I’m in Love with a Church Girl (10/18/2013)

Rated PG for thematic elements, a scene of violence, some suggestive content and brief language.

Starring Adrienne Bailo, Ja Rule, Michael Madsen, Stephen Baldwin and Toby Mac

Directed by Steve Race

I’m not in love with this Church Movie.

Cars. Good looks. Mansions. Money. Women. Miles Montego has it all. Including a past. He was king of the streets as a high-level drug trafficker, and although he has tried to move on, the DEA isn’t convinced. Miles is still rolling with his old friends and colleagues, and the feds are certain he has not fully retired from his criminal past. When Miles meets Vanessa Leon, a woman who is different than every other woman he’s met, he is drawn to her beauty and her faith. She is a “church girl” in every sense of the word. Increasingly, he is torn between a life that he knows and a love that he feels. As Vanessa experiences his lavish lifestyle, mobster-type friends, gun play, and encounters with past women, Vanessa must reconcile her faith in God and her growing love for Miles. Both are tested to their last ounce of faith and strength in God and each other. God continues to chip away at Miles through struggles from his past, having to live up to his reputation, feelings of unworthiness, the death of his mother, federal charges, his friends being indicted, the strain on his relationship with Vanessa, almost losing her in a near-fatal car accident, and finally the spiritual breakdown that brings him on his knees to face God one-on-one.

There are times when people will question why we review films that have an R-rating. Well the first answer is we try to review films that we believe teenagers are either seeing or want to see, but we also try to discuss both the message and the art of filmmaking in films regardless of their rating. I will admit that there are several R-rated films that are in my personal DVD collection.

Then there are “Christian films” that unquestionably have a brilliant Christ-centered message, but often lack the level of “technical quality” of major studio films. In other words, they are B-movies. There are plenty of people who can easily overlook these “short comings,” but unfortunately I am not one of them. So when the editing is bad or the score doesn’t make sense, it takes away from the overall movie experience.

That being said, the message of this film was great. Whether discussing the pitfalls of greed, sexuality, violence or drug and alcohol use, I’m in Love with a Church Girl clearly communicates a Biblical worldview and the Gospel (in fact they even give God an Executive Producer credit).

I was also impressed with the cast. Ja Rule is really good and contemporary Christian artists Toby Mac and T-bone were actually a lot better than I expected. Although I have to say the scene in the Christian bookstore where Vanessa is making a huge deal over T-bones CD Bone-a-fide (which released in 2005) was a bit over-the-top. I mean how can you in one scene say he is one of the best Christian rappers and in the next scene show him as a hardened criminal – that’s just silly (and shameless).

Speaking of silly, Stephen Baldwin personifies it as an FBI agent. Besides some of the corniest lines in the film, the filmmakers also chose the strangest music to score the FBI scenes. Think cheesy horror film and that’s what you hear every time they show FBI headquarters… It just didn’t make sense.

There’s no way I’m in Love with a Church Girl will ever win an Academy award, but it may win a Dove Award and for that reason I’ll give it a “rental.”

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
On some level I’m surprised this movie did not receive a PG-13 rating. Several characters wear revealing outfits and with more mature themes, it may not be suitable for all teenagers.

CONVERSATION STARTER

1. There’s a scene in the movie where Vanessa tells Miles that “bad company corrupts good character.” What did she mean by this?


2. How have you experienced this in your life?


3. Do you have friends that corrupt your character or help develop your character?


4. What is something you can do this week to help develop your friend’s character?