We have seen it before and we will see it again: the culture wars are being played out in the American cinema house, this time covering the topics of same-sex marriage, Darwinism, and Evangelical scandal. Check out the trailers for these recent films.
The Kids Are All Right (2010)
8: The Mormon Proposition (2010)
Creation (2010)
Christianity Today review | Stephen D. Greydanus
The Trials of Ted Haggard (2009)
David Neff | Haggard “Deserves What He Got” | Christianity Today
Further reading:
• Brett McCracken, Finding the Line: When Is It Wrong to Watch a Movie? | Relevant Magazine
• Brett McCracken, The New Christian Film Criticism | Relevant Magazine
Cross posted at Mere Orthodoxy
July 14th, 2010 | 8:06 am | #1
[...] Christopher Benson notes at the First Things blog that the culture wars have entered the American cinema. Below are four trailers of new movies covering the topics of same-sex “marriage,” Darwinism, and evangelical scandal. Besides being expressions of the current culture war, what else do these movies have in common? It appears that all of them come down on the side of the secular left. This is not surprising for Hollywood, but it is nevertheless a sign of the times (1 Chronicles 12:32). [...]
July 14th, 2010 | 8:16 am | #2
The Ted Haggard movie might be worth seeing. The other three are liberal cartoons.
July 14th, 2010 | 8:22 am | #3
Looks like the same old Hollywood to me. I’ll just wait for “The Expendables” to hit theaters.
July 14th, 2010 | 9:57 am | #4
As believing Christians devoted to God, we must pray for God’s direction in how to stand for truth in our circles of influence. We should not simply dismiss them as “cartoons”, for these films were made with the intent to program the minds of this generation – and they will. How did Satan deceive Eve in the Garden? By asking her questions that caused her to question the truth of God’s Word and to desire worship of self in lieu of God. Jesus called us to go and make disciples for Him, not to sit and watch people become students of the world.
July 14th, 2010 | 2:41 pm | #5
These look like interesting movies. Since Christians don’t go to movies, I don’t think we’ll be able to give them a fully documented critique until we can actually watch them when they come out on VHS. Anyone know when that is?
July 14th, 2010 | 5:49 pm | #6
Karyn Brownlee: I agree with you. These films are “progressive” propaganda, and they will cause moral harm to the gullible. We need to oppose these pernicious ideas in whatever way we can, and we need to vote for candidates who oppose these ideas. What else can we do?
July 14th, 2010 | 11:08 pm | #7
Ms. Brownlee: I agree that we should not dismiss these films as “cartoons” but I would characterize the intent of the filmmakers differently. Where you say the “films were made with the intent to program the minds of this generation,” I propose that they were made with the intent to foster sympathy through the narrative imagination, which is less overt and coercive than indoctrination. Where you are confident that these films will program viewers, I am ambivalent: some will become more sympathetic to the message, others will not. It depends on the worldview of the person sitting in the cinema house.
July 14th, 2010 | 11:16 pm | #8
Mclandrey: What’s your evidence for the claim that “Christians don’t go to movies”? Just so you know, The Trials of Ted Haggard is available on DVD.
July 14th, 2010 | 11:26 pm | #9
Feeney: If we find the ideas in these films objectionable, the best course of action is to develop a biblical worldview that helps us respond to the ideas with strength, sensitivity, and sophistication.
July 15th, 2010 | 7:26 am | #10
Feeney: “These films are “progressive” propaganda, and they will cause moral harm to the gullible.”
A bottom-line, no-nonsense discernment.
July 16th, 2010 | 7:19 am | #11
The Kid’s are alright and Creation seem to be pushing a particular liberal agenda. The Trials of Ted Haggard would be like staring at ca ar wreck on the side of the road. The Morman Proposition is interesting, are Mormans and orthodox Christians really allies, Islam would also oppose same-sex marriage?
July 17th, 2010 | 11:01 am | #12
Am I the only one unable to see the fourth trailer on Ted Haggard? I’ve tried both Firefox and Internet Explorer, and it simply doesn’t show up.
July 19th, 2010 | 7:01 am | #13
[...] number of events, films, and books that deserve attention. I informed Evangel readers about recent films that are stirring the culture wars. In this post, I want to mention some promising new and upcoming [...]
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