Summertime is when Hollywood releases its biggest, flashiest films, and this summer has been no exception. Loud, noisy, and often dumb movies like Transformers 2, Star Trek, and G.I. Joe have raked in hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office.

But some smaller films are deserving of your time and attention, too. Don't let these movies pass you by: [more]

I went to the movies today to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. It tells a story of a man aging backwards. It was a bizarre yet remarkable movie. My Ebert and Roeper analysis is this: It’s provocative and poignant. Brad Pitt is spell-binding. It’s a 'must see.’ I give it two thumbs up.

The movie made me think about the middle of my life. I thought about the part of my life that is intermediate, the part of our lives between life beginning and death decaying. I wondered if my midpoint has been meaningful. [more]

I understand that the leading minds of the art world aren't terribly fond of Thomas Kinkade, painter of light. Their criticism no doubt makes him cry himself to sleep every night, on top of a pile of money. Wikipedia claims the man earned $53 million between 1997 and 2005, and that 1 in 10 American homes have at least one piece of his artwork. [more]