I should say at first that I predict documentary films will undergo the cash infusion that Miramax and others have brought to "independent" films over the past 15 years. The time is right especially with the interest in more vacuous reality programming on TV. And yes that will definitely be a mixed blessing.
Documentarian George Ratliff gets pretty open access to this incredible phenomenon of a church exploiting media exploitation. This film offers no catharsis for us the viewers, but there's catharsis aplenty for the actors portraying various "stations of the crass" at Trinity's haunted house.
Others here have tried to apply rationality and argue against the beliefs of the church members. But I think that is not the point of this film, driven home by the strident sophistry of the young lad in the "Fear Factory" t-shirt with the off-duty police officer. Now that was hell for me.
Fighting fear with fear, will only result in more fear. And I'm always leery of those who are so obsessed with their "evil" enemies. Meanwhile every generation thinks they are on the brink of the apocalypse, something I take as confirmation of the Church of the Doubting Thomas.
While the end of the film talks about the importance of spending time with Jesus, the revelation for me here is spending time with other people. Especially spending time with those we may be predisposed to dislike or dismiss. The glimpses of humanity in the young girl who confronts her rapist, and the man whose wife has deserted him, these show a most amazing grace to me. And yes, I know we are only hearing their sides to the story...still...how can you not watch them both and wish them their own private happy endings.
Personally, I still look forward to living on the Planet of the Agnostics. I hope we'll still be on friendly terms with the WWF galaxy and its various religious planets.
This is a film that might be interesting (or disastrous) to see with a wide variety of folks. It's neither a trick, nor a treat...but I give it a
6/10
Documentarian George Ratliff gets pretty open access to this incredible phenomenon of a church exploiting media exploitation. This film offers no catharsis for us the viewers, but there's catharsis aplenty for the actors portraying various "stations of the crass" at Trinity's haunted house.
Others here have tried to apply rationality and argue against the beliefs of the church members. But I think that is not the point of this film, driven home by the strident sophistry of the young lad in the "Fear Factory" t-shirt with the off-duty police officer. Now that was hell for me.
Fighting fear with fear, will only result in more fear. And I'm always leery of those who are so obsessed with their "evil" enemies. Meanwhile every generation thinks they are on the brink of the apocalypse, something I take as confirmation of the Church of the Doubting Thomas.
While the end of the film talks about the importance of spending time with Jesus, the revelation for me here is spending time with other people. Especially spending time with those we may be predisposed to dislike or dismiss. The glimpses of humanity in the young girl who confronts her rapist, and the man whose wife has deserted him, these show a most amazing grace to me. And yes, I know we are only hearing their sides to the story...still...how can you not watch them both and wish them their own private happy endings.
Personally, I still look forward to living on the Planet of the Agnostics. I hope we'll still be on friendly terms with the WWF galaxy and its various religious planets.
This is a film that might be interesting (or disastrous) to see with a wide variety of folks. It's neither a trick, nor a treat...but I give it a
6/10