Are you saved? Well, are you?

I found the whole premise behind the NY Times' article on the movie Saved! really funny. Both the article and the makers of the movie seem to be having a devil of a time figuring out how to "reach" (proselytize?) Christians:

"I love this movie, but it is so hard to figure out who the audience is," said Peter Adee, president of worldwide marketing at MGM. "It has a certain Christian appeal, but it's also a little irreverent. It has a pure Christian message in the middle, which is tolerant. But on its surface, if you say it's a Christian movie, a lot of people will go, `I'm out.' And religious people will say, `I'm out, because it seems like they're making fun.' "

So MGM executives have been trying what they call the "Hail Mary" approach, throwing every possible hook into the advertising and publicity for the film, working especially hard to reach the Christian audience that turned out for "The Passion of the Christ."

So far the studio has screened "Saved!" for a gay audience, which loved it, MGM marketing executives say, and for religious leaders, who had mixed opinions. On this particular night in late April, the screening ? in a private theater in the studio's Century City skyscraper ? is for "youth leaders": student council members, athletes, high school activists, many of whom identify themselves as Christian.

On the bright side, perhaps the Hollywood elite is finally figuring out that Christians are not a monolithic group of backwoods, sheltered hicks, obsessed with the message of Left Behind and engaged in a vast conspiracy to overthrow the USA and make it a theocracy. On the downside, this movie sounds like it's trying to be all things to all people; give the anti-Christians another opportunity to laugh at Christians and somehow simultaneously persuade the Christians that the movie is still sympathetic to them.

Beyond all that, it's not like there's been a dearth of satire directed towards Christians in the last couple of decades. How long has Ned Flanders been around, for example? And when's a decent satire of Islam going to come out?

It's not that I'm opposed to satire - even of myself - but it does get old after a while.

May 6, 2004 10:36 AM
3 Comments

There're probably very few Islamic satires out there because the perception is that you'd be more likely to get your house blown up for spoofing Islam than Christianity.

Pondered by gosey at May 6, 2004 11:17 AM

I don't think Christians will be offended by the movie.

Pondered by Miki at May 6, 2004 04:12 PM

I grew up with Pakistani's, both muslim & Christian, if there's one thing I learned, they do NOT have anything remotely like a western sense of humor (i.e. irony and a willingness to laugh at oneself).

I've been entertaining the thesis that the central difference between the West and the Islamic world is our conceptions of humor, but of course, where am I gonna find the time & money to research it?

Pondered by JosiahQ at May 7, 2004 08:52 AM