Movie Reviews

Monumental Movie Review

March 28, 2012 by Michael Coughlin

Plenty of reviews of monumental have been posted. I ended up writing a friend an email about the movie and wanted to simply post my thoughts for the entire internet and the 15 people who read my blog (my wife promises me she doesn’t just click 15 times). There is more than just a review. The conversation started with me telling my friend it was “disappointing” and I sent him a link to a friend’s blog which explained many of my thoughts. Read it here.

My friend wrote me back:

From what your friend stated he was disappointed, but, he had several witnessing opportunities, what can be disappointing about that?

Here is my response with some editing:

Brother – there is nothing disappointing about witnessing opportunities. But that does not justify the means that provided the opportunity. Abortion centers provide witnessing opportunities; so does teenage pregnancy, death of loved ones and car accidents. Witnessing opportunities are what we make of them. I’ve witnessed at the same movie theater after other movies as well. So yes, I praise God Almighty that Fred Triplett as well as John Chizam preached the Word after this movie and someone I don’t know named Lance. I am glad I was able to give out tracts. But that has no bearing on the movie itself.

Now as far as the movie goes:

It was a movie about Christianity, but it was missing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Many well known people were portrayed as “partners” with Kirk in this endeavor. In all cases, they are simply portrayed as Christians. This list includes:
a. Alveda King – who may or may not be a Christian, but she partners with Catholics in the pro-life cause.
b. David Barton – I don’t know who he is, but everything I found quickly wasn’t flattering.
c. Glenn Beck – a well known denier of the one true God, Jesus Christ. Probably biblically qualified to be considered a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
I do not think that as Christians we should partner with those who are not Christian, particularly on such a spiritual endeavor. Kirk Cameron, whether wittingly or not, lended credibility to Glenn Beck last night. The Bible says to not even greet someone like that. 2 John 1:10

3. There was a sublte but clear postmillenial slant. As members of Berean Baptist Church, we have affirmed a premillenial view of the Bible and eschatology. Many of the positive reviews I read celebrate the postmillenial slant that Kirk is now putting on things. This is actually a turnoff for me, but even if it had a premillenial slant, my other points would still apply.

4. There was a touch of pragmatism involved, although Kirk tried to stem this off at times (by talking about the necessary heart change). The following concept or idea was implied:

if we use God and His bible –>> Then we can get what we want (whether that is freedom, prosperity, whatever, often a very good thing could be the result).

First of all, God is worthy of our praise, worship and OBEDIENCE regardless of whether we think it will achieve for us our desired effect. As well…many of the people who need the gospel will be turned off by this message. They (unregenerate, unrepentant sinners) do not desire the freedom offered by the gospel…they desire their sin. Promising a homosexual or an abortion doctor or a prostitute or a hardened criminal that a return to biblical roots will offer them freedom and help our country is asinine. They do not have any desire for the freedom offered by the gospel.

What they need is to be told of God’s righteous judgment which is immminent, that His wrath is currently abiding on them, and the escape offered by grace through faith alone in the resurrected Son of God, Jesus Christ who became sin on behalf of His people. They need to know that Jesus Christ is their Lord, whether they acknowledge it or not. Attempts to convincing them that biblical basis for laws without a regenerated heart will not only be unfruitful, but somewhat insulting. You may as well tell a leopard to change his spots or an ethiopian to change his skin color…Jeremiah 13:23. You could make the argument that the country could be made better using these principles, even if people don’t believe them. That even false converts and members of apostate christian churches and groups could embrace the morality and promote it, but who cares? I’m not trying to make the world a better place from where people can go to hell. I praise God so many unbelievers still have a conscience, but their end is the same as the most violent criminal apart from faith alone in Christ alone.

Was there a lot of good in the movie? Yes, just like October Baby (which I do not recommend because of the universalist/ecumenical slant and no gospel), there were some good messages; Christian morality was exhibited and extolled. At one point, it was pointed out that not all churchgoers are Christian, and Kirk even mentioned that not all the founding fathers were Christian, yet they still saw the value in the Bible as a source of truth for governance. There was a ton of historical information which was offered (with little attribution to the source) which can pump people up for our nation. David Barton mocked secular historians for their lack of footnotes…yet this movie itself cited no source for its data either.

It was entertaining and somewhat inspiring.

But how does it inspire?

Did it inspire me to buy Kirk’s Monumental Homeschool curriculum? No.
Did it inspire me to buy Kirk’s Family Home Devotional? No.
Did it inspire me to encourage my friends to go, or my unsaved family? No. (In fact, I hope my unsaved family misses it because I’m afraid it will allow them to feel comfortable in their sin because many of them are on the right side of the morality fence.)
Did it inspire me to visit or demand others visit the demand this movie website? No.

It inspired me to do exactly what the movie itself needed to do. It inspired me to follow the Bible in my home, attempt to influence people in the same fashion, and hope that through the preaching of the gospel, the Lord will grant repentance and faith to lost souls and that the Holy Spirit will then guide their lives and we will being to live in a country that is actually converted.

Here is another review which I thought was fair by Jon Speed. You will notice the postmillenial praise (which I would expect from a postmiller) as well as a lot of very well-reasoned comments on the movie.

Anyway – I love you brother, and I’m not trying to argue. Go ahead and go see it if you want. Personally, with my budget and the abundance of gospel preaching missionaries and evangelists I know I’d have preferred to give the ticket and popcorn price to one of them, or just spent it all myself on tracts I could carry. Like I said, I love Kirk, but I think he made a mistake, and it happens to be a very public one, which requires public repentance, in my opinion.

I could be wrong about some of these things. I do believe the movie was “good.” But a missed opportunity and potentially a display of a direction that I hope Kirk isn’t headed into partnership with nonbelievers.

Courageous Movie Review

April 19, 2011 by Michael Coughlin

Many people seem to want to know the Bible verse from the movie Courageous. It is Joshua 24:15, As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Read on for my review of Courageous – I promise, no spoilers!

Let me start by letting you know that shortly after I became a Christian, I found myself unable to enjoy the comedy clubs, music and movies that I had once loved. It hit me one day that I had to put all those things away that were not glorifying to God…the crude humor, immoral innuendo, blasphemy and lyrics that promoted sin. Although I was dedicated to my new Lord, (I did put the stuff away), I reacted like Lot’s wife, turning back and looking…somewhat lamenting the loss of “fun” in my life. I resigned myself to the fact that I would never again enjoy jokes, movies or music.

Leave it to the Kendrick brothers to blow away that notion! One of the highlights of the movie, Courageous, is the side splitting humor sprinkled throughout, all of it clean and gentle. No one’s feelings have to be hurt by sarcasm for a joke to be funny, and gross vulgarities are not only unnecessary, but they truly ruin a good time.
In Courageous, we join a group of 4 sheriff’s deputies and a manual laborer named Javier. These men face daily dilemmas related to job and family and learn to rely on each other and God in this inspiring, but humorous flick. How will they respond when the ultimate tragedy befalls one of them?

But this review is not just about the entertainment value of Courageous, but rather the spiritual value. Let’s use three measuring sticks (you could pick several others, I’m sure), to try to judge the merit of this movie. Ultimately, the question is, should you spend the resources God has provided you with to see this flick? Or would your money be better spent elsewhere…there is certainly need all around us.

Here are the three criteria we will use to discern the worth of Courageous in order of importance.

Is God glorified?
Will the movie tempt someone to sin?
Is there a practical application to the lessons learned within?

I will consider them in reverse order:

Is there a practical application to the lessons learned within?

The basic setting of Courageous is the life of a few families, specifically the men of the families in a town in Georgia. These men are police officers, who are joined by a manual laborer friend as well. The meaningful dialogue creates meaningful character development as they go through day to day life, both on the job and at home. You really get a sense quickly for each character’s personality.
One side plot of the movie is the gang related activity. Although I will highly recommend this movie, I would not call it “kid-friendly.” There are scenes where drug paraphernalia is depicted, as well as a brutal gang-initiation. It is done well, in the sense that the idea is depicted without gratuitous violence or mimicked drug use, but I would not take a child under 13 to this movie due to that content. I’d say if you are ready to talk to your child about drugs and gang violence, it is up to you, but some of the scenes could be scary for more sensitive children.

But the gang activity is necessary for the story, and they do a brilliant job of tying together the characters in relationships that are believable. Ultimately, the message that comes across is the importance of a father in the life of children.

Just like the Love Dare in Fireproof, the main character in the movie ends up with a set of “Resolutions.” Resolving to be a biblical father and husband, the main character, Adam Mitchell offers examples of repentance for missed opportunities, and redemption in this life as he strives to make amends for his errant ways. These “Resolutions” will definitely be a best-seller, and with a September 30 release, expect lots of Christmases to be chock full of Courageous Resolutions.

Finally, there is a one on one presentation of the gospel which was of such quality as could be used for training. Without compromising a shred of truth, Nathan Hayes (Michael, Kirk Cameron’s friend in Fireproof) shares the plan of redemption in Christ alone with his partner David Thomson. But while sharing the message and confronting David’s sin, Nathan doesn’t lack any of the compassion and love that we are commanded to have when giving a defense for what we believe with meekness and fear. (1 Peter 3:15)

Will the movie tempt someone to sin?

Now we all have different sin-tendencies, I know, but I can only speak of a few of the more obvious ones. I suppose it is possible that a person with a problem with a “gang history” could somehow get excited about his or her old life…but I don’t see it that way. I see the depiction of the life being authentic enough to get the idea, while not glorifying the lifestyle in any way.

None of the main characters engages in smoking, drinking or drug use. The references to drugs are never exalted, and the women in the movie are all modestly dressed throughout, except for one scene toward the end where a woman’s shirt was possibly a little too low cut. I am also one of the more conservative people I know in the area of modesty…so many people may not even notice.
Courageous does not glorify sin nor does it provide temptation for someone to sin. In contrast to the other “Christian-value” movie which is being marketed for now, (Soul Surfer), Courageous offers no feeding of the flesh. Carnal minded men and women will not find satisfaction for their lusts here. To be able to enjoy a movie without having to cover your ears and eyes is rare, and Courageous refreshes the soul in this way.

Is God glorified?

I have wondered on occasion how to truly judge a movie. I wonder if God actually likes any story, where Jesus is not the center; the protagonist; the ultimate victor. It has made me disinterested in even secular stories of success where God is not glorified.
Courageous makes an overt point of being Christ-centered, Bible-directed and God loving. The message of the movie that faith in Christ alone is the only provision for forgiveness of sins is clearly stated. And the “great contradiction” is that this movie attacks the secular view of fatherhood and family by setting the standard for fatherhood based on the Bible. I believe that men and women who are not born-again will enjoy this movie because of the universal Truth contained therein. The biblical principles laid out will resonate in the hearts of people everywhere who want to love their kids more, treat their wife better and lead and protect their family in the best way possible. The hope and prayer of course, is that while some people came just to see a good movie, they will leave with their life changed, with sufficient knowledge to start a reconciled relationship with God through Christ.

Should you go see Courageous? Yes. Please do. Be a good steward of your money and spend it on the advancement of the gospel of Christ (Romans 1:16) by supporting this movie, and the good people who God has gifted to produce such a masterpiece. Buy tickets for friends and relatives, both saved and unsaved, and don’t forget Dad – tickets go on sale June 19, Father’s Day.