Movie "The Song" — The Christian industry Just Made Its Best Film!

Christian Movie “The Song” Coming In September
The Christian industry Just Made Its Best Film!

The world doesn’t know it yet, but the Christian movie industry has just made one of its best films — one that could cause some serious word-of-mouth buzz once it hits theaters on September 26. On Tuesday, July 8, 2014, I had the chance to see a test screening of The Song in Los Angeles. According to the movie’s site: “THE SONG is a music-driven romantic drama about things we all pursue — love and meaning.” The Song of Solomon inspires the plot, as its press release states:

“Aspiring singer‐songwriter Jed King is struggling to catch a break and escape the long shadow of his famous father when he reluctantly agrees to a gig at a local vineyard harvest festival.  Jed meets the vineyard owner’s daughter, Rose, and a romance quickly blooms. Soon after their wedding, Jed writes Rose ‘The Song,’ which becomes a breakout hit. Suddenly thrust into a life of stardom and a world of temptation, his life and marriage begin to fall apart.”

Although it’s too early for me to review it in any detail — I’ll be saving my official review for a time closer to its release date on September 26 — I can say this: I was astonished at the positive reaction to the film. There were a couple hundred people there, many of them pastors, and as they filed out after the film, everyone was abuzz about what they had just seen.

One person after another stopped to tell the host of the screening how much they loved the film. People were really emotional about it too. One of them confessed that he had shed tears during the film’s moving scenes. (And I cried too.) From what I could tell, the movie had the audience wrapped around its finger: people laughed, cried, and the auditorium roared with applause after it was over. The general sentiment could be summarized as this: “Finally, a Christian film that is as good as any of the great secular films.”

I’d have to agree.

As strange as this might sound, I think I saw a glint of “home team pride” in their eyes as it was dawning on them that, “Yes, our Christian culture can create a work of cinema that’s just as good as the best secular films out there.”

Don’t get me wrong, the Christian movie industry has been seeing great improvement in recent years, especially this year with solid releases like Son of God and God’s Not Dead. This is not to cast some kind of criticism on past films. There have been some awesome ones.

But something about The Song just takes the whole thing to another level. If the industry keeps putting movies out at this level of quality, the critics who’re quick to shred Christian films to pieces will be finding far fewer targets to disparage.

Another interesting note: City on a Hill Studios produced the movie with Samuel Goldwyn Films. In my opinion, the presence of the secular powerhouse Samuel Goldwyn is further proof that Hollywood is very much interested in the faith-based audience.

I can’t wait for September 26 when The Song comes out. If you’re a Christian who loves going to the theaters, then you will be in for a treat.