Plugged In is a Focus on the Family publication designed to shine a light on the world of popular entertainment while giving families the essential tools they need to understand, navigate and impact the culture in which they live. Through our reviews, art
Adam Holz, Kristin Smith and Johnathan McKee
Finn has to make up for a dumb choice by hiking 46 mountain trails in a single summer. And it's the smartest punishment he's ever been given. Read the Plugged In Review If you enjoyed listening to Plugged In Reviews, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
This creative, 2D animated take on the Gospel comes with a few theological quibbles. But Light of the World' is a strong movie with a strong message. Read the Plugged In Review If you enjoyed listening to Plugged In Reviews, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
My Melody Kuromi bakes up some sweet messages, but it also may be a little frightening for its young target audience. Read the Plugged In Review If you enjoyed listening to Plugged In Reviews, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
40 percent of two-year-olds have tablets. By age four, 58% have them and by age eight, a quarter of kids have their own smartphones. Is that a problem? Read the Plugged In Blog If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
There's plenty of rock-pulverizing, banana gem-munching joy to be found in Donkey Kong Bananza' for Nintendo's Switch 2. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Family, faithfulness and sacrifice are among the values embraced by this live-action Lilo Stitch reboot. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Jaws' swims to theaters with a new 50th-anniversary, 4K-polish. But just how much problematic chum does this Spielberg classic churn up? Read the Plugged In Review If you enjoyed listening to Focus on the Family Minute, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse+ brings young viewers back to the adventures of Mickey and friendsall wrapped up at the end of each episode. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
It's one thing to say we need to monitor screen time, it's another thing to actually do it. How do we address feelings of guilt when we fail? Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Benson Boone doubles down on some common themes, focusing on physical aspects of love rather than lasting connection. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The King of Kings comes with a surprising number of big names. And, more importantly, it tells the story of the biggest name of all. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Washington Black has some heavy themes and gets pretty intense, but its TV-14 rating fits right in with a teenage audience. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
A new study reveals that internet users spend an average of 11-and-a-half hours a week watching online videos . . . that adds up to about 25 full days every year. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Electronic Arts offers a brand-new college football video game with even tougher college football challenges. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
After 29 years and eight films as Mission: Impossible' super spy Ethan Hunt, is Tom Cruise really going to call it a day? Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
It's been 22 years since Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis first swapped bodies. This time around, two teens get tossed into the mix too ... Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Based on novel by Jenny Han, this series follows the complex love life of Belly, a young girl caught between two boys who are childhood friends as she joins the world of debutantes. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
There's been a 21% rise in 11- to 16-year-olds using anti-aging moisturizers, which experts warn can cause lifelong skin damage to younger users. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Wes Huff provides ample evidence to believe in Christianity, and he does so with grace, patience and humility. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
It's been 22 years since Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis first swapped bodies. This time around, two teens get tossed into the mix too ... Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Angel Studios' Testament is a, ahem, testament to the incredible acts of Jesus' earliest followers as it follows their stories after Jesus. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Do you know how to recognize digital distress in your teen? Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
After being homeschooled by residents in his grandma's retirement community, Dexter attends school for the first time. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The latest Jurassic Park' entry features Scarlett Johansson and cutting-edge CGI. But character development or big twists? Nah. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The Bad Guys 2' brings more high-stakes heists and musings on the nature of being good. It also comes with a couple content issues for families to consider. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The Waterfront has all of the content issues you'd expect in a Netflix drama about climbing the ranks of the drug trade. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
What are the dangers with the Yes You Can trend? Read the Plugged In Blog If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
TRON: Catalyst' incorporates some nice neon-lit visuals and heroic, mystery-solving gameplay with no major derezz issues. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
It's got all the problems you'd expect from a superhero flick, and a few more besides. But it comes with a lot of heart, and hope, too. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Marvel's so-called First Family takes it's First Steps' in the official MCU canon in story that majors on family and dials down typical Marvel content concerns. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Through the power of imagination, Riley's cardboard box can be anything from a dinosaur egg to a submarine on Apple TV's children's show, Not a Box.' Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
There are all sorts of odd things online that grab your kids' attention. Can you make those things work in your favor? Read the Plugged In Blog If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Jon Bellion's honesty about parenting anxieties is admirable, but he ultimately leads listeners to misleading and profane reflections rather than helpful solutions. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Juliet Romeo is the latest musical adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragic play. And it has all the same content issues as the original. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Smurfs is a fun flick. But a heavy dependence on euphemisms and some problematic spiritual views might require more parental hand-holding. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Ironheart has your standard Marvel violence, but it also comes with crude language, sexual content and spiritual issues galore. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
CDC data shows that only 23% of high school students get sufficient sleep on an average school night, which is 8 to 10 hours. Read the Plugged In Blog If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The FaZe Rug channel may appeal to younger audiences with its fun challenges and pranks, but those viewers won't be old enough for its content. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
After its theatrical run, Season Four of The Chosen moves to The Chosen app. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Will TikTok's new meditation feature make a difference in screentime? Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
An odd group of young misfits are back for another round of pastry-fueled detective work. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Despite some issues, The Legend of Ochi' is a throwback adventure that tells a moody-but-hopeful story about the mending of broken families. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The latest Jurassic' entry features Scarlett Johansson and cutting-edge CGI. But character development or big twists? Nah. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
What is the obsession with the Jesus Glow? Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Revenge of the Savage Planet' is a silly, snarky sci-fi romp. But it may not be the best galaxy for younger space lovers to explore. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
A nice message about the love between siblings accompanies lots of footwear puns in this animated tale about sneakers. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
F1 The Movie' is a visually stunning and pulse-pounding racing film, but it comes with more than a few bumps in the Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Inspired by Judy Blume's novel, Netflix's Forever is a story about teen romance, but one that I certainly wouldn't want my own teenager watching. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Teens are taking nonchalance to new extremes, desperately trying to learn how to not try at all. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
Forrest Frank views his purpose as more than making music. Each song on his latest album is part of his ministryto proclaim the Gospel to anyone who will listen. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29
The latest live-action remake of a beloved Disney classic has been a lightning rod for controversy. But despite some changes, Snow White's character remains strong, brave and true. Read the Plugged In Review If you've listened to any of our podcasts, please give us your feedback. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1005/29