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Many religious press critics know that beauty, wisdom, and profoundly moving art can be found in the most unlikely places. This week, Film Forum focuses on 2003's overlooked gems, those movies that did not get the publicity and hype and the wide distribution, but that just might end up on your list of all-time favorites if you take the time to seek them out. Here are some of the surprises they've discovered in their journeys off the beaten path.

"One of the year's least-seen worthy films was The Guys," says Steven D. Greydanus (Decent Films). He describes it as "a small, intimate film both written and set in the days immediately after 9/11. Transparently honest and deeply affecting, it is a simple, direct portrait of grief amid overwhelming circumstances.

"In one scene, a character reflects on the futility of trying to bargain with God on the one hand, and the intolerability of accepting or becoming reconciled to the horror of evil on the other. In taking these false options off the table, The Guys takes what could be a first step toward faith and trust in God on his own terms—or at least a step away from superstition and despair.

"Though The Guys is at times hard to watch, those who aren't put off by its austerity will find it more than capable of rewarding them." The raves of mainstream critics are available here.

Darrell Manson (Hollywood Jesus) recommends OT: Our Town, a compelling documentary about a high school's production of Thornton Wilder's play. "It is about the struggle within a school to make something happen without much support … especially without money," he writes. "It's about the lives and growth of the students and teachers involved. It's about the timelessness of the play. It's about determination." You can scan the reviews of mainstream critics here.

Mike Hertenstein, coordinator of the Cornerstone festival's film program Flickerings, chooses a Greek film called Hard Goodbyes: My Father. "[It's] a 'little film,' a small story that pulls us inside the little dramas that are actually quite epic to the people to whom they occur, in this case a little boy who faces major transitions in his life in the shadow of the Apollo moon landing." More information on the film can be found here.

Hertenstein has included the film in next year's lineup at Flickerings. "I was astonished to find that it wasn't showing up on anybody else's radar. Then a few weeks ago I nearly fell out of my chair when I heard this report on NPR about Atlanta journalist Liz Yuan who had seen the film at the only other North American screening (in Toronto). Liz loved the film so much she basically got into the film distribution business so she could distribute it herself. She's also put together screenings in L.A. to meet requirements for this year's Best Foreign Film Oscar considerations. Check out the official site, and watch for screenings Liz is trying to put together around the country."

Stef Loy (The Matthews House Project) joins other critics in extolling the virtues of Bus 174. He writes, "This strident film puts a Brazilian spin on the concept of 'social justice.' Rio de Janeiro's street kids have to turn into hardened adults way too fast, but the kind of people they have to turn into are those that a system of apathy inevitably produces. Bus 147 is the story of what happens when, for one moment, the voiceless class awakens us to other perceptions of ourselves and our financial ease." Loy's full review is here. And the enthusiastic raves of mainstream critics are linked here.

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December (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47