Father, Like Clown" (written with the help of three rabbis, about Krusty the Clown's exploration of his...

Beliefnet bloggers speak out on Bill Maher's new movie: From Rabbi Brad Hirschfield of Windows and Doors: [F]or starters, let's stop giving Maher credit for attacking all religion. He doesn't. Instead, Maher selects the worst of religion and compares it...

I am grateful to Beliefnet blogger Aziz Poonawalla for bringing to my attention the 28 million free DVDs that were delivered with the Sunday newspaper throughout battleground states last month. The movie is called Obsession. According to Poonawalla, it is...

Professional Enfant Terrible Bill Maher has a new movie called Religulous in which he attacks religion, religious beliefs, and believers. Beliefnet founder Steven Waldman discusses his decision to run ads for this movie on his blog. He says the movie...

There's a terrific Idol Chatter post about the Chabad telethon with clips from John Voight, Matt LeBlanc as Joey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a lot of men dancing together. Chabad's 2008 telethon broadcasts tomorrow, September 14....

Beliefnet has assembled a great gallery of the most inspiring sports movies. Most are based on true stories, like Miracle (the 1980 Olympic hockey team), Seabiscuit (horse-race champion), Friday Night Lights (Texas high school football team), The Rookie (middle-aged teacher...

The chattering classes are already going after that sweet little robot Wall∙E. Some on the right accused the film of being leftist propaganda because of its environmental message. As the New York Times points out: Blogland moves at the speed...

Idol Chatter has posted a list of the five best movies celebrating the American Dream. All good choices: Avalon and An American Tail (about the immigrant experience), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington about an idealistic young Senator, and Rocky, the...

Beliefnet has posted my gallery of movies that illustrate important values like integrity, courage, courtesy, learning, and peace. Movies are our sagas, our myths, our touchstones, and our collective cultural heritage. They are also one way that we teach ourselves...

Mike Myers' new comedy "The Love Guru," which opens on Friday, has already led to complaints from members of the Hindu community for "lampooning Hinduism and Hindus and using Hindu terms frivolously." Beliefnet has invited Hindu leaders, publications and groups,...

Beliefnet's Paul Asay has put together a gallery list of movies about the apocalypse or the end of the world. Some are better as movies than others -- I thought "The Day After Tomorrow" was pretty poor. Some deal with...

Beliefnet's delightful Our Lady of Weight Loss is having a contest -- tell her your favorite food scene in a movie and you could win a copy of her book! Take a look and see if you can write a...

As Indiana Jones embarks on his fourth adventure, Beliefnet offers a quiz on some of the details of the past three films, which, like the new one, draw on myths and religious beliefs from a wide range of world faith...

David J. Bookbinder of the Flower Mandelas blog has a post titled "How Movies Saved My Life." "Star Trek" and "Twilight Zone" opened my eyes to fundamental truths of human behavior and the workings of the human heart, filtered through...

Opening day for the second film in the Narnia series is less than a month away, and Beliefnet has created some wonderful resources to help families get ready for it. Take a quiz to find out which Narnia character most...

Rotten Tomatoes has a new list of movies that feature God. Not long ago, Beliefnet had its own list of memorable portrayals of God in the movies and television. I contributed a brief commentary on one of my favorites, Howie...

Beliefnet's Kris Rasmussen has a list of 10 positive Christian characters in recent films. I was pleased to see Amy Adams' performance in Junebug included, though for me the most spiritually touching moment in the movie was when Alessandro Nivola,...

Beliefnet's Crunchy Con asked readers to fess up -- which "great" movies don't work for you? Many certified classics show up on the list, from Citizen Kane to 2001 - A Space Odyssey. Unsurprisingly, nearly every movie dissed by one...

Better than the Oscars! Beliefnet announces its picks for the best spiritual movies and performances of last year. I like these awards because they honor what is inspiring and moving, because they let both professionals and movie fans vote, and...

What were the best spiritual movies and performances of last year? See this year's nominees for Best Spiritual Film, Best Spiritual Performance, and Best Spiritual Documentary. Then watch clips, join the debate, and vote on your favorites. Nominees: Best Spiritual...

This is my third year as one of the nominators for Beliefnet's annual awards that pay tribute to the most spiritually nourishing and inspiring films of the year. Each of the candidates is presented with pro and con statements (mine...

Be sure to check out the new Beliefnet Discussion Group on the Best Spiritual Films of last year and let us hear about the movies that inspired and nourished you....