Unstoppable, a movie review

Advertised as a movie that “answers some of life’s most difficult questions about suffering and explores the victory of the Gospel throughout history,” we couldn’t help but be curious to see Kirk Cameron’s “Unstoppable” production that aired live simultaneously in 700 movie theaters around the US on Tuesday night. In his trailer, Cameron stated that he had traveled across the country, and had gone through an emotional and spiritual “meat grinder” searching for answers.

Dave and I both grew up in traditional protestant churches and are more than familiar with the reasoning Christians offer of why good people suffer.  I asked questions like this so many times in my own life…why can’t I be healed, what’s wrong with my faith, are you punishing me God, don’t you even care, why does life have to hurt so bad? I asked and asked and sought for answers, and the ones my Christian friends and counselors came up with were vague and philosophical. I had to conclude that nobody knew the answer, that I was supposed to hold on to God for dear life, and when I died and went to heaven, it would all make sense.  God was still good, God still loved me, God was still in control, even when depression and fear were swallowing me into a bottomless pit.  I was wrong to demand or expect anything from the perfect all-knowing God who chose to leave me hanging by a thread, because somehow it was all good for me.  That was the best anyone could offer me then – and that was all the “Unstoppable” movie had to offer as well.

Since the live showing at 7pm was sold out earlier in the day, we found a cinema in a neighboring town that would air it again at 9:45, so we planned for a late night.  The late showing wasn’t packed out, but a good number of good Christian Texans filed in and patiently waited as the movie technician tried to figure out how to fast forward the recording to the beginning of the show.  His ineptness was funny and exasperating as the audience started to shout, “No, no, more, more!” and “Stop! No further back! No! Keep going!”  It finally got under way half an hour late, and we were already tired.

The movie that claimed to grapple with earth-shaking themes, began with a whimper.  Cameron appeared onscreen and introduced two guys with personalities as exciting as their grey suits.  We discovered we had to endure a long boring monotone speech by the president of Liberty University, the film’s sponsor and host. It even looked like some of their student film projects got to be a part of the production, adding to the amateurish nature of it all. I felt like getting up and leaving at that point, but the tickets were too expensive and we had committed to seeing the whole thing.

Next a variety show began with the singer Mandisa, performing in front of 10,000 Liberty U. students who obviously were told to be there to fill up the stadium.  Then a Vietnam vet shared a rapid-fire and hard to follow testimony about losing his legs in a landmine and turning to Christ, then a dad of one of the Secret Service agents who died in the Benghazi embassy attack talked about how Psalm 145 comforted him.  Nothing wrong with people saying how God has helped them through tough times, but I felt like I had been tricked into paying $15 to watch a TV church service.  The only piece of the variety show that was truly original was Warren Barfield, the writer of the theme song, “The Time is Now.”  With a simple acoustic guitar, he performed an amazingly good song with a great message, which I have now purchased on iTunes and highly recommend.

When I thought this was all it was going to be, the actual movie finally began.  The tough questions.  The hard-hitting answers. The meat-grinder. It turned out that the meat grinder was simply a sad story of a little boy with terminal cancer, and the grief of his Christian family as they accept his departure into heaven.  Yes, his dad was heartbroken when his son begged him to fix his disease.  Yes, his church and family were dealt a very bitter blow after years of painful treatment.  But this story - as intense as it still is for this family – offered no answers whatsoever to the deeper questions that were posed at the beginning of the film.

Cameron goes through the history of the Bible, from the creation to the fall of Adam and Eve, to Noah, then to Jesus and his sacrifice.  Fascinating and gripping at times, a little boring and confusing other times, with the student-generated video illustrations being sometimes unintentionally funny, which was not a good thing.  For someone who is fascinated with the Bible and it’s deeper meanings this was enjoyable, but wasn’t this movie supposed to amaze and enlighten even atheists?  Then why was he only talking about scripture?  He was basically preaching to the choir.  Any atheist hoping to get a solid answer from this film would have walked out midway.

It’s a little deceiving to claim that the film deals with suffering throughout history, but then only explores Bible history.  It’s also a bit deceiving for Cameron to claim that he crossed the country in search of answers, when the film only shows him in Bison Idaho, where the boy’s family lives, or in his comfortable LA home.  No interviews of homeless people, of atheists, of addicts, of people suffering from depression or financial ruin.  No allusion to genocide or unjust wars or poverty or any of the stuff that a typical skeptic would ask about.

But the worst and saddest disappointment was not the death of a boy who is now healed and rejoicing in heaven, but that people who sincerely need answers never get anything beyond, “Just believe because God knows what’s best.”

It was noted that not once in the movie is the word “Satan” or “devil” spoken. He was called “the serpent” in the Adam and Eve story, and never referred to again. No suffering was attributed to the devil, but all was attributed to God and His perfect will.  No thought was given to any need to fight against evil or suffering, no effort was put into explaining why Jesus taught His disciples to heal, yet oddly, few Christians ever see miraculous healings today.

Unsurprisingly, demons are not mentioned at all.  But the “good people” who the film refers to that prayed every day for their beloved son, who were faithful churchgoers, righteous and upstanding in character, could not possibly have anything to do with some hidden underlying demonic attack.  That would be unthinkable, insensitive, unChristian and unkind to suggest such a thing.  It would be downright offensive.

But if you want hard-hitting answers, you can’t give the devil a free pass and ignore him.  But if you want to pretend he isn’t aggressively, perversely, bringing about destruction today, that he doesn’t orchestrate the personal suffering of anyone who doesn’t live under the protection of a radical faith in God, that he doesn’t actively seek out the destruction of those who’s faith he can undermine, that he doesn’t live and breathe hatred and violence against all humanity… then really, the best answer you can give your skeptical unbelieving friends is, “God works in mysterious ways.”

So thanks Kirk Cameron and Unstoppable, for offering the same old answers.

Thank goodness for the Negativity 101 series coming up in a few weeks.  Let’s hear some real answers for a change!

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