Myths, miracles, and space adventures

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Friday, December 6th.

Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Nick Eicher.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast.

Coming next on The World and Everything in It: two new streaming options debuting this week.

Here’s arts and culture editor Collin Garbarino.

COLLIN GARBARINO: Today Netflix releases its new film about Mary the mother of Jesus, just in time for the holiday season. The movie, simply called Mary, traces the story of Jesus’ mother from her childhood through Jesus’ presentation at the temple when he was an infant.

MARY: I was chosen to deliver a gift to the world. The greatest gift it has ever known.

Now you might be saying to yourself how can someone make a two-hour movie on the life of Mary based on the barebones accounts of the gospel writers? That’s the thing. This movie includes some, let’s just say, extra material.

MARY: You may think you know my story. Trust me. You don’t.

Director D.J. Caruso, who is also responsible for the adaptation of Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love, has created a film with high-production values filled with dramatic tension. We even get to see the illustrious Anthony Hopkins play a deranged Herod the Great… a jealous king whose paranoia leads him to commit despicable acts.

HEROD THE GREAT: Should I spare him, should I set him free, or tell me, Salme, should I have him stoned to death in the marketplace?

But anyone looking for Biblical faithfulness in the movie will be disappointed. The screenwriter draws from 2nd-century apocryphal stories which reinforce Roman Catholic ideas about Mary’s perpetual virginity and enhance her role in the work of redemption. Protestant viewers will cock an eyebrow when at the beginning of the film, the archangel Gabriel appears not to announce Jesus’ birth, but Mary’s birth. Then, as a young girl, she’s devoted to the Lord and sent to live and study in the Temple in Jerusalem.

The movie is very pretty and filled with suspense, but it feels like overly indulgent pious fanfiction.

A scene from Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Disney+ / Getty Images

Our second item for today is the new Disney+ series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Many Star Wars fans have been up in arms over Disney’s handling of the franchise—both because it hasn’t created any feature films lately and because the quality of its TV shows has been uneven to say the least. Fan backlash came to a head earlier this year when Disney released The Acolyte… a truly terrible show that was high on wokeness and low on plot.

This week, the latest Star Wars saga hit Disney+. Is it more of the same? Or something different?

JOD NA NAWOOD: Fear not. I only want to help you.

I can’t speak definitively on whether the show is a home run because Disney only allowed reviewers access to the first three of eight total episodes. But I can say, it’s much better than The Acolyte.

Skeleton Crew was created by showrunners Jon Watts and Christopher Ford, the creative team responsible for Marvel’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, which in itself is a promising sign. The series takes place after the events of Return of the Jedi, and it doesn’t have much direct contact with the Skywalker saga.

The show is about four children who get lost in space and are trying to find their way back to their home planet. During their travels they get tangled up with space pirates and get some help from a mysterious force-wielding rogue played by Jude Law.

JOD NA NAWOOD: I can help you get to your ship. Find that planet of yours. All I ask is that you take me with you.

The show skews toward the sillier side of the Star Wars spectrum, but it has some things going for it. Watts and Ford have brought the feeling of a coming-of-age adventure film from the 1980s into the galaxy far far away. You’ll definitely pick up on some Goonies and E.T. vibes in Skeleton Crew.

WIM: This is mine. I already claimed it.

FERN: I called un-claimsies then claimed it for me and KB. No boys allowed.

WIM: No calling un-claimsies without the claimer. Everyone on the whole planet knows that.

There are also plenty of callbacks to the original Star Wars trilogy. And I was entertained by the theme of space pirates hunting lost treasure. Skeleton Crew is like a mashup of Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean complete with a one-eyed droid acting as first mate.

SM-33: What am I to do with these stowaways?

I’m not sure why space pirates speak with stereotypical pirate accents, but I found it amusing.

Skeleton Crew is rated TV-PG, which is a refreshing change from some of the grittier fare we’ve been getting. But parents ought to know that in the third episode it appears that one of the lost children has two mothers. It’s not explicitly stated she has two moms, so given Star Wars’ recent track record if this is the only bit of agenda pushing in the series then fans are getting off easy. But as I said, I’ve only seen three episodes, so I’m not sure if it gets more overt. I’m hoping the show keeps its focus on the entertaining adventure rather than the culture wars.

I’m Collin Garbarino.

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