COLUMN: The Ultimate Playlist of Movie Music Lullabies

I hope this big post and 200-song playlist finds you and serves you well. It's been quite the passion project for me to build, on and off, over the last year and a half. Thanks for letting me merge sounding like a parenting blogger and a movie in one post. Please share this column with your friends with kids. It's all not just for babies either. If you like this kind of music, it works great in the car or at the office as well. As a school teacher, I used to play this in my elementary school classes all the time. It's excellent music for creativity and focus for all ages. Enjoy!

2014, Column, Editorial, SPECIALDon ShanahanJuly 8, 2014Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Movie music, film scores, Film music, Best Original Score, John Williams, James Horner, Hans Zimmer, Clint Eastwood, Michael Giacchino, Thomas Newman, Gabriel Yared, Lennie Niehaus, Tan Dun, Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Shigeru Umebayashi, Alexandre Desplat, Joe Hisashi, Luis Bacalov, Ludovic Bource, Philippe Rombi, Cesar Benito, Ennio Morricone, Wojciech Kilar, Mychael Danna, Max Steiner, Bernard Herrmann, Stanley Myers, Nina Rota, Elmer Bernstein, Henry Mancini, John Barry, Jerry Goldsmith, Bill Conti, Carter Burwell, Harold Faltermeyer, Danny Elfman, Craig Armstrong, George Fenton, Graeme Revell, Maurice Jarre, Michael Kamen, Michael Nyman, Christopher Doyle, Rachel Portman, Stephen Warbeck, Trevor Jones, Explosions in the Sky, Daft Punk, M83, Tyler Bates, Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimeck, Reynold Heil, Aaron Zigman, Arcade Fire, Dario Marianelli, Harry Escott, Howard Shore, Jon Brion, John Debney, Patrick Doyle, Marc Streitenfeld, Mark IshamComment

EDITORIAL: Improving on the "Mozart Effect" with movie music

For those website followers that don't know me on social media, I've become a first-time father in the past year-and-a-half and have a second child on the way due this fall. For this column, I might turn into a parenting blogger more than a movie critic, but bear with me. I think you will like it.

COLUMN: 2014 Late Summer Movie Preview

With the end of June, we've come to the halfway point of the traditionally long four-month summer movie season. In my opinion, even though the box office receipts keep rolling in here and abroad, May and June brought more disappointments than winners. The offerings of July and August aren't usually as strong as May and June, but maybe this year will be different.

2014, Column, EditorialDon ShanahanJune 25, 20142014, 2014 Summer Movies, 2014 Late Summer Movies, Late Summer Movies, July 2014 films, July 2014 movies, August 2014 films, August 2014 moviesComment

CHECKLIST: 2014 Late Summer Movie Calendar

Here is the master list of releases and dates for the late half of this summer movie season for 2014. Print it out, slap it on the fridge, and pick your spots. As always, dates and movies shift all of the time, so look before you drive out to the theater. Full preview coming up next!

2014, Column, EditorialDon ShanahanJune 20, 2014July 2014 movies, July 2014 films, July 2014 releases, Tammy, Deliver Us From Evil, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Boyhood, And So It Goes, Sex Tape, The Purge: Anarchy, Planes: Fire and Rescue, Wish I Was Here, Mood Indigo, Hercules, Lucy, Step Up: In All, Magic in the Moonlight, A Most Wanted Man, Happy Christmas, Guardians of the Galaxy, Get On Up, Cavalry, What If, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Hundred-Foot Journey, Into the Storm, The Expendables 3, The Giver, Let's Be Cops, Life After Beth, The One I Love, The Trip to Italy, August 2014 films, August 2014 movies, August 2014 film releases, August 2014 movie releases, Sin City: A Dame To Kill For, If I Stay, When the Game Stands Tall, Frank, Jessabelle, The Loft, The November Man, Underdogs, The Congress, Life of CrimeComment

EDITORIAL: The Best of 2014 (so far)

Here are my picks for the "Best of 2014 (so far)" with a halfway count of the five best instead of the full ten. It must be said, that I have far from seen every possible 2014 film entry. Plenty of mainstream and arthouse films have eluded me and my busy schedule, but there is enough to talk about here. As always, in matching with the theme of my website, I couple the best-so-far selection with the film's best life lesson. Enjoy!

MEDIA APPEARANCE #4: Guest on "Day at the Movies" weekly radio show!

Fans of the website will know that "Every Movie Has a Lesson" frequently collaborates with "Day at the Movies" run by Lubbock, Texas blogger +Tim Day. We commonly compare our reviews, interests, projects, and tastes to both of our groups of followers. As a staff member of Lubbock Christian University, Tim hosts a one-hour weekly radio show on Chap Radio to showcase "Day at the Movies" and share his opinions on recent theatrical releases, upcoming films, the latest movie gossip, new Netflix and Redbox recommendations, and much more.

COLUMN: 2014 Early Summer Movie Preview

After an extremely slow winter and spring 2014 movie seasons, we've finally come to the power part of the order filled with events, tentpoles, and blockbusters. Outside of "The Lego Movie" and "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," this year has been starved for a new hit. The front-loaded first half of the two-part summer season looks to change all that.

EDITORIAL: The 15 films to watch for the 2015 Oscars

Once one awards season ends, another one begins! The winners from last night's 86th Academy Awards can bask in the glow of immortality for a while. Meanwhile, business in Hollywood will quickly shift and move on to the 87th Academy Awards that will happen in February or March of 2015. Here are 15 films to watch for the 2015 Oscars.

2014, Column, EditorialDon ShanahanMarch 3, 20142015 Oscars, 87th Academy Awards, Whiplash, Sundance Film Festival, M, Miles Teller, Philip Seymour Hoffman, A Most Wanted Man, John le Carre, Anton Corbjin, The American, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright, Magic in the Moonlight, Emma Stone, Woody Allen, Colin Firth, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wes Anderson, Ralph Fiennes, Serena, Bradley Cooper, Brothers, Jennifer Lawrence, Gone Girl, David Fincher, Ben Affleck, Get on Up, James Brown, Chadwick Boseman, Tate Taylor, The Help, Oscar Predictions, Oscar nominations, Oscars, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Editorial, Column, movie commentary, Interstellar, Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Christopher Nolan, Fury, David Ayer, End of Watch, Shia LeBouf, Logan Lerman, Exodus, Noah, Darren Aronofsky, Ridley Scott, Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Bible, Inherent Vice, Paul Thomas Anderson, Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, P.T. Anderson, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, Peter Jackson, Into the Woods, Disney, Rob Marshall, Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Chris Pine, Emily Blunt, Anna Kendrick, Unbroken, Angelina Jolie, Louis Zamperini, Jack O'Connell, Domhnall Gleason, Jai Courtney, Garrett Hedlund, Cameron Crowe, Danny McBride, John Krasinkski, Bill Murray, Will Smith, Annie, Quvenzhane Wallis, Clint Eastwood, Jersey Boys, Frankie ValliComment

COLUMN: 2014 Spring Movie Preview

This year's slate of spring releases offers a pretty eclectic menu of choices, especially compared to the winter, and even a few blockbusters that want to beat the summer big boys to the punch of box office dollars. Here's my final breakdown of this spring's upcoming releases to enjoy.

EDITORIAL: Final 2014 Awards Tracker and Oscar Reactions

In my final update of this year's Awards Tracker, here are the final tallies, Oscar winners, and my reactions. The Oscar winners in each category are in bold. See you next year for another data session and season!

2014, Column, EditorialDon ShanahanMarch 3, 2014Award Prediction, Awards Predictions, Awards Tracker, Awards Talk, 86th Academy Awards, Oscar nominations, Oscars, Oscar Predictions, 2014, 2014 Oscars, Best Motion Picture, Best Costume Design, Best Animated Feature, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Sound Mixing, Best Picture, Best Documentary Feature, Best Director, Best Sound, Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Animated Short, Best Production Design, Best Sound Editing, Best Original Score, Best Actress, Best Live Action Short Film, Best Original Song, Best, Best Screenplay, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Original Screenplay, Best Animated Short Film, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Supporting Actress, Best Directing, Best Visual Effects, Best Film Editing, Best Documentary Short Subject, Best Musical Score, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, The race for Best PictureComment

OSCAR PREDICTIONS 2014: The race for Best Picture

In this seventh and final post, we have come to the big finish. Here is my breakdown for the race for Best Picture. This is the big one and the cherry on top for my prediction series. Stick with me and I will win you your Oscar pool. Let's go!

OSCAR PREDICTIONS 2014: The male acting awards

It's time to make my formal predictions. In this sixth post, we are deep into the major award categories. Here are my picks for Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor. Stick with me and I will win you your Oscar pool. Let's go!

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

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