The Song

I hesitated to watch this movie since it was made by Samuel Goldwyn and not by a Christian Studio. However, to my surprise, I liked it! The main character and his wife are very happy until the husband falls for the oldest trick in the book (by no doubt a very pretty and unscrupulous female). If you don't have a babysitter for your children, please see IMDb's Parent's Guide for movie's cautions, to see if this film is safe for your child to see. The movie is about a Singer, so expect some singing; about six or more partial (not full length) songs. The romance is when the main character and his wife go on a date or two and get married (the wedding night consists of one kiss, in a medium to almost dark bedroom) No sex is seen or heard. No Nudity (I don't count a man without a shirt as nudity). A Drama film with a few intense scenes and a very wise message to whoever gets this movie. We did.

This film was heavily hyped in the Faith Based community by email campaign and advertising on many web sites. I didn't want to leave an early review, as I didn't want to dissuade people from it, but I have to be frank; this film doesn't help much of anyone. It doesn't even hit the self-proclaimed target of being honest about marriage problems very well. It claims to be the 'best film about Marriage since Fireproof'; no way! There is far more to making a marriage work than just physical fidelity. There are better relatively low- budget faith-based films about marriage (albeit not theatrical releases) right now: Redeemed—Grace Abounds and The War Within just to name two. The former of the two deals honestly with real fidelity, and the latter with emotional fidelity. If you want to know how to fix a marriage, watch one of them! I really don't believe that was the film's true intent; I think it was an attempt at making a Christian film that Hollywood would embrace; if so, it had to fail. Hollywood could not help but ignore it; they already do sleaze better—so it's not 'cool enough' for them. The Faith- based community can't love it either; it's based loosely on the life of nobody's hero; Solomon. So what are we left with? An updated story about someone we don't (or shouldn't) even want to know. I can't blame the actors; to play a proud pompous jerk, you have to become one. Sorry.

I have watched this film twice. I appreciated the acting and the technical quality of the production, and would recommend the film for that reason. However, like so many moralistic films, the singer and musician failed his true calling in life, and ultimately renounced the life that brought him briefly to sin, but also could have brought him closer to the wisdom he sought through sharing his life's lesson. It made him a one-trick pony, and his wife only wanted him if he just stayed on her father's vineyard to work, renouncing his musical talent because "she didn't know anything about such things."

Whenever a film makes either the man's or the woman's work, which supports the family, appear only sinful and even harmful to the family, it makes me angry, as a wife and as a Christian. Yes, it caused him to sin, but so did his wife's inability to show him love and appreciation when he came off the road and home to her. It is part of what made him fall from grace - he had asked her to come with him on the road with their son, and she said she never would.

I would have been far more supportive of the film if he had fallen, rediscovered God's love and purpose in redemption through Christ, and taken that new understanding into his music, to inspire others. As it was, the movie gave out a lot of Old Testament platitudes in the narrative, and lost a great opportunity to demonstrate growth in both the characters of the husband and wife. So, watch it for the scenery, and the bits of good music, or as a cautionary tale, but don't look for answers in the lives of its lead characters.

"'The Song' is a gripping story of a singer that seeks the wisdom of God, and that tastes the temptations of this life along the way. A modern day Solomon, Jed King learns the hard way that fame comes at a heavy price. The way we all often find out when we 'go into the world'.

Alan Powell (singer of Anthem Lights) pulls off an outstanding preference on the 'Big Screen.' His captivating and believable character development was strongly brought to life through his acting. Throughout the movie you can feel his battles, from the fame, to the lust, to the struggles within his own marriage. That without God everything is 'meaningless.'

Sadly we find that most Christian movies are of low quality when it comes to acting, graphics and everything else that goes into making movies. But 'The Song' aced it. The scenes were beautifully done and the cast acting was enjoyable. It always makes me happy to watch a Christian movie with such an amazing impact. We definitely need more of these films in theaters.

I looked up this movie out of curiosity, once I discovered that Alan Powell -- a former member of Anthem Lights -- had left the group to pursue an acting career, and The Song was his first. Anthem Lights has been my favorite singing group since they debuted their first album. Making the transition from singer to actor doesn't always work, so I wanted to see this movie for myself -- which I did last night.

I had no preconceived ideas or pre-knowledge about this movie. It was interesting, stylistically, to see how the movie unfolded. Fortunately, I was familiar with the story & writings of Solomon, so I was able to track with the movie -- and found it to be creatively & masterfully woven. But someone unfamiliar with Solomon's writings might not understand or enjoy the format. The storyline itself though, is great, and everyone should be able to appreciate the realism of the drama and the life story it tells.

Personally, I was super-impressed (and surprised) by Alan's acting ability -- he is obviously a natural, and belongs on the screen. The entire film was solid -- cinematography, acting, editing, writing. If someone saying this is a "Christian" movie would scare you away, don't let it. I would not really know it was a Christian movie -- just a real movie about life and the true struggles of mankind.