Clueless in Hollywood, Who can’t see the difference between The Passion and Saved.

[TMC]

http://www.nationalreview.com/commen...0405170819.asp

Clueless in Hollywood
Who can’t see the difference between The Passion and Saved.
David Lewis Schaefer
National Review Online
5.17.04

Anyone who's concerned that Hollywood is perpetuating the divide between "Red" and "Blue" America by ignoring the concerns of tens of millions of evangelical and conservative Catholic moviegoers might be reassured to learn that the success of Mel Gibson's The Passion of Christ has encouraged film producers to make more movies that will appeal to Christian audiences. Unfortunately, as the New York Times reports, producers are uncertain about what kinds of movies will appeal to such audiences.

A first effort in this regard suggests that Hollywood still has a good deal to learn. On May 28, Saved, described as a "small, irreverent comedy" starring Mandy Moore and Macaulay Caulkin, will open in selected theaters. The movie (begun before the success of Gibson's film) is set in an evangelical Christian school in Maryland "where 'Jesus loves you' is a mantra — and an order." The film features a teenage romance in which a girl becomes pregnant as a consequence of trying to save her boyfriend from damnation as a homosexual. Meanwhile, her mother, a widow, while working to get "right with God," has an affair with the school's handsome and "hip" leader, Pastor Skip (who is "given to complimenting his students on being 'phat'"). Moore plays a schoolgirl depicted as "an overzealous do-gooder who ends up framing others for her crime in her eagerness to convert the unconvinced."

Although religious leaders invited to an advance screening were reported to have "mixed opinions" about the film, a gay audience loved it. Peter Adee, president of worldwide marketing at MGM, described Saved as having "a certain Christian appeal," despite its "irreverence," because it has "a pure Christian message in the middle, which is tolerant." In Hollywood's eyes, the "message" of Christianity is reducible to its own favored doctrine, which is always tolerance. And Christians are in principle capable of living up to that message — even if they frequently fall victim to hypocrisy and "overzealousness." (As for those who insist on proselytizing on behalf of some more demanding view of people's duties to God and their fellow men — well, they are kind of hard to tolerate, aren't they?)

Because Saved was developed before the surprise success of The Passion, its producers had a lot of trouble finding financing, given the fear that religious themes turn off audiences. In an effort to market the film, MGM executives are now trying what they call the "Hail Mary" [!] approach, "throwing every possible hook into the advertising and publicity" while "working especially hard to reach the Christian audience that turned out for 'The Passion of Christ.'"

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http://"http://www.worldnetdaily.com...TICLE_ID=38468
------------------------------
TESTING THE FAITH
New film mocks Christianity
Media expert: ''SAVED!' is a hateful, politically correct movie'

Posted: May 13, 2004
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2004 WorldNetDaily.com

A noted movie critic says the new film "Saved!" is a sad, bigoted, anti-Christian movie that mocks the Christian faith.

Ted Baehr, the founder of the Christian Film & Television Commission™ ministry has come out swinging against the MGM movie, according to Assist News Service. The film is slated to be released May 28.

"'SAVED!' is a hateful, politically correct movie," Baehr declared. "It is being heavily marketed to the community it mocks to lead Christian youth astray and make them resent their own faith."
Read more........




The movie, which stars Mandy Moore and Macaulay Culkin, tells the story about self-righteous Christian youths in an uptight Christian school. Baehr urges religious leaders, including Jews and Muslms, to warn their constituents about the movie.

"The one character who tries to preach the Gospel in the movie is actually the villain," Baehr noted. "The heroine Mary, played by Jena Malone, has a vision that Jesus tells her to fornicate with the school hunk in order to save him from homosexuality. At the end, Mary learns that her only true friends are Cassandra, an irreverent Jewish girl who claims to have been a stripper, and the villain's brother, who denies being a Christian and lusts after the stripper."

The movie's website includes phrases alternately shown on the homepage, including: "Got passion? Get Saved! 5:28," a ure-like reference to the film's release date. Other phrases are "Let's kick it Jesus style," and "Prayer works, it's been medically proven."

Baehr added: "Cassandra is the real heroine who turns Mary away from the uptight Christian students who believe in faith, values and the power of prayer. Imagine if this movie were set in an Orthodox Jewish school with faithful Jewish children cast as the villains and a Christian girl shows how legalistic the Jewish girls are. Or, what if it were set in an Islamic school with faithful Muslims cast as the villains and a Christian or Jewish girl exposes how legalistic the Muslims are? The outcry in the press would be tremendous! Not to mention the righteous outcry from Jews or Muslims!

"Looking at it from the point of view of other faiths highlights how bigoted the movie 'SAVED!' is and reveals how MGM is marketing it to Christian children to try to divorce them from their faith!"

Brief audio snippets from the film featured on the website include one female character angrily shouting at another: "I'm filled with Christ's love!"
"

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[AKA]

It's funny - while I was reading those articles, I was hearing the voice of Charlie Brown's teacher. "Waa waaaa waa waaaaa wawa waaa waaaaa wawawa."

[Dean Winchester]

fundamentalist Christians bring it on themselves!!! It was only inevitable before a movie came out mocking them. I know many Christians who look down on the fundies, which is what this movie is mocking.

[Dean Winchester]

I've spoken to several people, Christian and non, who think this movie will be hilarious.

The movie isn't mocking Christianity... it's mocking "fundamentalist conservative Christians", people like Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, etc... Like it or not, the way they go on attacking everything, a movie like this was inevitable because most people, even many Christians, DO NOT AGREE with the way "Christian fundies" act. As long as they spew their bile and keep pissing people off, don't complain that someone decides to make a movie putting them in their rightful place. Saved will definately do well because a lot of people hate fundies.

Just because someone is a Christian doesn't automatically make them a fundie. Fundies are a small percentage of Christians, it's like saying that all Muslims are extremists (when the truth is, that is less than 5% of the total Muslims). I know many many Christians who hate the actions and attitudes of fundamentalists. I am glad someone is putting them in their rightful place. Fundies suck! I hope this movie is a smash

[Skywalker]

If Mandy Moore and the kid from the home alone movies are the stars, religious beliefs aside, this movie should be called Damned.