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For those wondering if this column has become merely The Passion Chronicle, here's some news: Starting this week, The Passion of The Christ is no longer the top story.

This week, the spotlight falls on a Stephen King adaptation and two films about secret agents. This may seem like a plunge from profound into predictable, but religious press reviewers are finding much worth discussing in these films.

Stephen King has written several horror stories about writers (The Shining, Misery), and adaptations of these stories have given some of Hollywood's finest actors opportunities to do excellent work. With the release of Secret Window, critics are applauding the performance of Johnny Depp as a writer wrestling with personal demons.

While most mainstream critics are quick to point out that this is not one of King's best works, some religious press critics are finding some valuable lessons in the story. "Depp is the best actor in Hollywood," says Annabelle Robertson (Crosswalk), "and his performance … is positively inspired." She adds that the film shows "that evil is not only frighteningly real, but something that must be avoided at all cost. The film also demonstrates the high cost of marital infidelity and the kind of evil that can be unleashed when we choose to follow our sinful desires."

Jeff Diaz (The Film Forum) says, "The plotline is a variation on the common 'your-sins-will-find-you-out' theme with a not too inspired twist. Therefore at times it feels like a well-worn coat … comfortable but rather shabby. And being that it is a well-worn plot you figure out the end way before you need to … hence leaving you with watching the inevitable happen like a slow train coming down the tracks."

Speaking to the quality of the filmmaking, Peter T. Chattaway (Christianity Today Movies) says Secret Window "falls flat. The plot presents the audience with a few simple puzzles, but they aren't that hard to solve, and once they are, we're not left with a desire to figure out what any of it might mean."

Eddie Turner (Movieguide) agrees that the film is "undercooked and will give you little for a two-hour investment."

But David DiCerto (Catholic News Service) says the movie is "tautly paced with enough hair-raising suspense to keep viewers' cold sweat on a slow drip. [It] owes more of its pedigree to the works of Hitchcock than to contemporary slasher flicks."

Michael Elliott (Movie Parables) argues, "Secret Window is not a bad film, but it isn't necessarily a great one. Depp's characterization is worth a look—as is [John] Turturro's. But overall, the twists of the film are a bit obvious." He says the story "has to do with what we choose to do with our minds. We can dwell on the hurt and pain that we have experienced in the past or we can choose to look towards the future which holds the promise of a life yet to come."

Sherri McMurray (Christian Spotlight) is bothered by "gore and many disturbing, un-Christian themes throughout." But the themes that she highlight seem quite Christian indeed: "This is a film that deals with the power Satan has in inflicting depression caused by sin and then turning it into mental illness. If he can catch a soul at this most vulnerable time, the devil feels he has won a small victory." She concludes by rejecting the film for its "references to adulterous sex, the themes of alcohol abuse, loose morals, strong language, and graphic visions of murder," which she says "will be extremely offensive to most Christians."

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March (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48