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Episode 268: Those Wild, Wild Westerns. Plus, Screen Fast 2025

western movies

LISTEN TO THE PLUGGED IN SHOW, EPISODE 268

Well, howdy, pardner! Hitch up yer horse and sit a spell. Why? Well, I’ll tell you why. On this episode of the Plugged In Show, the Plugged In team’ll be flapping our gums about one of the most root-tootinest of cinematic genres. That’s right, we’re talking about the Western.

Sure, some of you may think that the Western rode into the sunset a couple generations ago. But Hollywood keeps making ‘em, and we keep watching ‘em. Why, tomorrow, Netflix’ll be rolling out its own television take on the Western in the form of American Primeval.

Bret Eckelberry has seen the show, and he’ll give us the lowdown. And then we, along with Jonathan McKee, will mosey into a broader discussion of the time-honored Western genre itself—which can often be a crucible in which our own values and morals can be weighed and challenged.

And then, after we talk about why we still watch a certain form of entertainment, we’ll ask ourselves, Why watch anything at all? Why not step away from the screens for a week or so? Come March, Plugged In will be challenging you—and me!—to participate in a screen fast. Yes, I know it sounds daunting, and trust me, we won’t force you to, y’know, quit work or school to participate. But I’m telling ya’, studies show that shrinking screen time can mean growing your joy.

And you can fill all your extra time by listening to The Plugged In Show.

Think you don’t need to cut down your screen time? Well, Live It—another Focus on the Family ministry for students with whom we’re partnering with on this particular effort—has a quiz that’ll tell you if you’re addicted to technology: Click here to take it. And if you’re already interested in signing up, you can just click here to learn more about our upcoming effort.

Speaking of which, we’d love it if you joined the conversation, too. Planning to participate in the Screen Fast? What’s your favorite Western? Talk to us on Instagram or Facebook. Leave us a voicemail on our Plugged In Show homepage. Or write us an email at [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you.

And be sure to listen in next week, too, when we talk about Beast Games and the Oscars. Does any really care about them? You’ll definitely want to hang your hat and pour yourself a glass of sarsaparilla for that conversation.

paul-asay
Paul Asay

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

3 Responses

  1. What about the screens showing the output from medical scanners? Would those be off-limits too? I don’t think those particular screens should be off-limits. If everyone got an MRI scan or some brain scan every year that showed the electrical activity in their brain as part of their regular preventive checkup, we wouldn’t be having so many people drinking alcoholic beverages and using marijuana. So far, words have not been powerful enough to change the beliefs of alcohol and drug users who believe that “They don’t know what they’re talking about”, or “They’re just trying to scare me” or “I’m indestructible and nothing bad will ever happen to me” or “They haven’t scanned my brain, so they have no right to tell me that it’s bad for me.”

  2. I saw that Kennedy reviewed “the last showgirl”. I’m confused why a female would not view that movie instead, as there was so much temptation placed for a male to watch it. I understand the idea of “being strong”, but I don’t understand how it’s biblical to place yourself in temptation just a review of movie. Why not let women review films with female nudity?

    1. Maybe men like Kennedy are mature enough to review a movie with nudity without turning into sex-crazed lunatics. I’m sure PI doesn’t force its reviewers to watch movies they don’t want to see. Adults should be free to make their own decisions.

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