I sat back and thought about it, though. As a youth pastor, it was nice to see so many faith based films being produced, and the fact that one was actually on top of the box office was cool. But then I saw a few clips from the film. I read reviews. A thought crossed my mind that many may think of as "blasphemous" or even heretical: Is it possible that the criticism is actually valid?
*Collective gasp*
Grab a chair and pour some coffee, Christian Film. We need to talk.
First, here's something that sounds impressive but is actually depressing. "War Room" was indeed #1 at the box office over Labor Day weekend, but it was the lowest Labor Day weekend in terms of box office results since 2004 (totaling a mere $65,866,584 for the top 12 movies combined). It's like whenever I was playing little league baseball. One year we lost all but 2 games (to say the team was bad is a slap in the face to bad teams. We were putrid). We did, however beat the best team in the league for one of our wins. However, they only had 7 player show up, and we only won the game by one single solitary run. Under normal conditions, we would have been killed. If "Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation" is even in it's fifth week in the box office instead of it's sixth, it would have killed "War Room" (by $2 million dollars, actually).
Second, it is not personal! When you have a job to evaluate a product based against other products, you are going to give your honest unbiased opinion about the value of the product. This is the case with film critics. Since I do not have omniscience or a relationship with every single film critic ever, I cannot confidently tell you what the spiritual well being of every critic is at this time (I'm working on it, ok?). However, I am confident enough to state that despite their personal beliefs, the tend to judge fairly. That's why when I see that the average critic rating for the top 10 grossing "Christian" films since 1980 is a mere 44.5/100 (Rotten Tomatoes ratings), I do not think it is really a coincidence.
This is fact. Facts are the truth.
Are the critics blasting Christian values? Actually, no. The majority of the critics talk about how the films "look like a high school production", are a "sloppily written, badly argued, unevenly acted" film, and even that "it's not so much the plot or themes of the film that's the problem as the ham-fisted execution".
This is fact. Facts are the truth.
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| You had to see this coming. |
Are the critics blasting Christian values? Actually, no. The majority of the critics talk about how the films "look like a high school production", are a "sloppily written, badly argued, unevenly acted" film, and even that "it's not so much the plot or themes of the film that's the problem as the ham-fisted execution".
Translation: it's not the message, it's how we are presenting it.
The next question you may have is this: why does it even matter? So what if Christian film is not very good? It isn't hurting anybody. True, they are not literally hurting anybody (unless you are playing Jesus in "The Passion of the Christ"), but should not these films about faith in Christ or themes related to such an important matter be held to an equally as high standard? What good is it to make something that is laughable to outsiders because of the manner in which is was made, not because of the message it presented? And believe me, it is not because of the source material that these have been poor so far.
The Bible is a very cinematic book. The Book of Judges is an action movie. Ruth: a romantic comedy. Song of Solomon is...you know what? We aren't going to go there.
But the bottom like is that stories have been a key part of Christianity all the way back to it's roots in the Old Testament. Israel was told to pass down the stories of God's power throughout their history, lest they move away from Him (Psalm 105). Jesus used parables to communicate foreign concepts of the Kingdom of Heaven, His love for mankind, and His mission on earth. These stories were not always understood by the audience (Matthew 13 shows that many do NOT understand them), but it was because of the condition of their hearts in accordance to the message presented, NOT because Jesus failed to communicate the story with faulty story telling.
The quality of the telling is vital to getting across the most important message in all of life. When the story telling and cinematic quality are faulty, these faults cloud the message and make it unbearable to watch. We should not give up, though.
We are called to go into the world and preach the Gospel, but that also means understanding the world we are going into and being able to communicate in such a way that the people will hear. I am reminded of Paul in Athens in Acts 17. Paul went to Athens and began to speak in the synagogue as was his custom, but it can be reasoned that he was speaking to them like he would normally speak to the Jewish people that understood basic Judaism and the old law. The response? "What is this babbler trying to say?" (verse 18). Paul then adapted to his surroundings and spoke to them regarding a statue to "the unknown God", who he then introduces them to as Yahweh.
He did not change the message; just the delivery.
As a Christian, I want nothing more than to see Christian film be successful. As a film fan and admitted cinephile, I want nothing more than to see quality film praised and celebrated. While movies like "War Room", "God's Not Dead", "Heaven Is For Real" and "Soul Surfer" are painful to watch (cinematically speaking), that does not mean we cannot have more "Passion of the Christ"'s come out. This upcoming fall there is a film "Captive" that is getting wide release. The film, starring Kate Mara (127 Hours) and David Oyelowo (Selma, Interstellar), is based on a true story of a lady who was captured then released after reading the book Purpose Driven Life to her capturer, who then has to make a decision about his current situation and his entire life. This film has the potential to be a very solid drama with two of Hollywood's premiere performers. And you know what? It's a Christian film. Christian themes are explored and talked about, not in a preaching or cheesy sort of way, but in a very real and relatable way: a way that is understood by people both Christian and non. Not in a trashy or indecent way, but a way that is still honoring to God and His teachings.
My prayer is for Christian film to be something that is on par quality wise with the "main stream" film industry. The quality of film that is making money is laughable, but it does not have to be this way. We can AND should hold Christian film to a higher standard, both as movie consumers and creators. We need to be honest with what we have, but hopeful for what the future may hold. We need to, as the Church, promote and help back creatives and artists that have the itch to tell stories, act out stories, and show them to the people around themselves. To present stories not in a cheesy fashion, a "happy go lucky" way that is contradictory to life; but rather stories that celebrate Christ's healing hand, His peace giving face and heroic nature in the middle of REAL life, real struggles, and real heart aches.
Christian Film, hold yourself to a higher standard, but don't quit. Remember, "whatever you do, do it with all your heart as working for the LORD, not men..." Quality that is fit for the Creator.
My prayer is for Christian film to be something that is on par quality wise with the "main stream" film industry. The quality of film that is making money is laughable, but it does not have to be this way. We can AND should hold Christian film to a higher standard, both as movie consumers and creators. We need to be honest with what we have, but hopeful for what the future may hold. We need to, as the Church, promote and help back creatives and artists that have the itch to tell stories, act out stories, and show them to the people around themselves. To present stories not in a cheesy fashion, a "happy go lucky" way that is contradictory to life; but rather stories that celebrate Christ's healing hand, His peace giving face and heroic nature in the middle of REAL life, real struggles, and real heart aches.
Christian Film, hold yourself to a higher standard, but don't quit. Remember, "whatever you do, do it with all your heart as working for the LORD, not men..." Quality that is fit for the Creator.
