Faith Ba$ed

This movie overcomes its low budget and delivers on story and laughs. It has a lot of heart, great cameos, and solid performances all around.

Please note: Don't judge it based on its title. This is not a skewering of religion. Far from it. Nor is it an endorsement of religion. It's just a light-hearted movie that entertains for 90 minutes. I don't know about anyone else, but that pretty much fits what I want to see in a comedy nowadays.

I accidentally came across this project. I do not fully understand what really interested me - the title, the abstract or the poster. But I firmly decided to spend 4 hours of my time watching this video.

And he did not regret it.

It's hard for me to call what I watched a comedy. To be honest, I smiled only in two moments and never once laughed out loud.

But there is something in this film. The picture is not full of philosophical meanings about the meaning of being and true friendship. The characters make you feel for them. Perhaps you can see yourself in them - an adventurous and talented person who cannot or does not want to put all of himself into business or simply find his niche in life.

It's a 7/10 and not a point below. I recommend watching.

As someone who just "left" the Christian faith VERY recently due to some of the exact issues presented in the movie; it was honestly a really therapeutic viewing experience. 'Faith Based', on the surface, is a goofy buddy-comedy about two friends trying to get rich. But underneath the puns and bro comedy lies a very thoughtful critique on the culture that surrounds the Christian faith, and how much of it comes off as a very performative act. I worked at a church AND a movie theater during the huge faith-based film craze, and this movie nailed the atmosphere perfectly (and that worship song had me equally cracking up and cringing at its accuracy). I wasn't sure what to expect when I sat down to watch this movie but I was pleasantly surprised by the end result. I for one am excited to see what this team does next.

I want to dispel a seemingly common belief about this film: this film is NOT about dogging on people of faith, or Christianity. Instead, it exists as a satirical commentary on people who exploit the faith of others for financial gain, which admittedly, has the potential to be a huge problem for the faith in general. Arguably, if the critique is listened to, it could ultimately serve the church well. Christians are hungry for wholesome media, and this is continually exploited by money-driven production companies who care more about the bottom line than quality/production value, and have no incentive to deliver a great product because there's not really any alternative for people who are looking for faith-based media.

Luke and Tanner's characters' imperfections serve the story line well and make an otherwise absurd undertaking feel oddly relatable, in a way almost reminiscent of the way The Good Place's four central humans. Tanner is an id-driven player who finds meaningful connection as he learns to serve something bigger than himself. Luke struggles to find acceptance in places where he feels like an outsider and learns the importance of being honest and following through on promises, and making keepable promises in the first place.

They really, truly nail the church parts. Parts of the film took me immediately back too my religious days over a decade ago, but in a good way; the feelings it brought back bordered on a pleasant nostalgia and I didn't feel antagonized for formerly having that belief system.

The movie is comical, and light/easy watching. A great film to watch while chilling out after work. The execution and production value is exceptional when you consider how low the budget was; the only truly "bad" parts are the parts that are supposed to be bad.

My one criticism is that of the tangential love story in it: I wish that it had been a bit more fleshed out. Tanner's love interest almost feels like whatever the conservative Christian/evangelical answer to a manic pixie dream girl is in some ways. We don't really learn about her much at all, but she seems responsible for a large portion of Tanner's character development. I wish we could have seen more of that relationship grow and the timeline around it felt a little clouded.

Overall, it's a solid film with an interesting premise. Can't wait to see what Tanner, Luke, and Lone Suspect do in the future.

As someone who has endured all three of the God's Not Dead Trilogy, I can assure you that this film does not suck. It has well-written dialogue (only took a point off for some of the more cornier lines), interesting and fun characters, REAL GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF SAID CHARACTERS, a famous guest star that isn't Kirk Cameron, and so much more! If you're a big fan of satire, but with a purpose, Please do yourself a favor and watch this!