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Dark and light spirituality filled movie screens this week, from the occultism in Book of Shadows and the undead in Little Vampire, to the spiritual metaphors of The Legend of Bagger Vance and the message of Christian forgiveness in Mercy Streets. Christian critics rarely agreed, though, on what response believers should have to such elements.

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Charlie's Angels: goofy fun or brainless sexploitation? Christian critics argued passionately for one or the other, splitting pretty evenly in their reactions to this update of the '70s TV series. Phil Boatwright, the Movie Reporter, says "it may be the best time I've had in at the movies this entire year. ... This feminine and witty answer to 007, with a bit of Modesty Blaise thrown in for good measure, is loads of fun. The spoof never takes itself seriously, yet never belittles its characters." But Christian Spotlight guest reviewer Curtis D. Smith says it's all too eager to belittle: "A precariously demoralizing view of young women prevails in Charlie's Angels. It repeatedly says women are little more than sexual playthings—with few brains and even fewer inhibitions—who must prance around half naked in order to get what they want." Michael Elliott of Crosswalk.com also takes shots at the film's acting and script. "The three female leads offer little in the way of characterization, other than to play off each other in a giggling schoolgirl kind of camaraderie. ... Logic takes a long, long vacation as the 'angels' miraculously solve each piece of the puzzle without the benefit of clues, confessions or traces of any evidence." Other critics just settled in for the ride, treating the film as nothing more than the brain candy it aspires to be. The U.S. Catholic Conference calls it "a fast-paced escapist fantasy [with a] high-energy blend of comedy and action." Movieguide agrees that it's "a fairly entertaining, amusing action flick ... a good guy/bad guy cartoon caper that doesn't take itself too seriously," and compares the sexual content to that of "a mild, comical James Bond flick." Movieguide even notes a mild spiritual metaphor in the relationship between the heroines and their unseen boss, Charlie. "The movie often makes puns about angels. One of the final puns mentions the importance of having faith in a father-figure, i.e., the mysterious Charlie." However, J. Robert Parks of the Phantom Tollbooth had a far less appreciative take on that relationship: "As Charlie is talking over the speaker phone, all three actresses get these dreamy looks as if they have serious father issues to work through."

The Legend of Bagger Vance, the story of a mystical caddy (Will Smith) who gives advice that's as much about life as it is about golf, drew a wide range of reactions from Christian critics. Movies and Ministry's Doug Cummings found that Bagger Vance's advice to troubled golfer Rannulph Junuh (Matt Damon) holds spiritual significance. "Sure, it speaks its spiritual truths as vaguely as possible, but it never seems shallow or naive," Cummings says. "In Christian terms, Vance's character could be seen as an archetype for the Holy Spirit, prompting and suggesting, but ultimately leaving Junuh's spiritual journey up to his own decisions." Movieguide, too, praised it for spiritual value: "One of the best movies of the year, Bagger Vance is a wonderful parable about God. ... [It] not only gives viewers plenty of good spiritual things about which to think, it also extols the virtues of honesty, integrity and honoring one's parents." But Charles Henderson, guide to Christianity at About.com says its wishy-washy spirituality is more harmful than helpful. "Few Catholics, Protestants, Muslims or Jews are going to object to a movie in which an African-American plays the ... "spiritual guide." But how about Savior or Messiah? That is exactly what the Will Smith character is in this movie." Henderson believes that this type of movie encourages the development of personal spirituality separate from faith traditions. "The great news story of the twenty-first century will be the continuing migration of humanity's spiritual life from the world of organized religion, and its institutions, to the commercial world of the new media." (Supporting this theory is the fact that in Steven Pressfield's novel, Bagger Vance was revealed to be Hinduism's Bhagavad Gita, but in the film he is of no particular creed.) Not everyone took Vance's sayings seriously, though. J. Robert Parks of the Phantom Tollbooth says the film is crippled by asking "its audience to whole-heartedly believe that the cryptic sayings of a stranger could straighten out a golf swing, that a heavenly choir literally starts singing after a perfect golf shot. ... I can honestly say that there is something charmed about the sport; but I would never ascribe it to the good side of the Force, if you know what I mean." (Mainstream reviewers also scoffed at Bagger's wisdom; Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly calls it "Chicken Soup for the Golfer's Soul," and Bob Strauss of the Los Angeles Daily News says "this vague allegory about playing the inner and outer game speaks to the peculiarly American secular belief in the possibility of winning both spiritual peace and material success.") Nevertheless, most Christian critics embraced the film for being relatively clean and thoughtful entertainment. Michael Elliott of Crosswalk.com says "The Legend of Bagger Vance may be old-fashioned hokum, but it is such a breath of fresh air that we can't help but be swept away with its apple-cheeked optimism regarding the resiliency of the human spirit."

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November (Web-only) 2000, Vol. 44