USCCB Movie Reviews The above link will connect you to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop's movie and video reviews. They contain a brief overview of many movies with the USCCB's classification and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) rating. They may have a comment on any inappropriate language or violence in the film. You may also want to check out the Catholic News Service capsule movie reviews.

Pope John Paul II program: On Hallmark Channel

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Before he became pope, Karol Wojtyla's life was a vigorous search for love and freedom. His transformational journey led him to the theatre, to profound experiences of love, friendship, and loyalty, to scholarship, to the Catholic priesthood. And finally, it led him to Rome and the Chair of St. Peter.

Karol's heroic, true story, based on Gian Franco Svidercoschi's book, Stories of Karol: The Unknown Life of John Paul II, comes to television in A Man Who Became Pope, a four-hour movie event presented by Faith & Values Media, premiering on Hallmark Channel Monday, Aug. 15, at 7 p.m.

Filmed on location in Krakow, Poland, and Vatican City, the film features an international cast.

A Man Who Became Pope was warmly received when screened at the Vatican's Paul VI hall on May 19. "The film presents scenes and episodes that, in their severity, awaken in the viewers an instinctive 'turning away' in horror and stimulates them to consider the abyss of iniquity that can be hidden in the human soul," said Pope Benedict XVI. "At the same time, calling to the fore such aberrations revives in every right-minded person the duty to do what he or she can so that such inhuman barbarism never happens again. . . I . . . express living gratitude to those who wanted to offer me . . . the opportunity to view this moving film."

Vatican press spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said Pope John Paul II had seen the film in its entirety in a private viewing before his death and was "very impressed" with the portrayal and "appreciated the many scenes" from that period in his life.

Media/Arts Briefs

Ice cream social/concert

Organ recital series

Cathedral concerts

Talk on Wisconsin trees

TV Programs of Note

Following are some theatrical movies and television programs of note. This information is being provided to assist people in making viewing choices.

Monday-Friday, 2:30 p.m., Inspiration Channel (cable) -- Catholic Mass.

Monday-Sunday, 7 a.m., 11 a.m., 6 p.m., 11 p.m., EWTN (cable) -- Daily Mass. No 6 p.m. showing on Sunday.

Fridays, 9 p.m., EWTN (cable) -- Defending Life. Repeats 4 a.m. Wednesdays.

Sundays, Aug. 7 and 14, 7 a.m., WISC (CBS) -- Mass. Celebrated by Msgr. Thomas Campion, sponsored by Apostolate to the Handicapped.

Sundays, Aug. 7 and 14, 10 a.m., Hallmark Channel (cable) -- Sunday Mass from Notre Dame.

Monday, Aug. 8, 1 p.m., WYOU (cable) -- Christopher Close-up: "Healing the Heart of Conflict." Conflict resolution expert Rabbi Marc Gopin explores eight crucial steps to making peace with yourself and others.

Tuesday, Aug. 9, 4:30 p.m., EWTN (cable) -- Rome Reports: The World Seen from the Vatican. Monthly newsmagazine featuring the latest news and events from the Vatican. Repeats 9 a.m. Aug. 10 and 2 p.m. Aug. 11.

Wednesday, Aug. 10, 7:30 p.m., WMTV (NBC) -- Unforgettable Moments in Television Entertainment: A Museum of Television & Radio Special. The title is self-explanatory, and the museum source gives the special some class.

Saturday, Aug. 13, 7 p.m., Discovery (cable) -- The Real Da Vinci Code. Tony Robinson sets out to illuminate the facts about the Holy Grail and offer the historian's view of Dan Brown's best-seller The Da Vinci Code.

Monday, Aug. 15, 4:30 a.m., EWTN (cable) -- Jesus of Nazareth: "The Promise." The show features classical music with the camera slowly scanning over different paintings depicting the life of Jesus.

Monday, Aug. 15, 1 p.m., WYOU (cable) -- Christopher Close-up: "A Path Into Prayer." Writer Liz Kelly discusses her struggles with her religious faith, the emotional aftermath of being raped, and the spiritual renewal she felt after praying the rosary.

Monday, Aug. 15, 11:30 p.m., WHA (PBS) -- In Wisconsin. In Wisconsin profiles the state's highway-based trail system for bird lovers, the second of its kind in the nation, and describes the huge gains this trail is expected to provide for local businesses and communities. The Kickapoo Valley Reserve north of LaFarge in Vernon County is a 9,000 acre recreational area developed through the work of local citizens who wanted to undo the damage that an aborted dam project left behind. This week's Retro segment revisits Dave and Sue Johnson, who in 1983 created a hot air balloon styled after one created for the first manned flight in the 1700s; the Johnsons still fly and take about 15 passenger flights a year.

Radio Programs of Note

Sunday, Aug. 7, 9 a.m., Relevant Radio (1240 AM) -- Relevant 2 U. This locally produced magazine-style program features people, events, and Catholic issues in the Diocese of Madison. This program features Relevant 2 U's first anniversary show; Bishop Robert Morlino and the "Z" Club; Valley of Our Lady Monastery project; and the Schoenstatt Movement. Repeats 9 a.m. Friday and 12 noon Saturday.

Sunday, Aug. 14, 9 a.m., Relevant Radio (1240 AM) -- Relevant 2 U. This program features Bishop Robert C. Morlino's homily on the Feast of the Assumption; Madison area pilgrims attending World Youth Day; "Walk for Life" benefit for the Elizabeth House; and a vocational vignette by Jorge Miramontes. Repeats 9 a.m. Friday and 12 noon Saturday.