The Home Teachers

I am LDS but my husband is not. We rented this video so that he could see how "peculiar" a people we LDs really are. He loved it! He thought that it was one of the funniest things he had ever seen. I also love "The Best Two Years" and "The RM" and hope to show these movies to him also. These videos can open up dialog about particulars of LDS doctrine and practices in a relaxed way with people who aren't LDS. I recommend them. YES, they are not the pinnacles of cinematic production--- they aren't meant to be. This movie was meant to be watched by the whole family and to both poke fun at LDS life and to praise it. The characters are flawed but recognizable and the situation is so typical to Mormons that the crazy antics of the main characters are really laughable. ;j

I'm not LDS or familiar with the religion beyond NBA player Shawn Bradley and former NFL players Jim McMahon and Steve Young. (If that's even accurate.)

And I don't know if the filmmakers are to blame for the deception I'm about to describe either. All those disclaimers out of the way...

My girlfriend and I were renting movies at Blockbuster, looking for a comedy that her little brother (10) could watch with us. She came across "The Home

Teachers," and we rented it despite our being unable to recognize any of the

"stars." Important note: There was NOTHING on the box that denoted this movie was about LDS.

So imagine our surprise when we get home, pop in the video, and see the

previews for other "Mormon movies," followed by the opening scene with the

blond guy sitting in a Bible class. (We gave up on it after seeing his cliched attempts to evade the straitlaced guy.)

Nothing against the filmmakers--unless they were willing participants in this deception. I'm sure they wanted to make a funny movie that LDS folks could

enjoy. But there should have been some mention on the original movie box or

the Blockbuster box, stating that this was a Mormon movie. Especially if this was an intentional omission in order to be an undercover venue for

proselytizing.

Oh well, there's four bucks I'll never see again.

This movie is one of the worst of the current sub-genre of LDS films (films made by Mormons and catering to a Mormon audience). The best of the lot were The Best Two Years and The Singles Ward. This is worse than Out of Step or Pride and Prejudice. It would not make a good seminary video and makes the lame Tom Trails series of the early seventies look like great film making. All of the characters are shallow stereotypes and one gag wonders. If you are careful, you can see all of the laughs approaching and will not be surprised by any of the sight gags or attempts at jokes. This was an amateur film that should never have played in theatres.

The movie starts off great, most of us can identify with the urgency to leave at the end of a 3-hour block of meetings.

Overall, the characters were OK, the Ned Flanders meets Tommy boy premise was apparent (although the toilet scene seemed contrived and unrealistic). Elizabeth Sands role as Gregg's wife actually made the Gregg's premise as the football-loving dead beat believable.

If the movie started with a bang, the echos had faded by the time the plot was established. By the time they were going to Vernal, I was looking at the clock, waiting for the credits.

Nice try, but the slapstick adventures have run their course.

Like all HaleStorm productions Home Teachers is a satirical, sometimes cynical view on Mormon life, but unlike "Singles Ward" and "The R.M." You do not have to know too much about the Mormon culture to find this movie funny. There is a lot of Chris-Farley-like screaming total destruction of things, slapstick humor as well as two great stand-up comedians in the leads, complementing each other perfectly. The standup quality of the two leads can best be seen in the outtakes on the DVD, where Jeff Birk especially does some bits that are totally out of his character, deliberately ruined the take, but are a lot of fun to watch now. So if You want a humorous look at the Mormon culture, or just watch a clean, stupid comedy, go for this movie. If You want a more serious approach and/or a brilliant thriller, go for Brigham City.