REEL NEWS
Religulous: Fake Boycotts, Real Criticisms
Bill Maher's religion-skewering movie uses phony "boycott" to gain publicity; religious leaders and film critics say movie "preaches to the choir." Also: Producer unhappy with R rating for House; Marvel updates on Spider-Man, Iron Man, Thor; and more.
by Josh Hurst | posted 10/06/2008
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As with any movie that contains explicitly anti-religious content, Bill Maher's comedic documentary Religulous—which opened on Friday—has its share of chatter from religious and secular critics alike. Reel News has followed the movie for months, reporting on Maher's antagonistic remarks as well as the disapproval the film has met from believing audiences. But unlike past films like The Last Temptation of Christ and The DaVinci Code, Maher's movie doesn't have Christian leaders calling for a boycott.
In fact, the closest it may get is a boycott that may be staged by those associated with the film itself. A duo of self-described "Christian rockers" who go by the name "the Rapture Right" have gained some buzz—over 75,000 hits on YouTube—for a short clip in which they call for evangelicals to boycott Maher's "devil movie." Some—including film critic Colin Boyd—believe the clip is actually a parody made by Religulous' marketing team, as the clip appears on the film's website—and on its own spoof of Beliefnet, Disbeliefnet. Writes Boyd, "There is the possibility, however remote, that The Rapture Right is a gag … that mocks Christianity through one of its most annoying characters: The Christian rocker."
Real religious leaders, however, say they have more important worries than Maher's film. Rabbi Ben Kramer of Indiana says he is more concerned with helping those who are poor or homeless, adding that the film could actually generate some healthy conversation. "Perhaps it will help us transform religious communities into communities that do more good in the world; communities that are more positive and more helpful." Meanwhile, theology professor Fred Niedner says the movie is "preaching to the choir," and won't have any effect on anyone's beliefs.
Many critics and religious leaders would agree. Writing for The Columbus Dispatch, movie reviewer Frank Gabrenya says the movie is cheapened by its ridiculing tone and "unwillingness to engage in serious debate." He believes the film will be seen mostly by Maher's fans, and is unlikely to change any minds. Likewise, San Diego Union-Tribune religion writer Sandi Dolbee predicts that the film's over-the-top tone won't offer any serious challenges to anyone's religious faith. But despite the criticisms, Religulous is doing reasonably well among critics across the board.
Others report that Religulous resorts to at least some degree of deception and trickery to get its point across. According to Beliefnet blogger Steven Waldman, Maher tricked believing scientist Francis Collins to take part in the movie under false pretenses. Waldman notes that Maher seems to be guilty of the same sort of intellectual dishonesty he attributed to religious faith.
Finally, the weekend numbers are in at the box office, where Religulous finished 10th with $3.5 million in just 502 theaters—averaging almost $7,000 per theater. By contrast, the evangelical film Fireproof, which finished 4th a week ago, dropped to 8th with a still-strong showing of $4 million over the weekend, bringing its 10-day total to $12.5 million—astounding for a $500,000 film.
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