Christian Films Suck (Not)
I’m tired of seeing this headline as the topic for so many blogs. That’s like saying “Californians are surfers,” or “Texans are ranchers.” So I’m starting a contest to see who can name the most “un-sucky” Christian films. Respond with your list of non-sucky films and in 29 days (which will be October 17th, and producer Bobby Downes‘ birthday), I’ll announce the winner as well as the prize.
The contest begins…NOW!
(That’s pretty much it - no convoluted contest rules - just let me know your thoughts)
It kind of sounds like you want a list from each of us - so here is my top 10 “unsucky” Christian films-
1. Joshua (Tony Goldwyn)
2. Luther (Joseph Fiennes)
3. Mercy Streets (Eric Roberts)
4. The Gospel(Boris Kodjoe)
5. Joan of Arc (LeeLee Sobieski)
6. A Man for All Seasons
7. End of the Spear
8. The Climb
9. A Vow to Cherish
10.Extreme Days
I could probably come up with another 15 or 20 but these are my top ten. This will probably be a fun exercise for all of us. Thanks!!!
September 19th, 2007 at 7:38 am
Let’s see if I can get a top 10. Do they have to be produced as specifically Christian films? Would The Gospel According to St. Matthew be eligable?
I have to agree that many, many, Christian produced films are really bad. I can’t come up with more than a couple without resorting to secular films about Christians.
10, in no order, that are either overtly Christian or present Christian themes in excellent ways:
End of the Spear
Second Chance
Quo Vadis
The Gospel According to St. Matthew
Signs
The Last Temptation of Christ
Ben Hur
The Prince of Egypt
Return to Me
I’ve also recently seen The Ultimate Gift, Homecoming(Billy Graham Films) and Facing the Giants. While none were among my favorites, all were well made and good for the type of movie they were.
September 19th, 2007 at 10:05 am
Chariots of Fire is the ultimate example of an unsucky Christian film. It’s subtle, complex, has excellent actors and production values. It’s also made by people who were not necessarily sympathetic to a Christian message. “Signs” is another good example of this type of film: while it is not overtly Christian, it is a good film and presents a Christian idea - that life is directed by God or providence.
To me, the reason why so many films made by Christians or presenting Christian ideas suck is that instead of telling a story (the job of film), they try to present a list of key points about Christianity. (Of course, another problem is the lack of budget or production values). Stories are told to convey points: but the key points need to flow from the story, and if the film focuses on telling the story as well as possible the points are not forced. Perhaps this is why non-Christians occasionally make better Christian films.
September 19th, 2007 at 11:42 am
This is the problem with Christian Films being sucky. There are lots of great Christian films, but dopey sells in the Christian market, thus Cheese gets held up as great art.
With that, here is my list….
I’m judging “Christian” to be by Christian movie makers or based on the work of a christian author (I am assuming M. Knight. Shyamalan is a Christian because of the pervasive messages in every one of his films, though I have not seen praying with anger, if I am wrong, then skip those movies and put them in great films by non-Christians with christian themes)
The Lady In The Water (pe) (d)
The Exorcism of Emily Rose (nf) (pe) (d)
Luther (c)
Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (c) (d)
The Village (pe) (nf)
The Addiction (c) (nf) (d)
Signs (c) (nf)
Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers (c) (d)
Godspell (c) (f)
The Miracle Maker (c) (d)
The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (c)
The Passion of the Christ (c) (nf) (d)
Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King (c) (d)
To End All Wars (c) (nf) (d)
The Incredible Adventures of Wallace & Gromit [3 shorts] (f) (s)
Testament: The Bible In Animation [9 shorts] (c) (d)
In The Bed Room (d) (nf) (pe)
Note: “The Bed Room” in the title refers to a compartment of a Lobster Trap
Mercy Streets (c) (nf)
Newsboys Down Under The Big Top (c) (s) (f)
Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie (c) (f) (s)
Extreme Days (c) (s)
Chillicothe (s) (m) (d) (nf) (slightly - pe)
Sense and Sensibility (c)(f)
Pride & Prejudice (m)
Unbreakable (nf) (d)
Ben-Hurr (v) (e) (d)
Lord Of The Rings Extended Edition
(one movie in three parts) (c) (nf) (d)
This is from my list of movies everyone should see
http://www.geocities.com/questionentertainment/Movies-You-Should-Go-See.html
September 20th, 2007 at 2:57 pm
The other posters have a lot of great films listed. I’m going to take a slightly different approach, in that many of the films they list that I think are great (like Chariots and Luther) were made “outside” of the “Christian entertainment system.” In other words, they were films that were being made for all audiences that just happened to find Christian audiences (and in the case of Luther, the Christian audience was courted but so too were the arthouse and historical film crowds). Again, they are great and valid films, but I’ve decided to base my criteria on films that were made within the Christian entertainment system, even if they happened to have received additional backing/distribution from a mainstream company. In which case, hands down, the absolute best Christian movie fitting the criteria I describe is “The Second Chance.” I urge everyone to see this uncompromising film from director Steve Taylor, starring Michael W. Smith (bravely playing against type). It really hits its messages of true Christianity home in no uncertain terms. And just as Jesus was unpopular among certain individuals of because the truths he spoke exposed many of them, there seem to be both those who find this film polarizing and those who “get it,” and understand the true Christian message it is imparting. I think the film is just about perfect. I can’t think of any other film made within the Christian system that I can say the same about.
Having said that I know compensate for the others by lowering the grading curve. In that regard, I can give high marks to “The Moment After,” “The Perfect Stranger,” “Time Changer,” “Facing the Giants” and especially “Hidden Secrets” for their sincerity (and for “Hidden Secrets,” an extra nod for making the effort to portray real people with real people problems not usually addressed in such a compassionate way in Christian films).
I’ll mention one other film whose history I’m uncertain of - I don’t know if it was made within or outside of the Christian entertainment industry, although it has certainly been marketed within that industry: The Gospel of John. Henry Ian Cusick gives my all-time favorite portrayal of Jesus, especially when he’s facing off against the Pharisees and pointing out that Moses foretold Him but they wouldn’t listen - I’ve never seen Jesus portrayed with as much fire and passion, especially in that scene, which deserves it. The whole film is wonderful, really. Highly recommended.
September 20th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
These are some good lists. Let’s keep it going. Some interesting choices that I want to see.
September 20th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
1. Mercy Streets.
2. Joshua.
3. Hidden Secrets.
4. Luther.
5. Hoodwinked.
6. End of the Spear.
7. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.
8. Churchball.
9. The Passion of the Christ.
10. To End All Wars.
11. Buttercream Gang.
12. The Visitation.
13. Thr3e.
14. Hangman’s Curse.
15. Life is Beautiful.
16. Time Changer.
17. Second Chance.
18. Six: The Mark.
19. The Omega Code.
20. Megiddio: The Omega Code 2.
21. The Champion.
22. Joyriders.
September 21st, 2007 at 10:18 pm
Ah, David Mackey - you reminded me of one tremendous film by including it on your list: “To End All Wars.” I think this was made outside of the Christian film industry but the screenwriter (Brian Godowa - I may have spelled his name wrong) IS a Christian and has written at least one book about movies and Christian worldviews (maybe more since last time I checked). “To End All Wars” is based on a true story set in World War 2. For authenticity’s sake and because it would have stripped the power of the message of forgiveness away had they done it otherwise, the producers did not shy away from the brutal torture and brutal language associated with wartime. As a result they received an “R” rating. Don’t let that dissuade you - if you think you can handle the violence (we’re talking of only a few scenes, but they are on a “Saving Private Ryan/Passion of the Christ” level), you should watch this one.
September 22nd, 2007 at 5:45 am
Here is my top-10 list
1. The Passion of the Christ
2. Six-The Mark Unleashed
3. The Climb
4. Something to Sing About
5. Tribulation - Cloud Ten
6. Revelation - Cloud Ten
7. Omega Code
8. Joshua
9. Angel wars (cartoon) - Episode 1
10.Judgment - Cloud Ten
September 24th, 2007 at 2:38 am
Not in any order but these ones were really interesting and I liked them a lot(PS some the movies had an underlying Christian theme to it):
1. Mercy Streets
2. The Passion of The Christ
3. The Miracle Maker
4. A Walk To Remember
5. The Ride
6. Diary of A Mad Black Woman
7. Flywheel
8. To End All Wars
9. Perfect Stranger
10. Lord of the Rings trilogy
11. Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
12. The Appointment
I will be seeing “Facing The Giants” next month so I will add it. Our Church is showing it in cinemas here in the UK as a way to introduce and ignite people to the Lord in their daily lives.
September 24th, 2007 at 8:44 am
1) Facing the Giants
Second Change (Better without the cussing)
2) Perfect Stranger
3) Flywheel
4) Passion of the Christ
5) The Climb
6) Unidentified
7) Time Changer
9) Jonah: Veggie Tales
10) End of the Spear
September 29th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
This is my list of films that I thought were not only good movies, but they also gave clear presentations of the gospel message.
TIME CHANGER
UNIDENTIFIED
END OF THE HARVEST
THE MOMENT AFTER
THE THEIF IN THE NIGHT SERIES
LATE ONE NIGHT
MERCY STREETS
M 10:28
A VOW TO CHERISH
PAMELAS PRAYER
MARTIN LUTHER (Older version)
SIX
I really enjoy these films because they can truly be called Christian films. They do not just have Christian values in them but they proclaim the name of Christ without shame. God bless all of the Christian movie makers.
September 30th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
OK, Look at these lists and the discussion and you see why Christian Movies Suck. The worst ones rise to the top because they are safely put out from the church ghetto for the church ghetto. Most these films people are saying “They are great because they Talk about Jesus” but that does not make a great film. Think about it, would you watch these films if they did not talked about Jesus. Most the time the answer would be no, because they are lame movies.
You see, Christian film is like Adult film.
In adult films they show naked people. Men are made by God to have happy feelings when they see them. So adult film makers can just put naked girls in there movie and it will make money and people will like the movies even though the story is dumb and the acting is poor.
The Christian message is the best thing ever. It is also extremely emotional and amazing profound. It moves people all by it self. Hearing the christian message (if you accept it) is the greatest thing that will ever happen to you in this life. Thus film makers can put the christian message in there movie and it will make money and people will like the movies even though the story is dumb and the acting is poor.
Ask your self. If this movie did not have a christian message would I still like it.
If the answer is no then it’s not a good movie, you just like Jesus, not the movie.
Furthermore, if the answer is no, is that the place to put the greatest message of all time? Doesn’t God deserve the best?
PS
I in no way endorse people looking at naked people that they are not married to. I do not watch, for entertainment, movies that go against what I believe and porn (showing naked people or half naked people for fun) always goes against what I believe no mater how good the rest of the film is.
September 30th, 2007 at 8:35 pm
1 Facing The Giants
2 Something To Sing About
3 One Night With The King
4 The Ultimate Gift
Christian Films Suck
1 Left Behind
2 Left Behind II: Tribulation Force
3 Left Behind III: World At War
4 The Omega Code
5 The Moment After
6 Megiddo The Omega Code 2
7 SIX - The Mark Unleashed -
10 Hangmans Curse
October 1st, 2007 at 6:08 am
Another poster mentioned the cursing in “The Second Chance.” In the interest of not taking things out of context (always the rule of thumb with the bible, and I think a good rule to follow for films as well), I think it’s fair to point out that the cursing in the movie is treated as a sin that needs to be addressed by the character who has the cursing problem. Also, the level of curses never rises above “da#@” and “he#@”, so if you’ve avoided the film thinking it is a filthy smutfest of super-bad language, rest assured that is not the case. Again, I highly recommend it - it is the antithesis of “suck” - a film that you can show your non-Christian friends that they will actually have a hard time lobbing criticism at.
October 1st, 2007 at 6:39 am
RE: Christopher’s comment
Hear, hear. Well said.
October 1st, 2007 at 7:13 am
Hi Christopher. The statement you made(1st paragraph)is not true or a standard for all. It is also out of context because movies are very subjective in nature, tastes, appeal, likes, subject matter or whatever the intended goal of the film is from the filmmakker and the way the audience receive or reject it. Also in reference to the subject matter; it is films made by Christians and in my understanding for believers primarily or that have a christian/faith filled theme “So I’m starting a contest to see who can name the most “un-sucky” Christian films.” That is the idea so just give a list of what you think are your top ten if you have any. And by the way some of the films listed here are quite good even if they are overtly ‘Christian’ in context and content. Remember if Christian film-makers have half the regular budgets of Hollywood standard movies we probably may have more better films in ratio than bad ones, but that is another subject all together.
October 1st, 2007 at 7:17 am
And not every Christian film has been thoroughly engaged by Christians or even purchased by 0.01% of the Christian population in the US alone. Many Christians know what a good movie consists of so don’t make it out that they are all dumb and can’t tell the difference. But we are trying to support as many good ones that are made even of they are low budgte at the moment so that more can be made in order to have a worldwide reach. Besides I know some countries outside the US that love low budget Christian movies because it was what made them know the Lord a lot more before they became believers. infact some of those low budget Christian movies we condemn in the UK and US are the very same films that were introductory to a lot of people who never heard the Gospel in their lives! When you are full, not even honey tastes good, but when you are hungry, even something bitter tastes sweet.
October 1st, 2007 at 7:26 am
I have to agree somewhat with Christopher in his general observation, though I will restate the case as I have some differentiators in my own thinking.
I believe, first, that a ‘christian film’ is somewhat of a misnomer, much as a ‘christian song’ can be a misnomer. It used to be in the CCM scene there were many who were upset when certain artists (e.g. Michael W. Smith) didn’t mention Jesus or God at least once in every song. Did MWS suddenly make “unchristian” music b/c it didn’t mention God? Not necessarily. Rather, the defining point about christian, is the orientation of such film in worldview. Whether explicitly or implicitly it should reveal God-ways in the story, sometimes without even mentioning God.
Thus, I would suggest that we should be making a much wider range of films, and also that many of the films we call “Christian” and mark as successes we do so simply b/c they are explicitly Christian…but are very poor films.
I agree that there is a lack of funding within the Christian genre, but what concerns me more than the lack of funding is the lack of innovation. Too many Christian films should never be brought to the cutting table at all - their scripts are so weak and poorly written. If it falters at the acting or filmography levels I can understand, but the lack of funding is no excuse for the poor scripts we so often see.
Namesake Entertainment and Signal Hill Pictures are two companies which have generally avoided this issue, but many other companies have embraced horrible scripts knowing that Christians will buy anything oftentimes. It is our generations “Jesus junk” as Keith Green was horrified to hear christian memoribilia described at a concert he attended by one of the vendors.
October 1st, 2007 at 9:36 am
This is a great conversation. There are so many factors that weigh in - who is the audience? Leslie - I really like your point about the films overseas. Even though Kevin rated The Moment After as one that sucks, it was the first Christian film shown on Pakistani television in their language. The same for Six:The Mark Unleashed; it was shown on MTV in China. I think in countries rich with the gospel and with media, the question is more one of quality of the film & it’s veracity by the Bible.
But in countries where missionaries are unwelcome, and persecuted, films are a great way to show God - and to someone who has never heard of Him, it’s good news!
October 1st, 2007 at 9:48 am
1) I in no way discount the message of Christ affecting some one else. There may be a man who talks to a friend and the friend gets saved. That does not mean that the man is a great evangelist or an exquisite speaker or even interesting. The man may be confusing and not very thoughtful. Still God honored his word going forth and the friend got Saved.
If you watch a poorly done film and grow closer to God, that is more important than art… but put that story on a testimony page. The move may still be poorly done. I was saved, and my early discipleship was brought to me inpart by dc Talk first album and the Newsboys Boys will be Boyz album (before Steve Taylor started writing there songs) Both bands have expressed embarrassment over those albums. They are not that good. Still they helped me. I put them in my testimony, but when some one asks me what the greatest albums are I’m not bringing those up.
I would prefer people to watch/listen to bad art that promotes Christianity and Christian Ideas than good art that denies it. Still lets not lie to ourselves or our neighbor about what we are watching.
2) When I say “Would it be a good movie if it didn’t have the Christian Message” I was just pointing out that if we are talking about good movies we need to look at the quality of the movie, if we are talking about good christian movies we need to look at the message AND the quality of the movie. They are separate things and both need to be considered. I am personally thrilled when I see both, and if you go back to my list of good christian films, they are explicitly christian.
3) Budget - I hate hearing that christian can’t do good films because we don’t have the budget of Hollywood. First of all JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis and General Lew Wallace wrote such compelling stories that Hollywood came to them. Johny Cash, Marria Von trap and Eric Little lead such fascinating lives that hollywood wanted to make films about them (though the first two got a bit watered down.)
Secondly some of my favorite films have low budgets. They were made by people who were making art not product. Star-wars (1&2)had one of the biggest budget of all time and access to some amazing technology. Lucas can’t write of direct. Those movies are among the worst films despite there dazzling budgets. There are many bad christian films that do the same thing, brag about there effects budget, then, like Lucas they rely on that instead of instead of story telling.
Yes some times the budget fixes things (Transformers is a lame movie with such great effect you don’t care how lame it is)
but look at films like Napoline Dynamite. There was no budget there and the film is alot of fun. Christian films like Extreme Days and Chillicothe are also low budget but they do very well with what they have.
Even Christian Films that are picked up by major studios like the Exorcism of Emily Rose. It had a small effects budget Expertly when you compare it to the other major release in that category. Still it relied not on the effects but on story acting and directing. The film is much better than bigger budget films.
If Time Changers had a Billion Dollar Budget, it would still be a lame story. It would still have it’s facts wrong. It would still be a bad film. Where Mercy Streets seems to have set out to make a fun b film about crime. It had good actors who obviously had fun with the parts. It’s enjoyable to watch and had a great message despite it having a smaller budget than Time changers or anything Tarantino get to do.
All in all I think to judge Christian Films you need to look at three things:
1) What makes it Christian - I used the criteria that it was made by Christians or the source material was from a Christian
2) Is the message correct
3) Is the film any good
I think you need all three and most these movies just focus a lot on #1-2 to make you forget about # 3
(and frankly for my own personal viewing for entertainment, I only look at #2&3 but must have both to bother with it.)
October 1st, 2007 at 3:04 pm
Guys you have taken this subject out of context (as well as my statements). That is not what this particular forum is about. If Christopher is bothered about the state of Christian film-making then this is not the subject or the question being dealt with. And besides whether we like it or not we are part of this thing. Besides I think we can all agree that we know that there is much work to be done where Christian film makers are concerned - but there is advancement going on. And yes I do know the difference between a good film and bad film - I went to film & TV school in the UK. And please I never said that “Christian Films” must have or contain the Name Jesus in it to certify it as one. This is just not that subject matter at hand. If it was I would let you know what my aspect of films made believers should be based on which is the standpoint that I have begun to work with - A Kingdom Of God/Heaven perspective in light of eternity and I do not have the time to even go there. Besides it is still very early days to conclude that Christians are bad film-makers. The games have just begun where we are concerned. Pursue - Overtake - Recover All. The first shall be the last and last shall be the first. Don’t be too quick to write believers off where the film industry is concerned as none of us has seen the end of it all yet.
October 1st, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Leslie, I apologize. I think my meaning was not explicitly clear in my message. I was not suggesting that you required the name of Jesus to be mentioned in a film, I was just attempting to draw some general parallels in the way some folks consider films to be Christian with the music industry. I couldn’t agree more with your statement about it being early to judge the Christian film industry, and while I didn’t state it that was part of the point I was attempting to make by the parallels with Christian music - that just as CCM has come a long ways, so have films and so will films.
I still think there is the issue that many Christian films shouldn’t have been made. It begins at the concept level, and this is probably the largest failing. Not the special effects or the acting, but the scripting - many of the stories just don’t exist. They are film that feels disjointed.
October 1st, 2007 at 7:00 pm
David cooly accepted. It’s all good Christopher. There are many things that should never even have been thought about and then done but they have and that is just part of life and we as Christians are not exempt from that. One final point I would like to make. Christians are not perfect even though we serve a very perfect God; we are in transition and growth all the time and therefore we make mistakes in most things that we do before we get to improve what we begin to know we have been called to do. We are still human beings with a fallen nature that’s why God made provision for that - repentance and confession of sins. Hope, is the divine element that helps us know that we can expect to get better because of the promises of God made and completed in His Word through Jesus Christ. The Church that I currently attend is amazing and I love the pastor very much but I remember when he started preaching - and we all used to cringe!!! Today he is something else. People just love his messages and his bible knowledge and life applications are simply mind-blowingly amazing but there was a lot of years for that to happen and I am glad to have seen that. People come to the Church and within 2 - 3 months its like they have been Christians for years and have been walking with God like forever! God is faithful and I am just one of many persons/people who will see the day when the top 5 films every month will be made by believers or have biblical values embedded in it which will be critcal and commercial successes as well as lead (or point/ignite/influence) people to a life with God going into eternity. That’s me done with this detraction/distraction on this subject matter and now back to that list?:-)
October 2nd, 2007 at 2:12 am
1 Facing The Giants
2 Something To Sing About
3 One Night With The King
4 The Ultimate Gift
5 The Climb
6 The Passion Of The Christ
7 Mercy Streets
8 Midnight Clear
9 Amazing Grace
10 The Second Chance
October 3rd, 2007 at 2:09 pm
I have one more list:
1. Prince of Egypt
2. It’s A Wonderful Life
3. A Christmas Carol
4. Ben Hur
5. The Ten Commandments
6. Invisible Enemies (I liked the concept)
7. Something to Sing About
8. Rocky Balboa
October 8th, 2007 at 4:27 am
Leslie, I do not understand you list but I would really like to.
I have not seen “It’s A wonderful Life”, The Ten Commandments has moses explain that God is the thing in every man that makes them want to be good. A Christmas Carol (I have not read the book, but every movie I have seen) always turns out to be “Christmas is about family and presents” and that redemption is brought about by Necromancy. A lot of Christians are very into this one, but I don’t understand.
October 8th, 2007 at 6:26 am
Read Luke 16: 19-31 to understand the concept behind ‘A Christmas Carol’ and there is no necromancy in the film (or story) as Mr. Scrooge does not go to summon the dead. I would go as far as to say that it was stating the obvious without being obvious. I hope this helps:-)
October 9th, 2007 at 2:43 am
Hands down, Chronicles of Narnia and Lord of the Rings are two of the best Christian film series. Why? In part because they are very well done, but also because they have mass appeal and are thought-provoking, which isn’t always a criteria for popular movies.
PS Happy Birthday!
October 16th, 2007 at 8:35 pm
Well, it’s October 17th. Happy birthday to Bobby Downes, founder of ChristianCinema.com. Since it’s the 17th, the contest comes to an end, but the discussion shouldn’t stop. Keep your thoughts coming!
And, congratulations to Christopher Ouellette, for listing the largest number of non-sucky Christian films (27)! Christopher will be receiving a DVD Player and my favorite non-sucky Christian films:
Mercy Streets
The Second Chance
Another Perfect Stranger
Beyond the Gates
Congratulations Christopher & thanks everyone for contributing!
This is an important dialogue - let’s keep it going!
October 17th, 2007 at 5:53 pm