MovieChat Forums > Left Behind (2014) Discussion > Help me understand the hate for this mov...

Help me understand the hate for this movie.

posted 9 years ago by brunoramalhob
43 replies | jump to latest

Seeing as there is religious discussion on the matter, I find important to initiate my post by stating this: I'm an AGNOSTIC and an ATHEIST individual.

That explicitly said, I want to understand why people bash this movie or even hate with their guts. Last night, browsing through my 'to watch' list on Netflix, I saw this Nic Cage movie about an airplane crash. The title of the movie in my native language (portuguese) isn't anywhere descriptive of the movie, it's simple Apocalypse, which doesn't equate at all with the "Left Behind" title and meaning.

It didn't take much time for me to discover what the movie was about, the "Left Behind" concept was pretty old for me (Thanks The Simpsons :) ). I said, well, I like airplane crash movies and with the 'left behind' concept might make it even more interesting to watch.

Throughout the whole movie, what I saw was a pretty basic action movie with some nice touchy/drama scenes. Nic Cages was he at his usual performance, which can range from poor to mediocre to good depending on the scene. The rest of the cast was okay, no one really stood out as either really bad or really good, just about the average. Some scenarios did seem a little too cheap but I can't fault that much if the budget was small (Which everything indicates to).

The plot is consistent, told very linearly and I didn't notice any plotholes. Some of the events may not happen in the real world the way it did in the movie, but it's an action movie, so suspension of disbelief is required.

So, the only thing that made me think you make people hate this movie pretty bad is the 'left behind' religious concept/idea. And while I do think it is a pretty cruel/evil concept for both the taken to heaven and those left behind, it's no new concept introduced by the movie and nor the movie didn't portray it incorrectly, so then again I fail to grasp where the hate comes from.

So, what am I asking, can someone shed some light on this? What point am I missing from the movie that made people borderline foam from their mouth just by watching it.

[–] mikemck 9 years ago

I can tell you why I hated it. I hated it because, as a Christian, it gets old watching Christians be portrayed as angry lunatics.

If I made a movie about black people and had them all speak in ebonics, I'd be racist. If I made a movie about Mexicans and had them all speak in pidgin English, with Speedy Gonzalez accents, I'd be a racist.

So why portray every Christian as speaking in stilted, bumper sticker phrases? The only thing missing was the effeminate guy in vestments, saying "Bless you, my child".

Further, while we believe in the Rapture and look forward to it and to be ready for it, the Bible tells us to go about our lives, not to live every minute obsessed with it. The Bible is clear that we have business here on Earth and to engage in that until Christ returns.

Third, the movie omits most of the story of the book, which portray the Rapture as the beginning of the Tribulation and the Anti-Christ, and Buck's investigation of the Anti-Christ. Don't get me wrong, the books were awful, too, but if you're going to base a movie on the book, don't bury the lead.

Fourth, it's just a terrible movie.

Would it really be such an unreasonable request to ask that people who make movies about Christians or Christianity to actually go and talk to some Christians first and learn a little about the culture?

[–] bing-57 9 years ago

I think the problem is that it is tough to make a Christian movie about Christian topics without sounding insane. I mean, most of the Bible is based on miracles and supernatural situations that don't mesh with the real world. Pretending that it is all real makes the writers and producers seem out of touch.

[–] MrReality 9 years ago

Day After Tomorrow: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0319262/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
Dante's Peak: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118928/?ref_=nv_sr_1
2012: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1190080/?ref_=nv_sr_1

You can make a supernatural or disaster movie without it being a complete joke. Granted, the movies above aren't exactly Oscar winners, but they were epic masterpieces compared to Left Behind. Even the Kirk Cameron version was a cinematic masterpiece compared to this one.

Look at The Passion of the Christ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335345/?ref_=nv_sr_1). That movie wasn't terrible.

[–] bing-57 9 years ago

> You can make a supernatural or disaster movie without it being a complete joke. Granted, the movies above aren't exactly Oscar winners, but they were epic masterpieces compared to Left Behind.

Well, I'll agree that they were good compared to Left Behind, but they never rose to even the point of being a decent movie. I mean, really? Ice tornadoes and super boats? I never saw Dante's Peak, but I can imagine that it is just as inane.

> Look at The Passion of the Christ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335345/?ref_=nv_sr_1). That movie wasn't terrible.

I've never seen that either. But, didn't all the "true believers" have big problems with that movie?

--
What Would Jesus Do For A Klondike Bar (WWJDFAKB)?

[–] MrReality 9 years ago

By "true believers" do you mean religious zealots?

Not all Muslims are ISIS.

If you met a "true" Christian, you wouldn't know it unless you asked. Christians aren't like Mormons who go around trying to convert everyone all the time. (Though that's probably not fair to the Mormons)

My point was that you can make a decent movie like The Martian. People who don't care anything about science can enjoy the movie. The science fanatics can drool all over how Matt Damon scienced the *beep* out of that movie. Maybe Interstellar would be a better example, but I kind of hated that movie. It was a little on the Left Behind side, but for atheists. It was all too much sciency nutstuff wrapped in a feeble plot.

[–] nammage 8 years ago

Would it really be such an unreasonable request to ask that people who make movies about Christians or Christianity to actually go and talk to some Christians first and learn a little about the culture?

How many Christian films have you seen that weren't made by Christians?

By the way, films like "Noah" aren't Christian films, they're Jewish films and while the director of that is an atheist he's also Jewish and he made it in that vein. Christians don't own the OT, especially the first five books; which they quote a lot from.

In concern to homosexuality, abortion, etc., they rarely ever quote from the NT. I mean, there's what: three passages in the NT on homosexuality. And i believe the NT speaks barely anything on the subject of abortion. So, they get the vast majority ot their quotes from the OT. Even their laws come from the OT but just ten of the 600+.

How do you expect Christians to make good Christian films when they get most of their material from the Jews and just call it Christian?

Like Christian names. My parents gave me the Christian name of "David" even though it's a Hebrew name. Even my brother's name is Hebrew. My sister's name has Cornish origin, old Welsh gaelic, maybe "Christian", who knows.

The only thing Christians own is...I have no idea. I mean, Dante fictionalized and made Hell in his epic more terrifying than what the Bible even says and that's where modern Christians get their image of hell...well, him and William Blake (great poet).

The Cross is Roman, and a torture device. I mean i understand, to a point, the need to suffer but a torture device? Isn't that, in a way, considered idol worship? I mean, it's an object that people pray to, kiss, wear on them, hang or place all over their homes (my mother has four in her living room) and give love and reverence to it.

Hypothetically: if you were Jesus and you were nailed to a Cross and tortured to death on it, would you want people wearing you nailed to a Cross, around their necks? Think about it.

I mean, except for the rare film on Jesus (which Christians, for the most part, tend to protest) most Christian films are actually Jewish films. Ten Commandments -- Jewish. Exodus (1960) -- Jewish. The Prince of Egypt -- Jewish. Sodom and Gomorrah (1962) -- Jewish. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (1999) -- Jewish. Etc.,

Oh, and every film ever made on Jesus -- Jewish. He was a Jew. His parents were Jews.

You see the Christian culture is: everyone else's.

-Nam

I am on the road less traveled...

[–] cormac_zoso 9 years ago

this movie is a perfect example of why imdb needs a zero star rating added to it ... help you understand the hate for this movie?? that, like helping a pig to read would be a waste of time because it would never work and would also annoy the pig ... if you have love for this movie, you need to start reading some good books instead ... it is simply and clearly first some sort of propaganda film for some kind of religious fringe group and there is next to nothing worse than that (supported by cage??? when did his sense of what script to say yes to and which to no to go so far astray???? ... honestly, does anyone remember when he was doing real and edgy roles like the one-armed pizza guy in 'moonstruck'? or even 'valley girl'? or how about 'rumblefish' or 'peggy sue got married'??? now it's 'ghost rider' (perhaps the most heinous pulp comic to film crime ever committed) and this kind of *beep* ... yeah I typed it out because it can only be called that ... people used to gripe about james caan's missed opportunities and poor script choices after early positive choices ... cage's is by far, considering his start, the worst ever ... period ... and this is the rancid cherry on top

take care,
cormac

"One star in the sky
so I named it Otis Redding"
-- John Hiatt

[–] MrReality 9 years ago

You can be the most Christiany Christian there is, and still realize that this movie is completely garbage. I happen to believe in the concept of the movie. I believe that such a thing will happen one day. I also happen to believe that this movie was more like Sharknado than Jaws.

Even the soundtrack of the movie was terrible. Lea Thompson and Nicholas Cage should feel bad for being in this movie. This movie is like something Dana Carvey's "SNL Church Lady" would have written.

What I would like to say to everyone involved in this movie is...

http://cdn.meme.am/instances/64257888.jpg

[–] aeroquiddity-976-285163 9 years ago

Aside from the religious themes, there is a leftist "progressive" mindset that gets offended by everything.

SPOILERS

Take, for example, that one of the "left behind" was Muslim.

[–] Robert_duder 9 years ago

+100 to this guy ^ who just took an already troll ridden religious thread and tried to make it about leftists lol Nearly every post in this thread that I read (I skipped page 2 because my brain hurt) were ridiculous. Why is it that everyone who debates religious ALWAYS USES THE SAME TIRED ARGUMENTS for both sides. Someone come up with some new material! Please? I mean half of this potentially interesting thread (almost all of you sound very intellectual) was wasted on whether someone can be an agnostic atheist!! I very much enjoyed the Left Behind books (not saying I'm Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, or Snowhill worshipper) but this movie was rotten!!

[–] 9 years ago

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[–] julielb67 9 years ago

My problem isn't with any agnostic or atheist in regards to this movie it's actually with other Christians who see this as movie has having some truth in regards to the the bible. It's promoting false doctrine that's not biblical.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] julielb67 9 years ago

Promoting the rapture is specifically what I'm talking about.

[–] sesarp101 8 years ago

There are films that effectively promote all kinds of awful nasty things, so why get so angry with this one? My main disappointment is that, because it wasn't well made, it just gives another excuse to Christian-haters to have a go at Christians, like as if we are all responsible for this film getting made.

[–] stargazer1701-1 8 years ago

The Lord's name did not appear at the end credits.

Smoke me a kipper. I'll be back for breakfast

[–] chamohlamb 9 years ago

I'm not sure I've ever seen a movie that made me foam at the moth with rage, but the only value this movie holds is as something to laugh at. Everything about it is laughably bad.

[–] kreemer 9 years ago

Oh Lord.
First of all, film 101, reaction is far more powerful than watching people talk.

Cut away from the talking heads and let us see what's going on with the others in the scene. ESPECIALLY if the talkers are rubbish.

Secondly.....

Ak. I can't.

[–] AndrewGS 8 years ago

Yeah, I thought the movie was overall just average or a little below average rather than terrible. Although I did think Cage was pretty mediocre throughout without a lot of bright spots and Murray was pretty bland rather than charismatic.

I think the strong hostility is due to the subject matter, especially the hyperjudgmentalism, but even aside from that to make a film about the end of the world and divine judgment but only show the very beginning of it and on a small scale seems like a waste of time.