Starring: Bill Maher

Directed by: Larry Charles

Lionsgate Films

The Official Site of Religulous

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I’ve got as much good to say about this movie as its host Bill Maher does about organized religion. In Riligulous, his documentary film where he interviews religious figures across the planet, questions the validity of their beliefs and spreads his own message of doubt, Maher tries to shed some light on the hypocrisies and inconsistencies of faith. All at the same time encouraging us to questions of ourselves. There’s nothing wrong with not being certain and encouraging others to look upon themselves with an objective eye, but is it possible to do so without making fun of them? I would have settled for making it through the movie without a Brokeback Mountain reference. We’re seriously still doing that?

Maher goes in with intentions that are pure. Those to ask the obvious questions we all think when someone of faith discusses their religion. Even if he never intended to come off disrespectfully, 2 minutes into every conversation his inquisitive eyes are joined by a smirk across his lips and a finger on the edit button ready to drop in some random movie clip, musical cue or closed captioned commentary to undercut whichever "esteemed figure of the church" is on screen at the time.

That’s kind of what we expected right? Plus it’s sort of a necessity. The first rule in the movie business is that a movie has to be entertaining. It can still be informative but you have to spoon-feed it to us with a big pile of sugar to help the medicine go down. You can disagree with me but the best documentaries are the ones that can teach you something with a smile on your face. The greatest documentaries can achieve the same thing while still being objective.

How do you have a serious conversation about faith and introduce entertainment without subjecting the interviewees to Daily Show editing tricks and blatant disregard to everything they believe in? I was hoping Maher had found some answers but if he did he chose to hide it from the screen like it was printed on an image of Muhammad.

Had their approach been either clever or informative I think I would have been able to embrace the movie but Maher and director Larry Charles seem content that the approach of “asking simple questions and people of faith not being able to respond coherently� is good enough. It’s all the entertainment we need. I guess the jokes on me because I don’t get it. Why is that funny? I mean beyond the first 3 or 4 times they do it.

Now, for the record, I am a believer so I may be excluded from getting it. I don't think so though. I have some crazy beliefs but I'll be the first to admit how crazy they are and I'm willing to sit down and have an intelligent conversation about that. I'm not sure Maher is even though he’s clearly more educated on the subject and more intelligent in general than I am so it would be easy work for him.

Everyone he interviews is ridiculed in one way or another. Victims of over-editing and being foolish enough to believing in something. The real problem is that clearly some of them are intelligent individuals. It's possible to have faith and be smart but the movie seems to have as much trouble believing that as it does "talking snakes", a biblical metaphor that comes up a little too often here.

I wonder if they would have pulled the same tricks if they’d had the chance to interview the Pope or Billy Graham or any religious leader of any significance. I’m sure it’s not for a lack of trying, the smartest men in the world are so because they can smell a booby-trap a mile away, but the fact that the interviews they do get are with a guy named Jesus that thinks he’s the second coming, a guy that portrays Jesus in a Christian-themed amusement park, and a crazy (though admittedly charming) old priest outside the Vatican (who I’m guessing is looking for a job now) doesn’t give the film much credibility. It makes their search for answers as valid as Morgan Spurlock’s search for Osama.

Spurlocks search for the cave-dwelling mad man versus Maher trying to discover the truth behind religion is arguably a more realistic one. It’s certainly one more likely to succeed. I don’t think either film really expected to find answers or terrorists at the end of their voyage but one of them managed to be entertaining in the process and it wasn’t the one that made people that have found peace in life look like idiots.

Rating: 3 out of 10 - This is such a universal and profoundly interesting subject matter, it seems like it would be easy to put together a documentary even somewhat entertaining, whether you're taking it seriously or not. Religulous does not get the job done.

I don’t want to get too preachy but if someone can find something to believe in, something to make life easier and they’re not hurting you in the process, then what’s the big deal? Let them act a little silly. Let them be happy. Because, even though their predictions of life after death or how many virgins will be waiting on the other side may make no sense, they’re happy, and that’s more than most of us can honestly say.

Not a chance, but I’m really not a documentary type of guy either. To all of you that fell in love with An Inconvenient Truth and ended up showing further support by buying it on DVD… how many times have you watched it? And lending it to a friend doesn’t count. I mean it counts in that you’re helping the message reach new audiences and that’s great and all but it doesn’t mean you watched it again. I can’t imagine I’d watch Religulous again, even if it were funny.

Yeo and I have never had this conversation per se, but it’s an empty threat I joke about springing on her from time to time. I would never do it of course; in fact technically it wouldn’t work at all. As I understand it, in the Catholic Church at least one of the parents has to be Confirmed to baptize the child. In my rebellious youth I decided to not get Confirmed until I was willing to take the commitment seriously.

I grew up going to Catholic school and it seemed like everyone was along for the ride.. In 8th grade you have your Conformation. That’s just what you did. It’s such a huge step though and I felt like it was being taken so lightly. I wanted to know God before I went that far.

JC and I have since made our peace. I think so anyway. I could die tomorrow and meet him in the clouds and he’ll be all like, “You screwed up douche ball!� and down I’ll tumble into hell. The real question though is, “do I really want to spend eternity with a guy that would cast me away just because I didn’t go through with some routine ceremony?� Ah well, at least in Hell I’ll have my Buddhist bride and unbaptized children to keep me company.

Notorious - So what scares me about Notorious? That’s easy: Jamal Woolard, the young man playing hooligan turned rap sensation Biggie Smalls. With biographies it’s always a weird situation. Did this actor get the part because they’re the best person for the role or because they’re a really good look-a-like? In a lot of situations it’s not too much of a big deal, really the biggest issue you’ll encounter is, “Sorry you can’t play Abe Lincoln. He wasn’t black.� (Though that would throw a whole new spin on the story, am I right?) With Biggie, not just anyone is going to be able to play the part. Cuba Gooding might have REALLY wanted it but is he willing to gain 400 pounds to look the part? This isn’t like DeNiro in Raging Bull it’s like Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor, and somehow that feels less authentic.

The subject matter is great and the soundtrack is bound to be insanely awesome, but can a rookie fill the shoes of a ledged? This teaser is inconclusive but let’s hope for the best.

So, Beverly Hills Chiuaua is number 1 at the box office for a second week and has wiggled its way across the 50 million dollar mark. I’m not too surprised but I’d like to think that something like Body of Lies or even Quarantine could give it a run for its money. If this trend keeps up I might actually have to go and see it. Don’t put me in that kind of situation people.

Looking across the top 20 movies out right now it’s kind of a wash of films doing average to bellow average (except for The Dark Knight which refuses to die). None of the films have crossed the 100 million dollar mark and seem o be fading out of the top 10 within a week. It’s a sign of the times I suppose.

Tonight on the Triple Feature we’ll be talking about at least one of the new releases as well as the perfect luxury movie experience and hopefully a little chat about what’s up on deck. Max Payne and W both come out next week and look like fun for completely different reasons, but the movie to see next weekend is one I caught a sneak preview of yesterday - Sex Drive. Generic title, generic looking trailer but still really fun. They don’t nail the jokes as hard as they could but the characters are pitch perfect. Definitely worth seeing.

That’s all for now, thanks for reading!