Contributor: Bob Hoose

After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.

The Rocker

Fish is a washed up ’80s hair band drummer recruited to play with a high school group at the prom. Things might just turn out OK … if he can only keep his clothes on. Ugh.

Read more

Magic Mike

Channing Tatum’s turn as “Magic Mike” hints at the dark side of male stripping. Mostly, though, it just shows him from every side.

Read more

The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep

A Scottish lad finds a barnacle-encrusted egg and becomes a daddy … to the Loch Ness Monster.

Read more

A Serious Man

While not autobiographical in any specific sense, A Serious Man examines the Coen brothers’ roots with a deconstructing—and predictably quirky—look at a Midwestern Jewish family.

Read more

Out of the Furnace

Entertainment? Not a lick. Inspiration? All burned up by the fire. Only loss and despair are left.

Read more

Transylmania

The vampires are out in force once again—this time in a genre (the sleazy sex comedy) that’s about as preternaturally eternal as the vamps are.

Read more

Ryse: Son of Rome

First-century Rome is under attack by marauding barbarians. Only one seasoned centurion stands in their way. (That’d be you.) Let the grisly gutting and limb-lopping begin!?

Read more

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

A handheld Zelda flashes back to the feel of an earlier classic while charging into the future with some brand-new puzzles.

Read more

Philomena

Inspired by a true story (both onscreen and in real life), a world-weary journalist helps a simple, elderly Irish woman look for her baby taken from her 50 years before.

Read more

Super Mario 3D World

So you always wanted to best Bowser while playing as the princess in pink? Well, step into a new world, Peachy.

Read more

The Dictator

He may look like a terrorist dictator. He may quack like a terrorist dictator. But down deep he’s still a common comedian bombing us with dirty jokes and cheap, meanspirited laughs.

Read more

Zombieland

The world has gone zombie once again and there’s only a few humans left to fight them off. It’s a dirty job, but Woody Harrelson seems to love it.

Read more

Knack

This old man, he played (station) four, he played knick-knack on my floor, with the whole family gathered all around, this new game came streaming down.

Read more

Killzone: Shadow Fall

The good guys and bad guys are getting harder to make out in this continuing intergalactic war. The pools of blood, though, have never been so clear.

Read more

Need for Speed Rivals

Illegal street racing is a bad, bad deal, this game says … and then lets you take the wheel and do your illicit best.

Read more