Plugged In Movie Review: True Story ‘Average Joe,’ LEGO Biopic ‘Piece by Piece’ by Pharrell Williams

“Average Joe” delivers an inspiring, raw portrait of a man fueled by faith who refuses to abandon his beliefs when pressured to do so. Pharrell William’s creative, sometimes inspiring biographical document, “Piece by Piece,” has a strong structure, but some pieces still feel out of place. Pumpkin King Jack Skellington is back. “The Nightmare Before Christmas” was first released in 1993 and is now published annually in October.

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Average Joe – In theaters

The Constitution, as Joe Kennedy rightly points out, enshrines the right of every American to believe what he wants and to express his spiritual beliefs. In “Average Joe,” a coach who believes in thanking God at midfield after every football game is confronted with that fundamental right – a challenge that goes all the way to the Supreme Court.

That’s the general gist of this true story – a case only recently upheld by the Supreme Court in a landmark ruling upholding freedom of religion. Many who share Joe Kennedy’s perspective and beliefs will likely be drawn to this film for that reason.

What surprised me, however, was that the story we encounter here is bigger than that conflict. We see how Joe’s tumultuous life has shaped his faith, in both the good and the bad moments. And honestly, it feels like Joe has endured more of the latter.

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So by the time the film’s signature standoff finally comes into view, we can better understand how God shaped Joe’s character for that moment, that fight.

That’s what I like about this movie. It’s not just one righteous man versus evil government forces, a plot device that can feel two-dimensional and stereotypical. No, this time we get a bigger story about a man who has fought through hard things, but who is determined to faithfully follow God no matter the consequences.

I believe this story will resonate with many families. However, I should also note that there is some PG-13 grittiness here. We get some language, some violent moments (both in battle and between children fighting) and of course Joe’s violent childhood. These content issues may give the film a sense of authenticity for some viewers, but they may also push the film just over the edge for families with young viewers.

Overall, though, ‘Average Joe’ delivers an inspiring portrait of a man fueled by faith who refuses to set aside his beliefs when put under intense pressure to do so.

Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.

One by one – in theaters

The Bible tells us to build our house on the rock, not on the sand.

But what about building something on a nice, big LEGO plate?

I don’t mean to be flippant: It’s really something families need to think about with “Piece by Piece.”

Pharrell is without a doubt a phenomenal artist. “Piece by Piece” is certainly the most creative musical documentary I have ever seen. And the inspiration that Pharrell offers here in the middle of his own career brings many positives. When industry-wide disinterest and foot-dragging seem to be conspiring to destroy Pharrell’s gifts, he perseveres and perseveres. When his own ego nearly capsizes his career, he finds a more solid foundation in relationships, community and family.

As such, LEGO bricks serve as a fitting vehicle for what Pharrell has been doing all his life: he’s taken the structures other people have given him, broken them down brick by brick to rebuild something he likes more. He also examines his own work in the same way. And if necessary, he will collect it himself. Pharrell is the master of his own craft. He can build and rebuild his life as he sees fit.

And that’s great – to a point. We all do and must do this.

But on a larger, deeper level—one that, given his time and experience in church, I think Pharrell would understand—ultimately, we are not the builders. We are the stones, set in place by a wiser, higher divine hand.

There is an inherent tension between our own desire to create and our call to be used by our Creator. And I can’t tell you how well Pharrell handles that tension. But the film certainly provides ample evidence that many of Pharrell’s own musical creations should give Christians pause.

The film nods to the skin and drugs prevalent in the music industry – all to the brink of the “Piece by Piece” PG rating. (Indeed, the language alone seems to be enough to cross the PG line; perhaps the MPA was simply enamored with the movie’s LEGOs to give it a second thought.)

But there’s something else parents should keep in mind: Pharrell is a phenomenal artist. His music is very good. And that might prompt a young listener to browse the producer’s music library — a library that, in its entirety, would extend well beyond PG, past PG-13 and into the musical equivalent of an R-rating.

In ‘Piece by Piece’, everything parents see on the screen can feel ‘Happy’. But take it one or two steps further—as I’m willing to bet the movie would love to see you do—and moms and dads would do well to drop it like it’s hot.

Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.

Classic Review: Nightmare Before Christmas – Streaming on Disney+

If Halloween were a place, what would it look like? The first ten minutes of this “Nightmare” convinced me that no one could have come up with a more creative – albeit macabre – answer to the question than writer Tim Burton and director Henry Selick. Gloomy days and dark nights. Creepy creatures galore. Smart lyrics, contained in moody minor notes. All extremely engaging – and generally understated, as far as overtly offensive content goes. There is cartoon violence and mildly brutal moments, but even the worst of these scenes are bloodless and devoid of gore. And not only is the language almost always pure, the dialogues and texts are sometimes quite clever.

But we found ourselves squirming a bit trying to cram macabre and light-hearted entertainment into the same mental box. Even though the good-natured singing and dancing vampires, witches and skeletons of this “Nightmare” don’t do much that’s particularly (or specifically) bad, they’re still vampires, witches and skeletons. We’ll “fill your dreams to the brim with fear,” Jack sings. And the overall effect of this Halloween-crash-Christmas-monster mash-up is indeed a bit unsettling – partly because of that whole ‘collapse-into-Christmas’ thing.

So the real problem is this: Have Burton and Selick come up with a trick or a treat – or, as they would say in Christmas Town, candy or coal?

There are two ways to look at their creation: from a secular perspective and from a Christian perspective. First things first. If you view the holidays in “The Nightmare Before Christmas” as completely secularized, you can focus on the positive messages that emerge. Namely that Jack has no evil motive in mind when he takes over Christmas. He really wants to ‘help’ spread goodwill, joy and peace. Then, when he trips it up, he rushes to put things right again by rescuing Sandy Claws and begging him to save the day.

Now, for the last part. The film opens with the narrator saying, “You’ve probably wondered where holidays come from. If you haven’t already, I’d say it’s time for you to start. Jack takes that warning seriously and searches everywhere for the true meaning of the blessed event of Christmas. And the best he can come up with is a portly, bearded guy who flies around with reindeer and delivers presents to all the deserving boys and girls in the world in one night. The trinkets he studies so intently do not point him to the birth of the Savior, Jesus Christ. It points him to sweets, cards, holly and mistletoe.

Those things make him happy. But they don’t do him any good. And they don’t do viewers much good either: watch the DVD at home or experience the 3D ‘experience’ in the cinema.

Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.

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Connected is a Focus on the family publication designed to shine a light on the world of popular entertainment while giving families the essential tools they need to understand, navigate, and influence the culture they live in. Through our reviews, articles, and discussions, we hope to stimulate intellectual thinking, spiritual growth, and a desire to follow the commandment of Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no one takes you captive through empty and deceitful philosophy, depending on human tradition and the basic principles of this world, rather than on Christ.”

Reviews written by Paul Asay And Adam R Holz.