Christian Movies

[TopazRaven]

Omgosh, someone like me! I avoided the Passion for so long, and when I finally got the nerve to watch it, my sister told me to stop because she said I looked like I was going to hurl. I respect the movie as an honest depiction of the central event of Christianity, but to be brutally honest, I did not get anything out of the first third of the movie that I watched because I was too busy panicking about the amount of blood splashing everywhere. If God really cared about me watching the Passion, He would have made me ok with gore. And I really don't care for Jim Caviezel's acting, sorry Jim fans.

Glad I'm not alone then! I'm still not sure if I want to or not, most intense gore does make me want to vomit. I can't even handle intense anime violence and that's basically a cartoon! Anyway, I may try and watch it someday, but not any day soon. xD

[rocklobster]

Oh, I forgot. There's also a movie called The Nativity Story which is actually very good. Mary and Joseph are both acted very well. And since it's Christmastime, this would be a good time to rent it.

[TopazRaven]

Oh I saw that movie in stores before and this reminded me that I want to see it! Thanks for reminding me.

[shooraijin]

The two "Left Behind" movies are decent movies.
They could have been better. I wish someone with a lot of money would make a whole series of movies.

This is a good point worth reiterating -- there are a lot of people who will praise what are otherwise dire albums, movies, books, etc., just because they're Christian. I know from my non-Christian friends that this just looks dumb to them, and it is.

I watched the Left Behind movies, and I nearly gnawed my arms off by the second one despite the enthusiastic ministrations of my host ("wasn't that great? wow, didn't you think they did a great job!"). I have never read the books, so don't interpret this as judgment on them, but the cinematography was TV-grade, the acting was only fair, and the production values were modest at best. Some of those could be overcome with a larger budget, certainly, but it doesn't replace people with a good eye for camera angles, or people who can act without breaking a take into choppy little bits, or even someone who could just use a different font in the title sequences recognizing that they look monotonous.

I think that all things that praise are praiseworthy, but that doesn't necessarily make them art or even entertaining. Particularly for my non-Christian friends, I try to recommend to them things that are Christian *and* good. If it's not good, why would I make them suffer through it?

Side-track, sorry.

[ShiroiHikari]

From what I can tell, Left Behind isn't exactly good source material in the first place...

[Nate]

I have never read the books

Believe it or not, as bad as the movies are, the books are much, MUCH worse. Even if you agree with the theology in them, they're just poorly written. The authors seem to have a strange obsession with phones. The characters in the books are constantly talking on phones. Like all the time. And instead of writing about things happening, the authors just write about the characters talking on the phone about things that happened.

It's really bad.

[Davidizer13]

This is a good point worth reiterating -- there are a lot of people who will praise what are otherwise dire albums, movies, books, etc., just because they're Christian. I know from my non-Christian friends that this just looks dumb to them, and it is.
[...]
I think that all things that praise are praiseworthy, but that doesn't necessarily make them art or even entertaining. Particularly for my non-Christian friends, I try to recommend to them things that are Christian *and* good. If it's not good, why would I make them suffer through it?

I absolutely agree - let's face it, a lot of "Christian" media isn't that great. For example, Facing the Giants is mediocre at best, especially compared to, Remember the Titans, which deals with some of the same themes and settings, and while it's not explicitly Christian, it still expresses very Christian values. A huge problem with Christian media is that it puts the message over the craftsmanship in the vast majority of cases, ending in stories that are preachy and/or predictable rather than entertaining. Worse still, people buy them and praise them because they're Christian rather than on their quality, resulting in things like C Me Dance, which, well, just look at that trailer. Write your stories as something you'd want to read, and your views and what you're trying to express will flow naturally into the story.

A related side note: The Game Plan comes up a lot when we're discussing Christian manga - I'm not familiar with the conventions of shojo manga and if it's always like this, and I'm out of the demographic for it, but I could see the twists and how it would end pretty early on. Sure, it's drawn well, but the story doesn't keep up with it.

[mechana2015]

Believe it or not, as bad as the movies are, the books are much, MUCH worse. Even if you agree with the theology in them, they're just poorly written. The authors seem to have a strange obsession with phones. The characters in the books are constantly talking on phones. Like all the time. And instead of writing about things happening, the authors just write about the characters talking on the phone about things that happened.

It's really bad.

Not to mention the unintentional hilarity in the book when the big bad expresses his desire for a pig large enough to stick his fist in it's nostril. It's like a line out of an entirely different genre... one usually dominated by Will Ferrell.

[Blacklight]

... resulting in things like C Me Dance, which, well, just look at that trailer. Write your stories as something you'd want to read, and your views and what you're trying to express will flow naturally into the story.

I watched that trailer... Now I'm reminded of a certain movie that my younger sisters became obsessed with.
Pray.
And sadly, I saw the movie when we were in the car and they wanted to watch it. The movie isn't as interesting as the trailer makes it look. (<< Something.)

I heard Book of Eli mentioned, and then that some people prefer non gory movies.
I liked Book of Eli, but there is some gore in it. It's not as heavy as some movies, but there are decapitations, some er... innard-spilling, though if I remember correctly, while visible, it wasn't shown all that explicitly.

I've seen some of the movies mentioned, but that really just leaves me to mention things like Fireproof, which you might like if you like some lighthearted titles.

I think it's easier to say what to avoid than what to go buy. That being said, don't watch House.

[the_wolfs_howl]

I'm a little surprised no one's mentioned Fireproof yet, but maybe it was just big at my grandparents' church. I really like it; apart from having an excellent message, I think it's also a very good movie, especially for a Christian movie, especially for one created entirely(?) by volunteers. I also think it avoids the possible problem of "if I pray, God will give me whatever I want" that is present in Provident Films's previous movies, Flywheel and Facing the Giants.

Fireproof is a very encouraging story about a man on the brink of divorce, who gets dared by his father to try to win back his wife's heart. I think one of the reasons the movie's so good is that the main character is played by an actual profession actor It has the gospel message, advice for how to treat your spouse right, shows how a relationship with God changes your life.... The only small problem I had with it was that some of the funny scenes didn't further the plot at all, and were just there for comic relief.

And it was mentioned in passing, but I'd like to mention the Luther movie again. I have no idea if Joseph Fiennes is a Christian or not, but if not, he would definitely fool me with the passion he showed as Martin Luther. One of my favorite scenes in that movie is a sermon he's preaching. That movie makes me proud to be a Protestant

[TopazRaven]

Wow...I feel bad about saying this, but the trailers for Pray and C Me Dance made me burst out laughing. They looked like they might be in least semi-decent movies if the acting wasn't so bad.

[Peanut]

Wow...I feel bad about saying this, but the trailers for Pray and C Me Dance made me burst out laughing. They looked like they might be in least semi-decent movies if the acting wasn't so bad.

This tends to be the problem with most Christian movies made by Christian companies. Fireproof is another one...which is why I never recommend it to anyone.

[Furen]

Fireproof
Facing the Giants
Flywheel

AMAZING
goes to see if he can watch one of those now >.>

[Nate]

I think it's easier to say what to avoid than what to go buy. That being said, don't watch House.

What's wrong with House? Hugh Laurie does an excellent job playing Dr. House!

Yes, yes, I know what you meant, but I couldn't resist making that joke.

[musicaloddball]

Just FYI...

Catholics are Christians too. Luther is a Protestant movie made by Protestants, and not necessarily a Christian one.

*shrug* Just saying.

ANYWAYZ

I tried watching Fireproof. I didn't like it and I never finished.

A lot of old classic movies are Christian.

Casablanca (a very slow movie, but it has good, Christian ideals.)
A Man for All Seasons (I highly recommend reading the play too. You can savor the awesome verbal battles more.)
Ben-Hur (another slow one)
Quo Vadis (which is an alright movie but not particularly great IMO).

[Yuki-Anne]

Oh, I couldn't STAND Fireproof. The acting was so-so, the production values were on the lower end, it was preachy, the comic relief was out of place and irritating, and the story's "twists" were completely predictable. Did I mention it was preachy? That is one of the worst offenses in a movie, at least to me. It's not just Christians who do it, either. Movies like "Day After Tomorrow" and "Ferngully" are irritating and preachy as well.

Love Luther. Has anybody recommended Amazing Grace yet? That one is very good. *goes back and checks* Ah, yes. Somebody has recommended it. But I think it's on the same level of production quality as Luther. Ioan Gruffud plays William Wilberforce, the statesman largely responsible for the abolishment of slavery in Great Britain. It's really quite good.

The trailer for "Pray" had me in stitches.

Another movie that is quite good (not Christian but decently clean and REALLY well-acted and costumed) is The Scarlet Pimpernel. Anthony Andrews plays Sir Percival Blakeney, a British noble who poses as a total fop, then takes on the guise of The Scarlet Pimpernel (which is way more hardcore than it sounds) and helps French aristocrats escape the Reign of Terror. There's implied violence but not much shown (we do see a severed head at one point but it's only briefly, from the back, with no gore. Really quite tame for a movie about the French Revolution), and there's implied sex (again, nothing shown, and it is worth noting that the relationship of the main characters is chaste).

Where this movie totally wins is in the nuance of the main character's relationship with his love interest; the balance of keeping a vital secret and yet yearning to become more intimate with the person he loves is worked to perfection in this movie. I haven't seen it better anywhere else. I think the nuance of this film puts superhero films to shame. But that's just my personal opinion about one of my favorite films. It's one of the few films I've seen where I wouldn't change a single aspect.

[ashfire]

There was a CBS TV movie that was called Holly Joe which came out on DVD as Man Of Miracles. John Ritter plays a Episcopal minister and a volunteer firefighter. He is have problems with both the church and family until a fire in the house where a young boy who's family are members of the church is trapped in the house. The minster dons his fire gear and rushes into the house and finds the boy but they both become trapped until a firefigher appears and tells Joe to follow in his path. When they get to safety the firefighter places his hand on Joe's shoulder and tells him to continue from here and turns back into the fire. When Joe gets outside no one can find the firefighter. Later Joe finds a hand print on his fire gear which seems to glow. After this everything seems to be right with the church and his family. Boy he rescues said it was Jeses that saved them.

[Rusty Claymore]

As far as I'm concerned, Veggie Tales' Jonah is the best Christian movie.

Also, in general, I don't think any inherently christian movie will appeal to non-believers unless their on their way to "being saved" already. By this I mean a movie that strongly conveys that it is not impossible to discern what is right, and that not doing what is right is wrong. (duh, I know, but some draw the line at "just not do bad stuff like murdering people", and are ok with "excuseable not-quite-good acts") This wont fly though, for the same reason Christianity isn't taking the world by storm:
Not many people like being told they are wrong, and no one likes the idea they are eternally responsible for their actions.
Christians only become Christians through Conviction, and that's God's department.

On the other hand, I could care less what non-beleivers want in a movie. I want to be able to watch a movie I can get totally pumped from, regardless if it is a box office hit. XD

[Atria35]

On the other hand, I could care less what non-beleivers want in a movie. I want to be able to watch a movie I can get totally pumped from, regardless if it is a box office hit. XD

But as you can see from these posts, even believers can't get pumped from a lot of Christian movies. We've seen enough movies to know the difference between bad acting and good acting, and good special effects from bad ones.

Which makes most Christian movies like listening to a guy tell a story in monotone- it isn't interesting and after a while all you want to do is turn it off.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

For what it's worth, I couldn't stand Facing the Giants. My parents really liked it, but I didn't.

Actually, I found The Blind Side to have some pretty good Christian values without being preachy, and while it wasn't being explicitly Christian, it shows Christian characters acting the way they should. There's some profanity and references to sex, but this made me like it all the more, honestly, because people acted like how they normally do.

[Sheenar]

There's some profanity and references to sex, but this made me like it all the more, honestly, because people acted like how they normally do.

That's the reason I loved To Save a Life so much. It didn't try to sugar-coat what real life is like --it delved into the issues facing young people today without skirting around reality.

[ich1990]

What's wrong with House? Hugh Laurie does an excellent job playing Dr. House!

Yes, yes, I know what you meant, but I couldn't resist making that joke.

House is repetitive and has jumped the shark. It is a classic example of a great idea becoming monetized to the point where it is no longer a great idea.

As far as Christian movies go, the only one I can recommend with a clean conscience is Amazing Grace. The Blind Side wasn't bad, per se, so much as its ideals didn't meet up with Christianity as well as I would have liked.

[TopazRaven]

Also, in general, I don't think any inherently christian movie will appeal to non-believers unless their on their way to "being saved" already. By this I mean a movie that strongly conveys that it is not impossible to discern what is right, and that not doing what is right is wrong. (duh, I know, but some draw the line at "just not do bad stuff like murdering people", and are ok with "excuseable not-quite-good acts") This wont fly though, for the same reason Christianity isn't taking the world by storm:
Not many people like being told they are wrong, and no one likes the idea they are eternally responsible for their actions. Christians only become Christians through Conviction, and that's God's department.

In a way I still somewhat fall into this category, but I'm also a new Christian for the most part. I really used to believe as long as you didn't kill or rape someone you would be alright. It was also hard for me to accept that at first that I am a sinner. After all things like lieing and cursing seemed like a normal part of human nature to me as did sex, but I won't get into that here. Point being I have accepted it. The fact that every human sins and not just me is mildly comforting.

Meanwhile, I do sometimes still have trouble deciding on what is right and what is wrong. This may very well be due to the fact there are some things within Christianity that I just don't agree with. I won't list them here because I do not wish to start an argument or offend anyone, but there you have it. This is why often times I wonder if I can even call myself a true Christian. Wither I am or not I still plan to do my best and follow Christ of course. Life would seem quite empty without God now.

[steenajack]

I can't believe no one has mentioned Tyler Perry yet.

Tyler Perry's stuff is quite awesome, but are also quite hardcore when dealing with real life issues.

Some of his movies include:

Diary of a Mad Black Woman

I Can Do Bad All By Myself

Madea Goes to Jail

Here's his Wiki page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyler_Perry

I also reccomend watching the plays as well, for they are also quite good. Don't let some of the crude humor and language fool you, there is QUITE a Christian message in this guy's movies/plays. Also, I'm aware this may bother some people, Tyler's signature character that he acts as is a woman. He's NOT a crossdresser, he's an actor alright. It's all tasteful too, and he plays the character quite well. Also, he is a devoted Christian, and it shows quite clearly in his movies.) Overall, I highly recommend his work. His movies are quite well done. Just a waring though: They DO deal with hard issues. They all well-earn that PG-13 rating. Things like abuse in all it's forms are dealt with. It's not REALLY explicit, but still....intense. It's real, no sugar-coating.

Also, recommended:

To Save a Life

The Ultimate Gift
Bella
Amazing Grace
Luther
End of the Spear
The Nativity Story
A Walk to Remember
Extreme Days (This one is....funny! XD! Although it's the kind of humor that kinda has to appeal to you for you to like it. It's funny in a kinda...dorky sort of way. And the guy who played Zuko is in here. XD!)

Fireproof (I know people are saying that they didn't like it, but I honestly believe it depends on your tastes. I understand why they may see it as "preachy" and the like...but when it comes down to it, it's actually got a good point. I'd say give it a shot and decide whether you like it or not.)

Facing the Giants (see above)

Hope this

[Nate]

On the other hand, I could care less what non-beleivers want in a movie.

Really? So how much do you care then? Because if you could care less then that means you might care a whole lot, because a person who cares a lot could care less.

Now if you couldn't care less, that'd be a different story.

Meanwhile, I do sometimes still have trouble deciding on what is right and what is wrong. This may very well be due to the fact there are some things within Christianity that I just don't agree with. I won't list them here because I do not wish to start an argument or offend anyone, but there you have it. This is why often times I wonder if I can even call myself a true Christian.

This is probably the biggest reason I hesitate to call myself Christian around others, because I don't want to be associated with the things that people feel all Christians believe (that I don't). I'll send you a PM though, that's outside the scope of this thread and I think it'd be better if we talked where no one else will judge us or start throwing Bible verses at us. :3

[ich1990]

Bella

Oh crap, forgot all about Bella. That is a top class movie for sure.

[Yuki-Anne]

Honestly, having watched several of Perry's movies, I think Diary of a Mad Black Woman is the best, and possibly the only one that is truly excellent. Perry falls into a formula quite often, and I think his subsequent movies suffer for it. But even though his movies are formulaic, I do find them enjoyable. I haven't seen all of them, though. I want to see "Why Did I Get Married?"

I don't like A Walk to Remember either because I don't find Mandy Moore's performance believable. I've been a Christian girl for my entire adolescence and adulthood and I was never anything like her. I have met Christian girls like her, so I can see the appeal, but I always found her too wholesome (and a little arrogant. "You have to promise not to fall in love with me"? Who goes into a friendship assuming that's going to happen? It always sounded conceited to me). I didn't identify with her as a human being at all, because it was like she didn't struggle with sin in the slightest. Sure, she struggled with the big problem (I won't go into details for spoilers) a little, but I didn't even really find that particularly believable. I don't know if that's the story's fault or the actresses, but I almost always get the giggles at the sad parts (at least the ones with Mandy Moore. I found Shane West's performance a little more believable, and I think I did cry the first time I saw it) because they're just not done well.

I will second the Prince of Egypt recommendations. That movie is excellent and totally underrated, and as the Nostalgia Critic demonstrates, it has everything it needs to appeal to Christians and nonChristians alike.

[Rusty Claymore]

Meanwhile, I do sometimes still have trouble deciding on what is right and what is wrong. This may very well be due to the fact there are some things within Christianity that I just don't agree with. I won't list them here because I do not wish to start an argument or offend anyone, but there you have it. This is why often times I wonder if I can even call myself a true Christian. Wither I am or not I still plan to do my best and follow Christ of course. Life would seem quite empty without God now.

I definately see where you are coming from. I, being a Biblical literalist, believe we can find all we need to know about right and wrong for every circumstance in the Bible. So in effect, it is our individual lack of Godly knowledge and wisdom that results in confusing right and wrong. We can never become perfect in this life, but we are meant to try our best to get there.

Now if you couldn't care less, that'd be a different story.

Well, I could care less, but it'd require a lot of effort to acheive that lower state of care. It's just not important enough for me to spend any time trying. XP (Good point there, though. I never really thought much about that phrase other than the given meaning...)