Adapted for the big screen from Larry Beinhart's book by the same name, Salvation Boulevard premiered at the Sundance Film Festival boasting a cast including Greg Kinnear, Pierce Bronson, Jennifer Connelly, Ed Harris, Marisa Tomei, Ciaran Hinds, and Isabella Fuhrman. Though the conversation spurred on by the satire is one in which I plan to further engage, the movie itself left me desiring to read the original, which comes highly recommended via the review of others.
Despite a Sundance premiere, Salvation Boulevard seemed to be about as deep and thoughtful as the object of its satire; mega church culture and the pastors who lead them. One thing that could not be denied, though, was the smirk on my face as I pondered the possible intentionality of George Ratliff and this face-value choice. With one of Ratliff's most notable works being the 2001 Hell House that documents the real-life hell-as-reality haunted house turned outreach for a Texas church, is there a hint of actual strategy in the furry of Salvation Boulevard's lose end tying and obvious devil-is-calling-your-cell-phone scenes?
Though the irony is thick and jokes are obvious, will the very church goers that Salvation Boulevard depicts avoid the conversation altogether? While some non-evangelicals may scoff at a cheap satire focused on an easy target, the questions that Salvation Boulevard raises with its blunt references are an opportunity for dialogue, not further polarization. Might an examination of assumptions from both evangelicals and those annoyed by them reveal a third and fourth demographic? Let us not forget about those attempting to live out an authentic journey of faith in Jesus within an intentionally less commercial version of the Christian church as well as those of other faiths searching and living away from the debates and finger pointing. This is a comedy, folks, and my personal hope would be that its jokes would not offend before they even have the opportunity to be considered and appreciated by others who make it a practice to ask good questions and live out of authentic faith.
Not the best done movie, but well worth the consideration and dialogue that may result.
Despite a Sundance premiere, Salvation Boulevard seemed to be about as deep and thoughtful as the object of its satire; mega church culture and the pastors who lead them. One thing that could not be denied, though, was the smirk on my face as I pondered the possible intentionality of George Ratliff and this face-value choice. With one of Ratliff's most notable works being the 2001 Hell House that documents the real-life hell-as-reality haunted house turned outreach for a Texas church, is there a hint of actual strategy in the furry of Salvation Boulevard's lose end tying and obvious devil-is-calling-your-cell-phone scenes?
Though the irony is thick and jokes are obvious, will the very church goers that Salvation Boulevard depicts avoid the conversation altogether? While some non-evangelicals may scoff at a cheap satire focused on an easy target, the questions that Salvation Boulevard raises with its blunt references are an opportunity for dialogue, not further polarization. Might an examination of assumptions from both evangelicals and those annoyed by them reveal a third and fourth demographic? Let us not forget about those attempting to live out an authentic journey of faith in Jesus within an intentionally less commercial version of the Christian church as well as those of other faiths searching and living away from the debates and finger pointing. This is a comedy, folks, and my personal hope would be that its jokes would not offend before they even have the opportunity to be considered and appreciated by others who make it a practice to ask good questions and live out of authentic faith.
Not the best done movie, but well worth the consideration and dialogue that may result.