Popcorn Theology

Richard and David got to watch Thor: Ragnarok this week, and went almost directly from the theater to the microphones. We talked about the difference in feel for this movie when compared with the other Thor films, the music and filmmaking choices as well as the particularly interesting cast, and more. Then we got into some of the meat that exists in this story; the idea of the church being a people rather than a place, the concept of the God of the Bible seeming to change when looked at in the Old Testament vs the New, and more.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, polls to decide what films we discuss, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you!

This week, Richard and David were commissioned by the Patron Saints (our supporters on Patreon!) to talk about The Nightmare Before Christmas for our Halloween episode! David had never actually seen this film, so it was an awesome experience! We chatted about contextualization vs compromise, longing for something our world can't actually satisfy, the idea of 'arguing someone into the Kingdom' vs conversion being a work of God Himself, and much more!  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, polls to decide what films we discuss, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedp

This week, we chatted about the musical, animated film Sing! The movie is pretty star-studded and we found it to be a pleasant surprise. Conversation ranges from cultural critique of religious faith to the importance of valuing the giver of gifts above the gifts themselves. Check it out! We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, polls to decide what films we discuss, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com 

When we began our Patreon a few months ago, our goal was to release one exclusive episode per month chosen by and for our Patreon supporters. When we realized that was a little difficult on our schedules, our Patreon supporters graciously allowed us to begin releasing these exclusive episodes to the entire Podcast audience - while allowing them the ability to help us choose what to cover, once per month. Now that this is our format, we want to begin dropping the previous exclusive episodes on our main podcast feed. This week, you'll get to hear the exclusive episode we had recorded on Spider-Man 2! Honestly, I can't even remember where this conversation went... but here it is!  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, polls to decide what films we discuss, and muc

This week, we got to celebrate our 100th Episode! Can you even believe we made it this far? Richard and David got to sit down and chat with Tim Challies of www.challies.com to chat about his convictions regarding entertainment.  - Is there a good reason for cultural engagement, or not? - Should a believer watch content which includes hyper sexuality or scenes of nudity?  - What are some forms of entertainment Challies does enjoy? And more!  We followed up the interview by having our 'Popcorn Theology Awards', or 'Poppies!' -- This was just a fun way for us to celebrate finally having hit triple digits. What is the most loved episode in our podcast's history? Who does the group think is the best admin, or best group member? We got to have a lot of fun with this and reminisce over the last few years of group and podcast.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of P

This week we got to record a very special edition of Popcorn Theology, because we were joined by *filmmaker* Les Lanphere. You may know him as the host of the Reformed Pubcast, but now he has dropped an amazing documentary detailing the theology, origins, and resurgence of Calvinism. We want you guys to check it out, and we want you guys to hear this conversation where we got to chat him about about the movie. We talked about why Les made the film, what his favorite moments from the process were, how he chose to handle the Reformed Resurgence/Mark Driscoll, and more! We even got to ask him when the Reformed Pubcast would be back on our podcast feeds - you don't want to miss it! If you haven't picked it up yet, you can do so at www.calvinistmovie.com. We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just

This week, we were encouraged by our Patreon supporters to discuss The Iron Giant.  We chatted about the obvious Christian imagery present in the film (and whether or not it was mimicry of Christianity, or of Superman, or of both), as well as the tool that is technology and whether it is a good or evil thing. We also got into the nature of the Giant, discussing the idea of 'choosing not to be a gun', and how that might relate to our own natures as fallen image bearers.  And more!   We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, polls to decide what films we discuss, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.p

Richard and David were joined (for the second week in a row) by James Harleman of Cinemagogue to discuss the newest offering in the Marvel Netflix line of shows, The Defenders! What did we think about this show - and given we didn't get an episode out on the previous show, what did we think of Iron Fist?  We discussed the themes that the show explored, the creative mis-steps it may have made as well as what parts resonated with us the most.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com 

Richard and David were joined by James Harleman of Cinemagogue to discuss one of his favorite flicks, Dark City. Both Richard and David were brand new to this film, so it was fun getting to chat about an older movie that we've just never gotten to interact with.  We discussed apologetics (what else is new?), the nature of reality, the nature vs nurture of our individual identities, and much more.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com 

This week, our amazing supporters on Patreon voted that we ought to cover O Brother, Where Art Thou? for their monthly exclusive episode - and that is just what we did.  Although we are not uploading the full episode here (as it can only be obtained via our Patreon feed), we did want to let you guys hear a small preview of the conversation. If you want to hear the full episode - as well as last month's episode on Spider-Man 2, and upcoming exclusive content - consider supporting us on Patreon, for only $3 or more. If you are supporting us on Patreon already, thanks so much - you make Popcorn Theology happen. You can view the full episode if you are a supporter, or become a supporter, at:  www.patreon.com/popcorntheology

David is back! This week, Richard and David got to watch and then sit down to chat about Dunkirk, the new movie from Christopher Nolan. The film is definitely an interesting and unique take on things.  Conversation ranges from our opinions on the film, Nolan's use of time as a tool in his toolbox, the morality of telling lies for the good of another, the idea of true sacrifice vs forced heroism, and much more.  We also enlisted the Popcorn Theology Facebook group to try and solicit names for Richard's upcoming 5th child! What names did the Popcorn Theologians come up with?  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Po

David is away for just one more week, and so this week Richard was joined be Eric Skwarczynski (fellow admin of the Popcorn Theology facebook group) to chat about The Founder! The Founder is available on Netflix and tells the story of the early days of McDonald's and the events that brought Ray Kroc to the head of the huge fast food business. What did Eric and Richard think about the movie? How messed up was Ray Kroc, what things did he do that were clearly shady? Are there some things that the movie paints in a negative light which might not actually be so bad?  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theol

  In David's absence, Richard was joined by James Harleman of Cinemagogue to talk about the brand new Stephen King flick, The Dark Tower! This film has gotten some seriously negative reviews, but how did Popcorn Theology feel about it?  Conversation hits on the idea of good things become God things, seeking first the Kingdom of Heaven, the way in which the world tends to view those of strong faith, the importance of memorizing Scripture, creeds, & catechism - and much more!  Be sure to check in with what James is doing at Cinemagogue!  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to le

This week, Richard and David aim to misbehave!  What did we think about the fan-demanded movie conclusion to Firefly, Serenity?  Conversation touches on issues such as: Pragmatism vs Conviction, Belief is a motivating force, the importance of having the proper object for our belief, disagreeing with others in a way that is helpful, and a lot more.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com 

Even though David is out of town, he was able to join Richard this week via the magic of technology! We discussed the classic mid 90's flick, Forrest Gump! The movie provides the backdrop for conversations about unconditional love, fate vs chance, the anger that unbelievers have toward the God they don't claim to believe exists, and much more. We also discussed (and read your answers!) what historical figure would be the most interesting to meet, if we had the chance.  We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpu

Richard and David went straight from the theater directly to the recording studio (otherwise known as David's Spare Room) to chat about the phenomenal new Marvel flick, Spider-Man: Homecoming! This movie was a lot of fun, and in the area of discussion prompts it does not disappoint! We got to chat about what it means when we say that our bodies belong to the Lord, being content with roles and seasons of life that seem less than spectacular, the balance between doing what is right and honoring authority that is placed over us when we disagree with their idea of what is best, and a lot more! We hope you enjoy this episode! If you like what you are hearing and want to help support us, consider supporting us on Patreon! If you do, you'll be canonized as an official Patron Saint of Popcorn Theology and be given access to exclusive content, an exclusive Facebook group just for supporters, giveaways, and much more! If you sign up to offer us support by July 17th, you'll automatically be entered into our first giveaw

Richard and David are excited for the new Spider-Man flick, but before we get there.. we need to take a look at the classic series of Spider-Man films, beginning with the original.  The film presents us with many things to consider. Is this story, like any story worth telling, about a girl? Why should we do the 'right' thing - because it will go better for us, or simply because it is right? Who sets the standard of what is the 'right' thing? The Green Goblin seems to personify evil as being separate somehow from the human it inhabits.. in what ways is this true of sin? In what ways could it be said this is not true?  And a bunch of other stuff too! We hope you enjoy the conversation.  If you're interested, we took a look at a clip during this episode which was part of the original advertising for the movie and involved the World Trade Center. In the aftermath of 9/11, this ad wasn't used.. but it was definitely interesting. You can see it here.    Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear -

This week, we got the honor of being joined by Summer White of Sheologians fame to discuss the film industry and feminism... No controversy there, right?  We learned what some of Summer's favorite films and shows are, then we got into a recent news story about the Cannes Film Festival involving comments made by Jessica Chastain.  Should the film industry go out of its way to make sure it has more women represented in the role of director, filmmaker, writer, etc? Should some sort of action be taken to ensure the percentage of females involved in this business is at a certain 'level'? What does the percentage, 'Only 7% of the top 250 films had women directors' actually tell us about the potential problem? We even got to chat with Summer about how Christians (men and women both!) ought to view, interact with, and create stories, films, and more. We hope you enjoy the conversation, whether you agree with our conclusions or not!  If you're interested in the original article that sparked some of this discussion, it

Richard and David were joined once again by the viral internet sensation, known round the world for his excellent impressions, Jamie Costa! Jamie, as a Robin Williams super-fan, was excited to sit down with us to chat about one of Robin Williams classics - Mrs. Doubtdfire!  The conversation bounces around Robin Williams greatest movies, the nature of love as a choice or a feeling, the idea of selfless service that receives no credit but truly has the well being of others as the center of its motivation, and much more.  We hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it! If nothing else, you'll get to hear Mr. Costa dropping some excellent impersonations! Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com 

Richard and David were joined by the awesome James Harleman of Cinemagogue to chat about the newest offering in the world of DC Comics, Wonder Woman!  How did we all think the movie stacked up to the other DC movies and the rest of the comic book offerings that our culture has been baptized with in recent years? Does the movie promote a feminist agenda, or is that something that is more open to interpretation?  The movie prompts us to chat a good bit about the nature of wrath and grace, the 'goodness' of man, and more!  Be sure to check out James' awesome content at Cinemagogue!  We hope you enjoy this episode!  Please take a moment to check out our sponsor, MissionalWear - Awesome T-Shirts, Posters, and more... Let them know Popcorn Theology sent you! Want to leave us a voicemail? 304-404-4005! www.popcorntheology.com www.reformedpub.com