Contributor: 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.

Episode 260: When Should I Give My Kid a Cell Phone? Plus, ‘Bonhoeffer’

We offer some strong thoughts on when you should start considering a phone, as well as some pragmatic guidelines on keeping phone usage in check.

Read more
redeemed zoomer

Building Faith Online: A Conversation with Redeemed Zoomer

Richard Ackerman didn’t start out as a Christian. In fact, the YouTuber best known as “Redeemed Zoomer” says that he was a “progressive, anti-religious person” when he was a teen. But then he went to a Christian music camp and everything changed.

Read more

Emilia Pérez

This Netflix film about a male cartel boss transitioning into a woman has Oscar voters buzzing. But the film comes with plenty of issues—some obvious, some not.

Read more

An Almost Christmas Story

Disney+’s Christmas special is a sweet little fable that feels, on its surface, like just a secular confection. But let’s dig deeper.

Read more
citadel: honey bunny

Citadel: Honey Bunny

The latest ‘Citadel’ spinoff comes with a strangely cute name and some awfully familiar content issues.

Read more

Episode 259: The Power and Peril of In-Game Sales. Plus, Dallas Jenkins and ‘The Best Christmas Pageant Ever’

How much money are you willing to spend for virtual products? What should people know about the upcoming release, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever?

Read more

Movie Monday: ‘Venom: The Last Dance’ Takes Another Box Office Bite

Despite a lot of new competition to contend with, Eddie and his Marvel-ous symbiote had little trouble claiming another box-office weekend win.

Read more

White Bird

Most of White Bird takes place in France during World War II, when kindness just might get you killed. It makes the kindness we see all the more powerful.

Read more

Agatha All Along

Occult themes aren’t the only elements viewers must be mindful of in Disney+ & Marvel’s ‘Agatha All Along.’

Read more

Episode 258: Entertainment Decisions and Kids’ Maturity. Plus, Chappell Roan.

How do parents continue to guide their kids’ entertainment choices as they get older? What do folks need to know about music sensation Chappell Roan?

Read more
the dark knight

The Dark Knight

This sequel to ‘Batman Begins’ is mesmerizing and thought-provoking. But it shouldn’t have been named after the good guy. This is the Joker’s court, and he’s not looking for a laugh.

Read more
dark knight rewind

The Dark Knight – Plugged In Rewind

I like Batman. So, when we launched ‘Plugged In Rewind,’ I knew we’d have to talk about ‘The Dark Knight.’

Read more
Special Ops Lioness season 1

Lioness

Female operatives go undercover amongst terrorists in Special Ops: Lioness, a new spy-thriller on Paramount+ filled with profanity and peril.

Read more

Piece by Piece

Pharrell’s creative, sometimes inspiring biographical doc, Piece by Piece, is a strong structure, but some pieces do feel out of place.

Read more

The Substance

The Substance has substance, to be sure. But its excesses push it into a place of substance abuse.

Read more