Blue Like Jazz

       A couple of weeks, I had the amazing opportunity to go to DCC (Denver Christmas Conference) with Campus Crusade for Christ and had the incredible, and unexpected, privilege of seeing a rough cut of the film Blue Like Jazz, based off the book by the same title.  (See my previous article on book-to-movies conversions and creativity!!)  The movie follows Donald, a boy who is burned by the church, as he runs off to most Godless college in America.  As the story unravels, Donald continually sees God “following” him in everything he does and eventually realizes how he as well as many other Christians misrepresent the power and love of God.

       Overall, the film, which is scheduled to be released in mid-April, is very well done and the “godlessness” is very strongly and realistically portrayed.  The acting is good and the characters are believable and relatable.  However, it is a film that I would not invite all of my Christian friends to see.  There is a lot of language, a lot of drinking and drug use, and a lot of sexual dialogue.  But this all brings up a good point.  

       Recently, I have been researching what are some things that make Christian movies weak and fake.  One of the main problems with Christian films is that they don’t get sin right.  What do I mean by this? Well, secular films make sin (language, sex, and so on) look appealing and tempting.  On the other hand, many Christian films make sin look unappealing and often times just fake.  The choice between the right thing and the wrong thing is a “no duhh” situation that seems unrealistic.

       As with Blue Like Jazz, the amount of sin in the film will attract a broader audience among non-Christian college students and presents a very vivid picture of what a God-less college looks like.  What are your thoughts on “sin” in Christian films?  Are there certain things that are more acceptable than others on screen?  Is it worth adding a little bit of edgier material to reach a wider audience with the Gospel of Christ?  Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think!!