I just got back from seeing Saved with Megan. I was excited to see this movie on the sheer premise that it involved Mandy Moore and Jesus. The movie was generally good and certainly had it’s moments. It provided a refreshing, honest look into hardcore Christian America. Though it’s easy not to see the messages hidden in the sometimes satirical nature of the movie, they’re there.
The characters were interesting and generally provided a good baseline on which to tell the story. This movie certainly didn’t shy away from stereo types. Right away we’re introduced to the typical rebel. In this setting, she happens to be “the only jewish ever to attend American Christian Eagle High School” She smokes cigarettes and generally finds the God sentiment to be fake. The foil in the movie, Hilary, is portrayed very well by Mandy Moore. Hilary has always been the perfect Christian. She’s the ‘queen bee’ of a group called The Christian Jewels.
Several things come to light as the movie progresses. However, I found the most accurate portrayal of the movie was not by any one actor, but by the collective closed minded sentiment found in many Christrian Communities. Having experienced the persecution from a christian contingent myself I can tell you that the movie portrayed these misguided people very accurately. Clearly, the movie seeks to open the minds of America to the oppression happening within our country. Oppression just doesn’t happen between races and genders, it happens in religion too. At one point, the Christian Jewels go so far as to kidnap someone and try to excorsize them. This is all underscored by the fact that their is a place called Mercy House that helps people deal with everything from “de-gayification to drug use with the help of Christ”
Though some of the acting in the movie left me with a taste in my mouth similiar to that of “Camp” I thought it was very well done. A jab at the cult-like extremist Christian community in popular culture is long overdue. A flip through my year book will show you every other person “Shouting out to Jesus Lord and Savior. Word Up Homies, 2004 till the Casket Drop” Not that I detest people thanking their God, that’s totally cool with me. Do they mean it though?
All of this coincides with a happy little incident that I ran into on Thursday. On the way out of school, to the car, a gentleman was passing out little books (religous literature). When he tried to give me one, I politely told him, “No thank you, I’m an atheist” to which he replied (obviously having heard this before) very genuinely: “That’s ok, You can still read it.” I feel very weird learning about religion. It’s something that interests me a great deal, but it’s much like a car accident for me. I feel like an officer trying to write up a report. As the saying goes: Their are three sides to every story, the story from driver a, the story from driver b, and the truth. When I learn about religion from these little books or pamphlets I always feel like I’m getting it from A or B. Never the truth. This reaches further than just religion though, it reaches broad philisophical topics. For an example, pick up the Communist Manifesto, or Mein Kampf. Obviously those are extreme examples, but do they really differ that much? Hitler wanted nothing more to be an artist. When he tells his story, you consider it a little bit differently.
All of this writing and philosophical reasoning is probably the guilt from the flagrant partying I have been doing all weekend. However, I can’t think of a better way to end a weekend.
-Joshua Ziering