Thank you Dongguan Emily Trading Co., Ltd for sending us this heating pad to review!

Getting old isn’t fun. I discover random aches and pains without origins other than my age. For example, my left hip started hurting the other day for no apparent reason. It’s not like I ran a marathon or fell. Thankfully, I had this heating pad handy!

The device is simple to use with only three buttons to press. The power button is where you start or end to turn the device on or off. The other two buttons control the temperature and timer functions. The temperature starts at 95 degrees Fahrenheit and goes all the way up to 158 in 9 degree intervals. The timer can be set from fifteen minutes to two hours in 15-minute intervals. Setting the timer to one hour at night was perfect for my sore hip as the warmth felt good and it didn’t have to be on after falling sleep. When I woke up in the morning, the pain wasn’t completely gone, but it was much better.

The padding is super soft and very comfortable. With the detachable cord it’s washable too! Another advantage of the detachable cord is that it can break away if accidentally tugged on or tripped over. This item is also covered by a five-year warranty so it’s nice to hear that the manufacturer stands behind this product.

Thank you Universal for sending us this Blu-ray to review! Abominable tells the story of a teenager named Yi who stumbles upon a Yeti on the rooftop of her apartment complex. The Yeti escaped from some bounty hunters and longs to go back to his home on Mount Everest. It’s quite a trek since Yi and her family are from China. At first, her cousins Peng and Jin were not on-board with escorting the yeti they dubbed Everest back home. As it turns out, they have quite the magical adventure along the way. My family enjoyed this film in the theater and we’re happy to own it now as it’s very heartwarming. It teaches the value of family and is safe for all ages. There are some instances of tranquilizing and Everest is injured in the beginning of the film. There are some references to Buddhism and the characters believe that their ancestors watch over them from the stars.

Along with the movie, there are several bonus features to enjoy including:

Marooned – A lonely space robot tries to leave the moon and return back to Earth. If only he had some help. There’s a great message here about determination and sacrifice.

Show & Tell - Everest tries to show the other yetis about the neat things he has learned about on his adventure including playing violin, basketball, and love.

Thank you Scarlet Moon Promotions for sending us this digital album to review!

Hiroki Kikuta is a famous composer known for his work in Secret of Mana. The Unbreakable Unity is a one-track album with a thirty-nine minute song that’s heavily influenced by Secret of Mana. The song opens with a wind flute-like instrument and a sense of mystery. Other instruments like a xylophone, oboe, and harp chime in along with other synthesized instruments.

My part-time job is seventeen miles away and with the morning traffic, it can take between thirty-five to forty-five minutes to arrive at work. The Unbreakable Unity is the perfect commuting song as it’s very relaxing and eases road rage a bit. If my commute exceeds forty minutes, this song loops smoothly.

The upbeat sections make for great overworld or traveling soundtracks. Perfect for driving past acres and acres of farmland. Some parts of the song are more mysterious as if you’re exploring some ancient ruins or an abandoned temple filled with hostile monsters or ferocious wildlife. This section makes driving though construction zones with lane closures and detours more interesting.

Many of the themes repeat throughout the song, but they are switched up to keep things interesting. I often envision myself exploring an eerie forest or open fields with frequent stops to battle bad guys. If you enjoyed Secret of Mana and its music, you’ll definitely appreciate this album. Fans of SNES-style game music should give it a listen too.

Here’s our 2019 Christmas buying guide!  Below are our favorite gadgets and family appropriate titles we have played throughout the year.  More reviews can be found on ChristCenteredGamer.com! Each game is given a gameplay score for the overall gaming experience and a moral score for how suitable it is for younger gamers.   The Amazon and Humble Store links will benefit Christ Centered Gamer by giving us a small % of the sale.

Thank you 4DX for providing us five tickets to see this film!

Frozen II begins with a flashback of Elsa and Anna as children hearing a story about an enchanted forest where a war between Arendelle and the natives began. Nobody knows who started the war, but as strange events are currently happening in Arendelle, the townsfolk are forced to evacuate, and Elsa must discover the truth before things get any worse. To make matters worse, Elsa is hearing a singing voice that nobody else can and it's interfering with her day-to-day activities. She needs to discover the source for her kingdom and her sanity!

Meanwhile, Kristoff has an engagement ring ready for Anna but is having a difficult time finding the right opportunity and words to successfully propose to her. His blundering attempts usually upset Anna instead of winning her over. His reindeer, Sven, tries to assist in the process any way he can. Olaf is trying to grasp the concepts of aging and maturity as he defies the typical lifespan of a snowman.

The five begin their journey to the enchanted forest, which is surrounded by a thick mist. With Elsa leading the way, they are able to make it past the protective barrier. Once there, they must tame the spirits of wind, fire, water, and earth. The fire spirit is my favorite character, he’s adorable!

Thank you 4DX for sending us five movie tickets to see this film!

As a proud owner of a Ford Mustang, I felt obligated to see this film. It’s the first 4DX movie we’ve seen that’s not kid-focused. Ford v Ferrari is rated PG-13 for language (including the f-bomb) and mention of sex. There is some kissing, but nothing beyond that is shown. Unfortunately, God's name is taken in vain a few times. It’s also worth noting that one of the characters dies, but the details are left to the viewer’s imagination. If you don’t mind these issues, this movie could be enjoyed with older children.

The film begins with Carroll Shelby (played by Matt Damon) winning the 24-hour Le Mans race and having to retire shortly thereafter due to a heart condition. He still focuses on designing cars and works closely with a fellow car enthusiast and racer, Ken Miles (played by Christian Bale). Meanwhile, Ford is in a funk and wants to expand its market and get their name out there in the race and sports car circles. Ferrari was going bankrupt and while offering to partner with them, the Ford businessmen were insulted instead. Henry Ford II wanted to retaliate by having a Ford racecar dethrone the multi-year winning Ferraris.

Lee Iacocca (played by Jon Bernthal) asks for Shelby’s help in making the GT40 racecar Le Mans worthy. They only have ninety days to improve upon the car’s design. Ken Miles is the most familiar with the car and its flaws, but due to his short temper, Ford does not want him representing their brand. There are many hurdles to cross in order to for these two parties to work together peacefully. I won’t spoil any details, but this movie can even be enjoyed by people who are not car enthusiasts.

Thank you Lionsgate for sending us a Blu-ray, 2 t-shirts, and some peanut butter!

The Peanut Butter Falcon tells the story of Zak, a twenty-two year old young man with down syndrome who lives in a nursing home. He doesn’t like it there since he can’t relate to people who are generations older than him. However, he doesn’t have any other family to take care of him. Zak dreams of becoming a professional wrestler and tries to escape from the nursing home to live his life and make his dream a reality.

Eventually, Zak does break out from the nursing home with nothing on him but underwear. Zak stows himself away in a boat owned by Tyler (played by Shia LaBeouf). Tyler is a fisherman who doesn’t think twice about fishing in areas without being properly licensed. After destroying equipment from a competitor, he flees the scene of the crime in the boat that Zak is hiding in. Needless to say, it wasn’t a warm welcome when Zak was discovered.

Although their relationship was tense at first, the two men bond and help each other out. Since they are both being pursued, they’re constantly on the run. Tyler helps Zak follow his dream and teaches him important skills like swimming and how to shoot a rifle. Though Tyler is rough around the edges he’s got a good heart and tries to look out for Zak. With that said, he still manages to expose Zak to undesirable things like alcohol.

Thank you GeekStore.com for sending us review samples of the Sonic The Hedgehog Christmas Sweater and Star Wars ornaments!

Christmas shopping season is almost upon us! Chances are that you have at least one geek in your family that you need to buy some presents for. If you live in the UK, www.GeekStore.com has free delivery. If you live elsewhere, they do ship worldwide. The US priced version is us.GeekStore.com and offers free shipping on orders over $100. Ugly Sweaters are pretty popular and to be honest, I find the selection offered on this site more attractive than ugly. You can find officially licensed Pokemon, Nintendo, Marvel, Star Wars, and many other movie franchise themed sweaters available for $29 - $45. If you buy one sweater, you can get the second for half price!

The Sonic The Hedgehog Christmas sweater is very high quality and comfortable to wear. It’s not itchy and is very warm. I like how it says “Merry Christmas” on it instead of “Happy Holidays.” I hope to wear this for many years to come!

The Star Wars ornaments are $15 for 3 TIE fighter and 3 X-Wings. The packaging is really durable and nice though the ornaments feel rather cheap and fragile in contrast. They are only silver in color as they are made out of plastic and have a chrome-like finish on them. I won’t deny that these ornaments look cool and they are bound to please any Star Wars fan. They just don’t seem very durable and would not likely survive any mishaps. If you prefer (fake) gold coloring, there’s a similarly priced set available in that finish as well.

Thank you Sony Pictures for sending us this 4K Blu-Ray to review!

If you haven’t seen Avengers: Endgame you’ll want to hold off on seeing this film. Spider-Man: Far From Home opens up with a touching tribute to the Avengers that gave their lives in the showdown with Thanos. The world is still reeling from the aftereffects of those who have re-appeared at the same age they were after “the blip” happened. Those who have survived Thanos' judgement have aged five years. As you can imagine, this really messes with high schoolers who are not too keen on re-taking a year of school and suddenly being surrounded by kids that used to be way younger than them.

Although Peter Parker likes being a neighborhood hero, he does enjoy his teenage life and has plans to express his feelings for MJ during their European school trip. Unfortunately, the world needs saving and the bad guys just so happen to be where the high schoolers are touring.

Though Peter Parker is young and naive, he really made an impression on Tony Stark who gave him some powerful eyewear and put in a good word with Nick Fury. Given that Nick Fury is one of those who has blipped back, he’s not as familiar with his surroundings as he needs to be. He needs intel from Peter, wants him to commit to either being a student or an Avenger, and most importantly, he wants Peter to answer his phone when calling.

Thank you Bokksu for sending us a Classic box to review!

Bokksu is an authentic Japanese subscription plan that partners with centuries old snack makers to deliver sweet and savory treats to your doorstep. Looking at their website’s previous box themes, they seem to have started in 2016. Each monthly box has a theme that inspires the treats within.

Currently, there are two subscription plans available: Tasting and Classic. The Tasting plan has 10-14 snacks/tea pairings while the Classic plan provides 20-25 items. Each box comes with a 24-page Culture Guide Magazine that explains the origin, ingredients, and description of each of the goodies inside. Unless you can read fluent Japanese, I highly recommend looking through the magazine to figure out what everything is.

The booklet explains the box’s theme, and which region of Japan the snacks came from. You’ll also learn a few Japanese words and a recipe! Each food item is broken down by several categories: Manufacturer, Common Allergens, Region, Sweet/Savory flavor, and if it’s Vegetarian. Preparation instructions are also included as some of the teas are a little unique. The Kuromame tea consisted of black soybeans. The Full Moon Tea came with a paper cup mounting drip system that’s more intricate than your typical tea bag. Both teas were good and I tried them with and without sugar/honey to sweeten them to my liking.

I love Mochi ice cream so I looked forward to trying the Mitarashi Mochi. This treat didn’t survive the shipment process very well and was quite smooshed, but it still tasted good. The Usagi (rabbit) Chocolate Balls tasted good and seemed like good quality chocolate. The Rich Baked Chocolat lived up to its name and was quite flavorful. I also enjoyed the Chocolate Azuki Beans: Black Sesame Kinako and wished they came in a bigger package. They were all gone before I knew it!

Thank you Universal Pictures for sending us this Blu-ray to review!

The Secret Life of Pets 2 takes you back into the lives of your favorite animals while you’re not at home with them. Many of the same funny and lovable characters are back with most of the same voice acting talent. Patton Oswalt now provides the vocals for Max who is well adjusted with his fellow canine roommate, Duke. At the park, Max gets rather annoyed with the rambunctious children there and enjoys his peaceful life. As fate would have it, his owner soon falls in love, gets married, and has a son named Liam. Though Max still does not like children, he is over the moon and overprotective of Liam. Keeping a toddler safe in this world is a lot of work and stresses out Max. Due to his nervous scratching, he soon gets fitted for a cone of shame and is not too happy about it. Things look up when his family is planning a vacation to a farm.

Meanwhile, Snowball the bunny is taking his superhero costume seriously and gets enlisted in a rescue job by a cute dog named Daisy. It’s up to Snowball and Daisy to save a young white tiger named Hu from a cruel Russian circus owner named Sergei. Hu is guarded by several black wolves and a feisty little monkey.

Gidget is on a quest of her own: to become like a cat in order to rescue Max's favorite toy. While under the influence of catnip, Chloe agrees to assist her. As you can expect, hilarity ensues on all three of these adventures. As funny as this film is, there are some moral issues worth mentioning.

Sergei is quite mean and threatens to harm the animals and is shown wielding a gun, cattle prod, and whipping Hu. There is some gross humor involving cat and dog poop and some mild language (p*ssed). My older kids enjoyed this film, but this may be too much for younger children. If you enjoyed the first movie and don’t mind the language and animal cruelty, The Secret Life of Pets 2 is worth checking out!

Thank you HBO for providing us with a screener to review!

Other than taxes, death is the other certainty with life. With the increasing number of cremations, traditional funerals are on the decline and many funeral homes are predicted to close down if they don’t embrace technology and new ways to mourn the loss of loved ones. One funeral home was shown offering “drive-thru viewings”. Attending funerals has always been a little awkward, but that’s still bizarre to me.

Alternate Endings: Six New Ways To Die In America features six individuals/families who have recently lost or are in the process of departing into eternity. There’s a family who lost their young son to terminal cancer and per his wishes, had a celebration of life with five bouncy houses, fireworks, Batman, and face painting because funerals don’t have to be sad and boring. Another family threw a “living wake” for their terminally ill father. He appreciated being able to tell people in person how much he loved and appreciated them in his life.

For an ocean-loving father, his daughter mixed his ashes into some concrete used in making a memorial reef. Besides offering housing to aquatic life, man-made memorial reefs replenish the dying coral reefs in the Gulf of Mexico. A space-loving grandfather had his ashes blasted into space and his family enjoyed watching the rocket launch for that.

Green burials are also an option. In a green burial, the body is placed in a shallow grave without a coffin to give nutrients back to the Earth. The lady shown that chose this option was buried along with a tree she wished to nourish. California is one of the minority states that allow people with terminal illnesses to die with dignity (suicide). One gentleman wanted to die on his terms and set a time and date to drink a medical cocktail that would place him into a coma after a few minutes of consumption and meet his maker within thirty minutes. Although this man did not seem to be religious, he did request a beautiful rendition of Amazing Grace to be played at his funeral.

Thank you Marvel Studios for sending us this Blu-Ray to review!

Note: Spoilers for Avengers: Infinity War follow!

After spending a lovely day with family on Mother’s Day in 2018, I thought I would end it with seeing Avengers: Infinity War with my husband. I didn’t expect such a downer of a movie! Not all of the Avengers are down for the count and they want to undo the devastation that Thanos caused to our beloved planet. With the help of the over-powered Captain Marvel, they have a slim chance of setting things right in Avengers: Endgame.

Avengers: Endgame begins with Hawkeye spending time with his family before they literally blow away in the wind. Earth is reeling from the chaos that Thanos caused. The remaining Avengers are not taking it well and are bickering more than getting along. Even five years after the event, people are still mourning and the world is a dump. After Ant-Man's return, they find a new, high risk approach they can take - if they survive.

As good as this film is, it’s not without some moral issues. Like any comic book themed movie violence is a given. There’s a fair amount of language and blaspheming. Even Captain America says S.O.B. Other words used include *ss, sh*t, p*ss, and d*ckhead. Last but not least is a scene where a homosexual man is talking about his dinner date with another man. Please exercise caution if showing this film to a child.

Thank you Materia Collective for sending us this digital album to review!

Kingdom Heartbeats features ten electronically remixed tracks from the popular Kingdom Hearts franchise. This album has been produced by Roborob and features some excellent vocals in some of the tracks.

The album begins with a nearly two minute shorter version of the intro song: Simple and Clean. Though the original tracks fall under the electronic dance music category, these remixes kick it up a notch. Tension Rising from Kingdom Hearts II is the second song and the remix amplifies it but stays true to the original battle music. The 13th Struggle from Kingdom Hearts 2 has also been tweaked for this album and it too sounds true to form and is nicely done.

Most of the tracks are from Kingdom Hearts 2 and Sora’s Theme has not been neglected. You’ll find a longer and tweaked version on this album. I have no idea what the Japanese singers are saying in the song Passion, but it sounds great. The menu music Dearly Beloved is so beautiful and should have been left alone. Although the remix is good, I still prefer the original.

Kingdom Hearts 3 gets some representation with Face My Fears. After that opening song, the first game is re-visited with some enhanced theme music from Traverse Town. Kingdom Hearts 2 takes the spotlight again with the upbeat battle music, Sinister Sundown. The album concludes with a much faster and dubstep version of one of my favorite tracks, This Is Halloween. Although interesting, I still prefer the original version.

Thank you 4DX for providing my family with tickets to see this film!

The animated classic version of The Lion King was released in 1994. I owned it on VHS (later on Blu-ray) and bought the Hans Zimmer & Elton John soundtrack too. The voice acting talent from James Earl Jones, Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, Whoopi Goldberg, and Rowan Atkinson is top-notch and hard to beat for this live-action version. Out of all of that talent, James Earl Jones was the only one to reprise his role as Mufasa in this remake. Seth Rogan voices Pumba and John Oliver is now Zazu and they both did a great job.

My biggest complaint about this film is that it’s not much different than the animated one. At least in the other live-action remakes there were some new characters and back-stories added. This film is almost frame by frame the same as the original. Again, with the other film setting the bar so high it’s hard to top it, but to not bring anything new to the table makes you wonder why they bothered remaking it in the first place.

The music sounds the same but has different singers so there’s not much deviation in that department either. Out of all of the songs in this film, Timon and Pumba’s rendition of ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ is my favorite.

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Though the site still has a few volunteer reviewers (including the founders!), we've been blessed with many great paid reviewers who receive $25 per written review.  Given that our monthly income is less than $600 on average and our reviewer payouts take up a big chuck of that, we're not in a position to take on a significant expense unless we can secure more funding. 

We have some regular donators who contribute via Paypal.  We also have an active Patreon page.  For those who don't like those two options, we have a Subscribestar site that has yet to get a backer on it. If we can get $100/month via any of those platforms, we can afford to upgrade our server and use any additional funding to pay our reviewers. Thanks for reading our site, this appeal, and for your support.

in Him,
Cheryl

Thank you Rappstar Entertainment for providing us with a digital screener to review!

Belong To Us tells a story about a German Shepherd who escapes a dogfighting ring and chooses a broken family as his own. The father, Travis, is a businessman who bonds with his teenage son over baseball, but has no idea on how to raise his nine-year-old daughter, Paige. The father almost became a major league baseball player, and hopes that his son can make it to the big leagues in his stead. Paige feels neglected and quickly bonds with the stray dog that wanders into their yard.

With her sassy grandmother’s help, Paige and her brother, Decklin, get permission to keep the dog and name him Duke. Unfortunately, the fighting lifestyle leaves behind some emotional scars on the dog. To make matters worse, the criminals that ran the dogfights are looking for their champion and endanger this family.

Throughout the movie, there is violence, and some blood is shown. In fact, when the dogs are fighting you’ll only see their legs and human violence is shown through shadows (no special effects or stunt doubles needed). Smoking, drinking, and drunkenness is also seen. The grandmother sometimes uses colorful language (sh*t), and hand gestures. Not surprisingly, this film is rated PG-13.

Thank you 4DX for providing my family with tickets to see this film!

Hearing that Pixar was revisiting the series made me skeptical, especially with how well the previous film concluded the series. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed this film quite a bit.

The story begins nine years in the past on a rainy night when Woody and Bo Peep get separated because he wouldn’t follow her and stayed behind to be with Andy. The water and rain effects look amazing and the visuals are way more detailed and advanced in comparison to the original Toy Story film from the 90s. I like how the 4DX experience has flashes of light in my peripheral vision when lighting strikes and fireworks pop. The gusts of air blowing in the theater definitely add to the experience as well.

After Bo Peep’s departure, the film resumes the story present-day with Woody and the gang with their new child, Bonnie. Unlike Andy’s room, Woody isn’t in charge - that role is delegated to a purple-haired doll named Dolly. In fact, Woody isn’t played with much anymore as Bonnie prefers playing with Jessie the cowgirl more. Despite feelings of neglect, Woody is still loyal to Bonnie and wants to help her adjust to kindergarten.

Thank you Marvel Studios for sending us this movie to review!

Captain Marvel begins with a touching tribute to Stan Lee who filmed his final cameo for this movie. The funny history about Captain Marvel is that both DC and Marvel comics have them and Marvel’s version used to be a male character. Instead of Carol Danvers being a side character, she ultimately becomes an over-powered super hero that makes quite an appearance in Avengers: Endgame.

Captain Marvel begins with Vers suffering from amnesia and nightmares on the Kree Empire’s capital planet, Hala. Her mentor, Yon-Rogg trains her and urges her to keep her emotions in check and to control the power that’s been graciously given to her. The Kree Supreme Intelligence threatens to take away the power if she cannot harness it.

Shortly after meeting with the Supreme Intelligence, Vers gets tasked on a covert mission which goes sideways. Her memories are scanned by an alien race that can shapeshift into any being they see with complete DNA accuracy. Telling them apart from their target takes some clever questioning. Both Vers and these Skrull aliens land on Earth, in the 90’s.

I appreciated the 90s nostalgia with Blockbuster, payphones, pagers, as well as music from Nirvana, Garbage, and No Doubt being featured. Seeing younger versions of S.H.I.E.L.D Agent Coulson and Nick Fury is cool too. If you’ve ever wondered how Fury lost his eye, you’ll get your answer in this film that’s 124 minutes. Just like the other comic book themed movies, you can expect to find blood and violence in this film. I don't recall any strong language so young Marvel fans should be able to enjoy this movie too.