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Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Christmas Films Screencap Game - Answers!

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! Here are the answers to the Christmas Films Screencap Game from last week. Thanks for playing!

Which of these Christmas films have you seen?

#1
Answer: Muppet Christmas Carol

#2
Answer: Eloise at Christmastime

#3
Answer: White Christmas

#4
Answer: An Old-Fashioned Christmas

#5
Answer: The Christmas Candle

#6
Answer: A Christmas Carol (1984)

#7
Answer: Samantha: An American Girl Holiday

#8
Answer: Seasons Of The Heart

#9
Answer: Hercule Poirot's Christmas

#10
Answer: Christmas In Conneticut

#11
Answer: Miracle On 34th Street

#12
Answer: It's A Wonderful Life

#13
Answer: Shop Around The Corner

#14
Answer: Meet Me In St. Louis

#15
Answer: Little Women (1994)

~*~

Players Scores:
Melody - 14 points
Net - "It's a Wonderful Movie" - 14 points
Miss Sneyd - 13 points
Tom - 9 points
Lois Johnson - 7 points



Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Christmas Short Story Contest at Regency Delight

Regency Delight Story Contest
My very dear friend Melody is having a Christmas Short Story Contest over at her blog Regency Delight! Entries must be sent by December 26th so get working on your short story inspired by a Christmas carol now!


Sunday, December 20, 2015

The Nativity Story (2006)

The Nativity Story (2006) is a lovely visual adaptation of the Biblical account of Christ's birth and although it does slip up in a couple places overall it is very nicely done. I'm writing this review on my second viewing of this film and I have enjoyed it quite a lot both times I've seen it. It of course in no way replaces scripture but it does help to give food for thought by showing what the events may have looked like. This is a nice film to view at Christmas time and helps me focus my mind and heart on the birth of my Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.



Story: Powerful, timeless and visually magnificent, The Nativity Story is "a beautiful telling of one of the world's most familiar stories". It was the cruelest of times. Under Herod's torturous reign, families struggled to survive and yet, in the midst of utter turmoil, a young woman's faith was put to the test. Join Mary and Joseph on an incredible journey of hope and discovery. Epic in its scope, yet intimate in its portrayal of this historical family, this "wonderful film" is a family feature that will be cherished for years to come.



Costumes: Show the contrast between the hard working folks like Mary and Joseph and the rich ruling folks like King Herod and the Magi. 


Music: Combines traditional carols with music that fits the actions of each scene. Just a nice soundtrack to listen to!



Inappropriate Content: There is no language or sexual content in this film but there are some scary scenes and thematic elements. Shows some scarier scenes such as soldiers killing toddler boys under Herod's order, Roman soldiers collecting people and animals as payment for taxes. Elisabeth giving birth to John the Baptist is shown briefly and the ceremony of his circumcision is also shown from a distance. Crucifixion of Jewish zealots are shown. Mary is also shown giving birth to Jesus and Joseph helping her. Nothing horrible, this film is rated PG but would be appropriate for most ages.



Biblical Accuracy: Sets the story of Christ's birth in it's historical content, Israel under Roman rule. Does combine events from the accounts in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Does put some emphasis on Mary's life but I do appreciate that it shows her as a sinful human chosen by God. Kind of shortens some of the accounts but does a fairly good job staying true to the scriptures. But there was no a choir of angels announcing the birth to the shepherds and the wisemen are incorrectly shown arriving at the time of Christ's birth instead of two years after, as the scriptures say. The wisemen decide on their own not to go back to King Herod instead of seeing it in a dream. Joseph is told in a dream to leave Bethlehem for Egypt but it is very shortly after Jesus is born instead of two years after as the gospel of Matthew says. Film does have some characters jumping to conclusions about the birth of Christ, things they probably wouldn't have known yet, but it is neat to hear those connections that we know now because we have the complete scriptures.





Character Portrayals:

  • Mary - Has a quiet, thoughtful and gentle spirit but is still portrayed as a sinful human who also needs to trust Christ as her savior.  
  • Joseph - Portrayed as an extremely kind and honorable man who loves Mary greatly. His great disappointment, confusion and anger when he finds out Mary is with child was very convincing. I like how it shows him sacrificing for his wife and even the donkey on their journey to Bethlehem.
  • Mary's Parents - Kind and try to be understanding but have a difficult time accepting the Lord working in Mary and Joseph's lives.
  • King Herod - Cruel and cunning man who craves power. His paranoia and menace are just creepy!
  • Gabriel - Mysterious but not too terrify, he appears three times in the story. Nice that he is portrayed as looking ethnically the same as those he is appearing too only with a glow about him.
  • Three Wisemen - Quirky and add some humor to the story as they journey from Persia to Bethlehem. They are placed coming sooner than they should but they are shown having great faith which is interesting.
  • Zachariah & Elisabeth - Elisabeth is portrayed as a quite understanding and inspiring woman, a good mentor for Mary. Zachariah is an interesting character and it was neat when he got his voice back. 





Do you have any other favorite film versions of the birth of Christ?




Saturday, December 19, 2015

Christmas Films Screencap Game

Merry Christmas everyone! Here's a little screencap game to make your day merry and bright! All these films have a Christmas-y feel to them and are some of my favorites to watch at this time of year. As a bonus they all have that period drama quality to them or are just great classic films. Enjoy!

To Play: Look at the screencaps below and leave a comment guessing which Christmas Film each photo is from. I'll respond with your scores are best I can, but may get a bit busy. I'll leave this game up until after Christmas and then I'll post the scores.

Scoring: One point for each correctly guessed Christmas film. A high score of 15 points can be earned!

Optional: When you comment let me know which of these Christmas films you've seen and what are your favorite films to watch this time of year are!


#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

#9

#10

#11

#12

#13

#14

#15

Happy guessing!

Have a wonderful Christmas!



Period Drama Screencaps Game {December 5th} - Answers!

Here are the answers to the Period Drama Screencaps Game {December 5th} from two weeks ago. Sorry it took me longer than expected to get these answers up, it's just such a busy time of year! Hope you enjoyed playing!

Period Drama Screencaps:

#1
Answer: Persuasion (2007)


#2
Answer: Emma (1997)


#3
Answer: Under The Greenwood Tree


#4
Answer: Pride & Prejudice (2005)


#5
Answer: Wives & Daughters


#6
Answer: Little Women (1994)


#7
Answer: Sense & Sensibility (1995)


#8
Answer: Daniel Deronda


#9
Answer: Ballet Shoes


#10
Answer: The Phantom Of The Opera


#11
Answer: Miss Potter


#12
Answer: Les Miserables (2014)


#13
Answer: Jane Eyre (2011)


#14
Answer: Bleak House (2005)

#15
Answer: Bright Star

~*~

Players Scores:
Cordy - 15 points
Miss Dashwood - 15 points
Miss Eliza - 15 points
Miss Sneyd - 15 points
Naomi Bennet - 15 points
Kristalyn Huber - 12 points
Rose - 9 points
Hamlette - 6 points