None of which is true. Or at least none of which is supported by the extrabiblical historical record.

That's fine -- well, grantable for the sake of argument anyway -- but there's still a notion that this God interacts with space and time in demonstrable ways, yes? And that becomes a potentially scientific question.

I've said this on the show before, but I prefer the Gnostic view, at least from a purely "fantasy worldbuilding" aspect. The idea that material existence is a prison created by the evil Demiurge -- with another god who loves us, but isn't powerful enough to overthrow the Demiurge, interceding on our behalf and helping us beat the system -- is much more appealing and elegant than a single god prone to genocidal mood swings.

Also, presupposing the God of the Bible exists and is the one who wrote the Bible -- well, that's hardly an unbiased source, is it? It's more than a little plausible it's loaded up with more than a little pro-Yahweh propaganda, don'tcha think? I mean, you say God's wrath is justified because we're wicked, but if God's the one who wrote that -- well, he would say that, wouldn't he? That's how abusers and oppressors always justify themselves.

That's a compelling idea, though it's a little complicated by the fact that the people getting torn apart were generally more sympathetic than their torturers.

Maybe it's more like listening to sad songs when you're sad -- post-9/11 there was a cultural compulsion to wallow in the victimhood of senseless cruelty.

Then again, maybe we're overthinking it. Is it really so different than delighting in the inventive brutality of the pre-9/11 FRIDAY THE 13TH series? Perhaps it just comes down to that part of our base animal instincts that wants to kill the pig and spill its blood.

With 24 hours to fill either way, I figure we might as well. I don't know if that's factored into the schedule on the site but since we've built breaks in between the films we've got wiggle room.

I'm fine with it in terms of philosophical discussion. Just, you know, I want to read about hummingbirds or something too, and politics have a tendency to overpower.

TREE OF LIFE was so close to working for me for a little while there. I watched it as part of the Best Picture showcase and I knew a lot of people had hated it, but about an hour and a half in I found myself thinking I was going to have to be the contrarian and carry its torch.

Then it kept going... and kept going... and marched steadily further and further up its own ass. It had me, it really did, and then it lost me.

YES. This is exactly what made me think I might just love the movie, then it went the opposite way and so did my feelings on it.

I have to confess that, considering the way blockbusters are made these days, I find myself looking at all these people worried about script delays and whether the movie will come out in 2015, and thinking "Why's everybody so worried? They've still got a year and a half."

I just remind myself that STAR WARS was a clusterfuck pretty much every step of the way and managed to turn out okay. It's tradition!

Wait, am I being optimistic? WHAT IS HAPPENING. HELP ME.

Ah, that's William Goldman's view, and why he rejects rumors that he did a polish on the script (he never would've allowed that scene). Perhaps I was quoting him and it seemed like I was expressing my own opinion. The movie didn't make enough of an impression for me to bother forming one, honestly.

Getting to midnight will be the easy part. Making it to noon again the next day is the real challenge.

I think the Three Cs of England is probably my favorite bit.