I'm a Christian and I'm embarrassed to say that I used to love this movie. I've seen it 4 or 5 times- but in my defense, it's been 4 years since my last viewing. At the time, I think I felt that since this movie was trying to spread a Christian message, I should like it.
If you look at my page, you can see that I have changed my mind on that for plenty of faith-based films. And God's Not Dead is a prime example of why I, a Christian and a film buff, hate many modern Christian movies.
The movie God's Not Dead has numerous plots, however the main one, and the one I will center on, follows Josh Wheaton (Shane Harper), who is a Christian and a college freshman who has to take a philosophy class.
His teacher is an atheist named Professor Rattison (Kevin Sorbo), who tells his students to write on a sheet of paper: God Is Dead. All of the students do this, except for Josh- who refuses due to his faith.
Therefore, Rattison gives Josh an alternative assignment- for the next 3 classes, for 20 minutes each, he has to give a presentation that gives evidence for the existence of God. If he can't convince the class that God exists by then, he fails.
In a way, the plot is intriguing. Part of the reason why I used to like it is because a faith vs. Science controversy (or whatever name you want to give it) is a compelling topic. But how the movie goes about it is cruel, unrealistic, and stupid.
First off, there's the plot. It could never happen. Wikipedia reports that as of 2019, 65% of Americans believe in Christianity. Statistically, 6-7 out of 10 Americans would side with Josh. But no, Josh is the only student out of 80 kids that believes in Jesus, let alone a god.
Then there is the portrayal of the atheist characters. Every atheist is a jerk in the movie. The professor's name-calls God (in one scene he calls Him a "dictator"), he bullies Josh, and like I said, he will fail Josh if he can't convert 80 atheists to faith in 60 minutes.
That goes for other atheist/non-Christian characters as well. A Muslim beats and kicks out his daughter for becoming a Christian, a businessman neglects seeing his religious mother with dementia, his atheist girlfriend has cancer (which is cured in the NEXT movie after she comes to faith), and so forth.
This movie implies that if you are not a Christian, you're a jerk. I'm sorry to say that, but that IS what is implied.
When it comes to Josh's arguments, they're kind of thin. In his 1st argument, he states that the Big Bang could not have happened because then nothing turned into everything, which is impossible.
A student points out that Richard Dawkins has stated that if a Christian makes this argument, atheists have the right to ask: "So who created God?" Josh gives the correct point that Christians do not believe in a created God- He is eternal.
He says that atheists should be asked: "If the universe created you, then who created the universe?" I suppose that's fine, but this does not argue for God's existence, and he somewhat avoids the students' question and never fully answers it. And of course, this "Christian" movie never makes note of that.
I don't recall much of what the 2nd debate is about, so to cut to the chase, allow me to skip it and go to the next scene.
After the 2nd debate, the professor privately tells Josh that HE used to believe in God, but his mother died of cancer after he prayed for Him to heal her. So apparently, he's an atheist because, in his mind- "if God exists, He will care about my mother and heal her for my sake." It's normal to feel that way when you are a Christian child (My father died when I was 9 and I remember having those feelings), but God doesn't suddenly not exist because of one tragedy He allowed in your life.
Josh uses this for his 3rd debate, and he asks the professor: "Do you hate God?" He scoffs at this (as he should) and so Josh asks: "Okay...WHY do you hate God?" He hammers him with this question until Rattison snaps: "Because He took everything from me! Yes, I HATE God! Everything I have towards Him is HATE!"
Then Josh, who initiated the question in the first place, asks the professor: "How can you hate someone who doesn't exist?" When I was 16, I thought BURN! Now, I think- WELL NO KIDDING! There's the 6th Sense-level plot twist for you- Mr. Rattison isn't really an atheist, he just has a grudge against The Almighty.
As thin and convoluted as this argument is, it's what suddenly converts all 80 students to believe in God. The professor doesn't convert, however, until he is hit by a car.
Can you see the problem God's Not Dead has? It's a hateful, biased, flawed movie with logical fallacies as a side dish. It shouldn't even be considered a "Christian" movie. Jesus taught to love our enemies, as well as those we do not agree with. Atheists are included in this matter. And again, I apologize, especially to atheists, for once liking this movie.
I could go on a lot longer, but you get the point. I was going to re-watch the movie to find my rating, but 1/10 seems to fit, especially since I have analyzed why. I haven't seen it in years, and I intend to try to keep the record going.
God may not be dead, but if He were, this movie would probably make Him roll in His grave.
Note: If you want to see more reviews that helped me open my eyes to how flawed and unlikable God's Not Dead is and should be, I suggest going on YouTube and looking up Say Goodnight Kevin's half-hour review or seeing Josh Keefe's video The Problem With Christian Movies.
Reverse Recommendations: If you want some GREAT Christian movies, here's a few I highly recommend to get you started:
The Apostle (my favorite Christian non-Biblical movie), Silence, Hacksaw Ridge, Lilies of the Field, Francis of Assisi, Soul Surfer, The Disney Narnia movies, I Can Only Imagine, I Still Believe, Sheffey, Say Amen Somebody, Billy, Chariots of Fire (a superior "stand up for your religious beliefs" movie), The Case For Christ, and even Jesus Camp. God's Not Dead puts Veggie Tales on cinematic par with The Ten Commandments.
If you look at my page, you can see that I have changed my mind on that for plenty of faith-based films. And God's Not Dead is a prime example of why I, a Christian and a film buff, hate many modern Christian movies.
The movie God's Not Dead has numerous plots, however the main one, and the one I will center on, follows Josh Wheaton (Shane Harper), who is a Christian and a college freshman who has to take a philosophy class.
His teacher is an atheist named Professor Rattison (Kevin Sorbo), who tells his students to write on a sheet of paper: God Is Dead. All of the students do this, except for Josh- who refuses due to his faith.
Therefore, Rattison gives Josh an alternative assignment- for the next 3 classes, for 20 minutes each, he has to give a presentation that gives evidence for the existence of God. If he can't convince the class that God exists by then, he fails.
In a way, the plot is intriguing. Part of the reason why I used to like it is because a faith vs. Science controversy (or whatever name you want to give it) is a compelling topic. But how the movie goes about it is cruel, unrealistic, and stupid.
First off, there's the plot. It could never happen. Wikipedia reports that as of 2019, 65% of Americans believe in Christianity. Statistically, 6-7 out of 10 Americans would side with Josh. But no, Josh is the only student out of 80 kids that believes in Jesus, let alone a god.
Then there is the portrayal of the atheist characters. Every atheist is a jerk in the movie. The professor's name-calls God (in one scene he calls Him a "dictator"), he bullies Josh, and like I said, he will fail Josh if he can't convert 80 atheists to faith in 60 minutes.
That goes for other atheist/non-Christian characters as well. A Muslim beats and kicks out his daughter for becoming a Christian, a businessman neglects seeing his religious mother with dementia, his atheist girlfriend has cancer (which is cured in the NEXT movie after she comes to faith), and so forth.
This movie implies that if you are not a Christian, you're a jerk. I'm sorry to say that, but that IS what is implied.
When it comes to Josh's arguments, they're kind of thin. In his 1st argument, he states that the Big Bang could not have happened because then nothing turned into everything, which is impossible.
A student points out that Richard Dawkins has stated that if a Christian makes this argument, atheists have the right to ask: "So who created God?" Josh gives the correct point that Christians do not believe in a created God- He is eternal.
He says that atheists should be asked: "If the universe created you, then who created the universe?" I suppose that's fine, but this does not argue for God's existence, and he somewhat avoids the students' question and never fully answers it. And of course, this "Christian" movie never makes note of that.
I don't recall much of what the 2nd debate is about, so to cut to the chase, allow me to skip it and go to the next scene.
After the 2nd debate, the professor privately tells Josh that HE used to believe in God, but his mother died of cancer after he prayed for Him to heal her. So apparently, he's an atheist because, in his mind- "if God exists, He will care about my mother and heal her for my sake." It's normal to feel that way when you are a Christian child (My father died when I was 9 and I remember having those feelings), but God doesn't suddenly not exist because of one tragedy He allowed in your life.
Josh uses this for his 3rd debate, and he asks the professor: "Do you hate God?" He scoffs at this (as he should) and so Josh asks: "Okay...WHY do you hate God?" He hammers him with this question until Rattison snaps: "Because He took everything from me! Yes, I HATE God! Everything I have towards Him is HATE!"
Then Josh, who initiated the question in the first place, asks the professor: "How can you hate someone who doesn't exist?" When I was 16, I thought BURN! Now, I think- WELL NO KIDDING! There's the 6th Sense-level plot twist for you- Mr. Rattison isn't really an atheist, he just has a grudge against The Almighty.
As thin and convoluted as this argument is, it's what suddenly converts all 80 students to believe in God. The professor doesn't convert, however, until he is hit by a car.
Can you see the problem God's Not Dead has? It's a hateful, biased, flawed movie with logical fallacies as a side dish. It shouldn't even be considered a "Christian" movie. Jesus taught to love our enemies, as well as those we do not agree with. Atheists are included in this matter. And again, I apologize, especially to atheists, for once liking this movie.
I could go on a lot longer, but you get the point. I was going to re-watch the movie to find my rating, but 1/10 seems to fit, especially since I have analyzed why. I haven't seen it in years, and I intend to try to keep the record going.
God may not be dead, but if He were, this movie would probably make Him roll in His grave.
Note: If you want to see more reviews that helped me open my eyes to how flawed and unlikable God's Not Dead is and should be, I suggest going on YouTube and looking up Say Goodnight Kevin's half-hour review or seeing Josh Keefe's video The Problem With Christian Movies.
Reverse Recommendations: If you want some GREAT Christian movies, here's a few I highly recommend to get you started:
The Apostle (my favorite Christian non-Biblical movie), Silence, Hacksaw Ridge, Lilies of the Field, Francis of Assisi, Soul Surfer, The Disney Narnia movies, I Can Only Imagine, I Still Believe, Sheffey, Say Amen Somebody, Billy, Chariots of Fire (a superior "stand up for your religious beliefs" movie), The Case For Christ, and even Jesus Camp. God's Not Dead puts Veggie Tales on cinematic par with The Ten Commandments.