Film Comment: Left Behind

It says that something is lacking about this 2014 remake of the 2000 film, Left Behind: The Movie, that the most controversial thing about the film has been discussion about whether or not the film's actors were Christians or were just working for a paycheck. More specifically, this question arose about Nicholas Cage, who has appeared in some rather “rough” movies such as Drive Angry (2011) where he portrays a criminal who escapes from Hell to pursue and kill the members of a religious cult which killed his daughter after they chose his infant granddaughter to be their human sacrifice.  Here is the trailer for Drive Angry.

Nothing about the current Left Behind feels particularly Christian or even “religious.” It plays out more as a disaster film which is not particularly well acted. I personally found the film to be rather boring.

The film is based on a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church. This is one of the versions of Christian eschatology (the doctrine of “Last Things,”) and describes the period of time at the end of the world.  The Pre-Tribulation view is most commonly held by conservative evangelical Protestants.

In the Pre-Tribulation Rapture understanding of Christian eschatology, the Church, aka: the Bride of Christ, the ἐκκλησία, is suddenly removed from the world by Christ. Hundreds of millions of Christians are suddenly just gone from the Earth. This opens the way for the appearance of the Antichrist. Those who come to Christ during this period are the ones who have been "left beihind."

Some Christian traditions place little or no emphasis on eschatology so the entire premise of this Left Behind film may be confusing to them. In the next few weeks, I will try to explain the various understandings of Christian eschatology and to define some of the associated terminology; Antichrist, False Prophet, Rapture, Millenialism, Preterism, Amillenialism, Pre-Millenialism, and Post-Millenialism.

This is post #1 of the upcoming Eschatology Series.

Film Comment: The Wicker Tree

The Wicker Tree (2011), the sequel to the truly creepy cult classic film, The Wicker Man (1973), compares very unfavorably with its predecessor.  The first film stars the veteran film actors Christopher Lee (Count Dracula in numerous Hammer Studios films) and Edward Woodward (best known for The Equalizer television series and for Codename: Kyril). If the first film is a pair of silk pajamas, the second film is an old tattered flannel shirt which is missing a few buttons.

The Wicker Tree has no Christian message so why include a review of the film in this blog? The answer is because it has two characters who are explicitly portrayed as Christians.

Beth Boothby and her fiancée Steve are excited and horribly naïve evangelical missionaries from rural Texas (USA). They plan to spend two years evangelizing the pagan people of Scotland.

Beth and Steve find the people of the village of Tressock to be friendly, polite, and generous hosts, but no one is interested in any way in the religious tracts which the two attempt to distribute. The most enthusiastic response from the villagers comes during an assembly in their obviously unused church when Steve and Beth teach them the hymn, “There is Power in the Blood.” The Lord of the village tells the missionaries, “It’s going to be fun … trying to convert us heathens.”

It is almost immediately obvious to the viewer, but not to Beth and Steve, that something is not right in the quaint old village. Beth feels honored to be selected as the new May Day Queen. Steve thinks it is a fine game to  play the part of the Laddie. If you have seen the truly chilling first film you will not be surprised at what the missionaries ultimately find.

Objectionable elements in the film include nudity, vulgarity, sex, gore, and profanity., but there are two other points in the film which I found to be more objectionable.

The portrayal of evangelical Christians is little more than a crude caricature. Beth, while sincere, is unbelievably naïve and is totally unprepared to evangelize. Steve succumbs to the very first temptation set before him.

Beth and Steve are supposed to be from Texas (USA) but they are totally unable to hide the fact that they are British actors. Steve (Hebry Garrett) has a very difficult time staying Texan.

The Texans in the film all attend church wearing their cowboy hats and their missionary organization is “Cowboys for Christ.” In modern secular usage, “cowboy” often is a perjorative and derisive term denoting someone who is violent, stupid, and reckless.

This film, which I believe was intended as a Black Comedy, is insulting to evangelical Christians whom it portrays as naïve, simple, and gullible. It views them as people whose faith is as thin as onion paper and is based, in reality, on nothing.

Actually, the film is also insulting to neopagans, who would be repulsed at the idea of human sacrifice.

The other insulting thing in the film is a cynical utilitarian statement by the lord of the village. “I believe the old religion of the Celts fits our needs at this time. Isn’t that all you can ask of a religion?”

Totally ignore the 2006 Nicholas Cage remake of The Wicker Man.