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Why do mainstream moviemakers so often portray Christians as foolish, legalistic, and condescendingly snobbish?

I get a lot of answers—often accompanied by intense emotion—when I ask that question. Some Christians blame a conspiracy of liberal, anti-Christian Hollywood powerbrokers. Other believers argue that if more Christians were telling good stories and making good movies for general audiences instead of within the bounds of a Christian subculture, truer representations would be offered more frequently. Still others suggest that Christians have earned flak by sometimes behaving in a condescending, judgmental way toward unbelievers.

Whatever the cause, the trend may be shifting, at least for a while. Two of three wide-release films opening this week present heroes whose successes are linked to their belief in a benevolent God. Still, there's more to good artmaking than avoidance of caricature; the films are garnering various complaints about onscreen religiosity and other aspects as well.

Director Adam Shankman's (The Wedding Planner) A Walk to Remember, based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks, has religious press journalists on their feet and cheering. But mainstream critics are remaining seated, or else they're headed for the lobby, where they're jostling to come up with the best joke headline—"The Bland Leading the Bland," "Forgettable," and "A Walk to Forget." Are these naysayers merely prejudiced? Or is the movie really just preaching to the choir? If you've seen the film, let me know what you think.

The heroine is Jamie Sullivan (pop singer Mandy Moore), daughter of a kind-hearted pastor (Peter Coyote) in a small North Carolina town. We're given the impression that Jamie is considered unattractive. (This made many critics smirk—apparently, it's hard to make Mandy Moore look dumpy.) In spite of her perpetual good deeds, Jamie gets mocked by high school troublemakers and popular kids. One of the class rebels, Landon Carter (Shane West), gets assigned the lead in a school play as a punishment for causing trouble. And—surprise, surprise—it's righteous-but-unpopular Jamie who gets the job of teaching him his lines. Surely the "plain" beauty and the "handsome" beast will be drawn to each other. Surely Papa will disapprove. And surely some dark secret will be revealed.

"Who would have thought that A Walk To Remember would turn out to be the first pleasant movie surprise of 2002?" says Michael Elliott (Movie Parables). "It will have its fair share of detractors who will deride it for what they'll [call] sappy, sentimental content. The film wears its heart on its sleeve, but at least it is a healthy heart that beats soundly and resonates with love."

CT's Douglas LeBlanc says, "Peter Coyote delivers one of the finest performances of his eccentric career" in what he describes as "a quiet but remarkable film."

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' critic writes, "Shankman's earnest teen romance travels a predictable route but excels in affirming faith values as a positive and joyous part of life."

Steven Isaac (Focus on the Family) remarks that the film "is just what its title implies. Moore infuses youthful passion into her heart-wrenching portrayal of Jamie. [She] has turned Jamie into a living, breathing Christian that you can cheer for and cry for." But despite his raves, Issac raises questions about the appropriateness of the film's central romance: "To begin dating [Landon], knowing that he is an unbeliever, puts Jamie in a precarious position. And if her actions are emulated, they will place young Christians in potentially compromising relationships."

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January (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46