God's Not Dead

Caution: This Might Contain Spoilers!

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Film Code Link!

Josh Wheaton arrives to a new college, and decides to take Professor Radisson's philosophy course. On his first day of class, he is instructed to write on a piece of paper that God is Dead and sign it. Wheaton disagrees, and is forced to prove his reason for believing in God.

This film was directed by Harold Cronk. Okay, this film was created by a Christian company, so they do not have access to full Hollywood effects. With that in mind, the film does not have amazing production quality. This film has been endorsed by several Christian groups because of the belief that it will strengthen their beliefs, convince them to take a stand, and save more souls. This film, popular among Christian's, is probably one of the most bigoted films to be created. The idea of a student fighting a professor for his beliefs is great. But, they included several unnecessary secondary stories to create a ton of subtext. I can understand that it is wrong to punish students for not wanting to do things that go against their beliefs. That is a great concept, and if the film kept focus on just their argument then it would have been so much better. However, the hidden messages break what could've been a great story. The first secondary message it that all those who follow other religions (even if they are similar) are wrong and close minded. They show a Muslim father who banishes his daughter for following Christianity. This was very unnecessary and ironic writing. Another secondary story is that all intellects are not only assholes but are plagued by the curse of intelligence. True, most intellects are atheists, but not all. And, not all intellects are assholes. The final nail in the coffin is that you will wish you had God when your dying. The other complication is that not all atheists are evil or immoral, and everything good does not solely come from God. We are given free will for a reason. We are capable of being good and creating hope within ourselves. It is not bad to take a stand for your beliefs, but it is wrong to take your ideas and work it against people. It also assumes that all people fall into a particular stereotype, and that is how they assemble their characters. I know there is a feeling, from both sides of this argument, that you should attack first. I think that it should be approached with open minds from both parties, and a film that can do that will be a true miracle. Oddly, there are plans to create a sequel to this film-don't know how they could possibly do it though. 

Shane Harper played the role of Josh Wheaton. He was good in his very innocent role. He gave the film its heart. Kevin Sorbo played the role of Professor Radisson. He was brilliant opposing Harper. However, the script found several ways to ruin his character.

I give this film 2 out of 5 stars! This is a film for hardcore followers of the Christian faith. However, it's great concept is shattered with all the additional subtext.

This film can be found through Netflix DVD.

Answer to last blog: Actor Sala Baker played the role of Sauron in the original Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Que: What other religious film has actor Kevin Sorbo stared in?

Courageous

Let the Lion Roar

Heaven is for Real

Son of God

-Meredith Lawless-