catholicsphere

A new independent film, End of the Spear, opens tomorrow. The movie recounts a true story of five missionaries who were killed by a violent tribe in the Amazon.

It seems to be all but off the radar, but it is touted as a Christian film, reflecting Christian values. Reviews are mixed about the film … and, strangely, it hasn’t been reviewed by either the USCCB or Catholic critics like Steven D. Greydanus.

A few sites around the web are talking about the film, however … such as the Christian Examiner, Columnist Ryan Zempel, Cal Thomas, and World Magazine.

A few bloggers have also written about it, such as at Greg Wright and The Ozz @ blogs4God.

But, apparently its not without controversy, since the star, Chad Allen (you may know him from several 80s television show, particularly “Our House” where he played “David Witherspoon”, alongside Wilford Brimley, Diedre Hall, and Shannen Doherty), is a homosexual and strong activist. As you’ll note on Greg Wright’s site, down in the comboxes, the filmmakers comment that they went with the person who auditioned best … which was Allen. And they specifically say that they don’t agree with his sexual orientation.

Now, I don’t agree with Chad’s sexual orientation either, and it may be a platform for Allen to launch some of his agenda. Both are sad facts of reality. Yet, it may not seem reason enough to dismiss him from being in this film. Should we expect the filmmakers to make a lesser quality movie in order to have actors with whom they agree on an exhaustive list of matters? If such were the case, then I think we’d have lost something in the art.

The message, drama, and story of The Lord of the Rings was not diminshed in the least, by the fact that the actor portraying a major character (Ian McKellen as Gandalf) was a homosexual. I do not think that what is portrayed on the screen is necessarily affected by what the actors and actresses have to say off-screen. Many pay them little attention.

That’s why I think this movie is worthy of a Christian audience … that, as the filmmakers ask, we don’t let their shortcomings detract from the story and its importance.