Ragamuffin

Rich Mullins was a broken man. A man who felt rejected by his father, and by the God that the evangelical church had presented to him. He was also extremely gifted with the ability to express his struggle through words and music. He wrote just enough praise-happy songs to get Nashville to notice and lure him to record and sell his music. But, the real Rich remained tortured by his depression, addictions, and pain. He could sing about the love of God, but struggled to accept it himself.

"Ragamuffin" is a term used by author Brennan Manning, who is also depicted in the film. The word describes one whose "deepest awareness ... is that he is deeply loved by Jesus Christ and has done nothing to earn it or deserve it." It becomes an aspiration of Mullins to grasp that reality in the midst of a Christian subculture that prides itself on it's own triumphalism. As an artist, and a person, Rich Mullins was too honest - and too broken - to claim such a victory.

That is why the message of this movie contrasts so sharply with the latest "Christian" theatrical release, "God's Not Dead." There, Christianity is painted with bold strokes of black and white with little room for the gray smudges that watercolor the Ragamuffin's life. The two films could not be more different as well in their presentation of the Christian consumerism that has created Contemporary Christian Music. "God's Not Dead" blatantly uses the Newsboys as angelic messengers of the film's tag-line. They are not even represented as "artists" but function instead as "product placement." (Willie Robertson, of Duck Dynasty, cameos offering his "celebrity endorsement" for Jesus.) This was the "Christian World" that Rich Mullins hated, and worked all his career to avoid being conformed into. It was not his home.

Many evangelical Christians will be surprised, perhaps shocked or offended, to witness just what a mess Mullins was. Like the scriptures, the movie doesn't blink in showing us his flaws. You'll see him smoking, drinking, and swearing -- all while also clearly witnessing to the truth of the gospel with both his words and deeds. For many of us, it will be too much to stomach. Mullins would not fit in among many of our church friends. But, if Jesus still welcomes the poor in spirit, the mourning, and those hungering for righteousness into his Kingdom -- then Rich should be right at home there.

I love this story. It breaks the stereotype of Christian movies, most of which start with a messed up person who then meets Jesus and gets their life cleaned up. And they all lived happily ever after.

Rich Mullins was a mess. He was a mess before he met Jesus, he was a mess after he met Jesus. Maybe that was why he had such a keen understanding of grace. That's really what this movie is about. They wanted to tell the true story of Rich Mullins, as messy as it was, although I'm sure they had to clean it up some in order to get churches to show it. The in-concert monologues are mostly, if not all, taken verbatim from things Rich said during concerts. The music is well done and fitting with the story.

The movie was made on a shoestring budget, and in many ways it shows. The sound recording and mixing during interior scenes were not good (although that may have been partially due to the church where we were viewing the movie). The acting was sub-par compared to big budget movies, even from Wolfgang Bodison, who has plenty of acting experience. The sets all felt cramped and poorly utilized.

But for all its faults I think it's still worth seeing. Even if you have never heard of Rich Mullins, it's a compelling story. The movie, like Rich Mullins, can be full of faults and still have incredible redeeming value.

I have been following the development of this film and was disappointed when it could not achieve theatrical release. The minute it came out on DVD, I got on my bike and headed down to Walmart. I have watched it twice. There are things in the film production I can criticize, like the length of Mullins' hair in different scenes, but that is pointless. The fact is, the film drove me to Brennan Manning who I had no knowledge of. I consider the most important scenes in the film, the ones with Mullins and Manning. I actually had to go to IMDb to find out who Manning was. Since then, I have read The "Ragamuffin Gospel" and purchased two copies for friends. Rich Mullins was a messed up genius whose faith never wavered. That came through loud and clear in the film. He was not ashamed of his shortcomings and addictions. When Manning tells him God will ask only one question when you die: "Do you know how much God loves you?", I think Mullins could answer 'Yes,' despite his problems. This is a film that inspires the viewer to look deeper into the subject matter, and for that single reason, it is a success. For that single reason, you need to watch this film despite its flaws.

The storyline is simple enough – the life of Rich Mullins. He is the author of the song "Awesome God" as well as hundreds of others. He was part of a resurgence of contemporary Christian music movement in the 80′s and 90′s - a culture he would come to hate and leave. The film documents his struggles with his faith, addictions and insecurities while his songs were some of the most popular in the world of contemporary Christian music.

If you are looking for a nice, neat film with a simple conflict/resolution arch of a story – Ragamuffin isn't for you. Ragamuffin is a dark, brooding film that exposes the insecurity and grit of Rich Mullins' faith. It's messy. It doesn't resolve. It's redemptive and agonizing. All of which I think is authentic to Rich as well as his God.

The acting and cinematography are top shelf. Michael Koch delivers an incredible performance of being true to Rich's eccentric, authentic faith without pushing the performance into a sappy mess of emotion.

The movie has it all - great acting, great filming, and great storytelling. Highly recommend it.

And stay for the credits for real footage of Rich.

I knew and met Rich several times when I was a Christian Concert Promoter. I have mourned his loss for a very long time. I agree with one reviewer who said that the film was rather dark and perhaps some of our darkness reflects in the film so that makes it darker. I do wish that there was a little more of his quick humored funniness that came out in the movie, but I think I understand why it didn't as much. For one reason, it was done through the eyes of close family. They hurt for his hurts and probably are closer to that at times. Especially when he's gone and you were unable to fix it for him. Second because so few saw the struggles he had which just increases the realness and the authenticity of how God works with us. But let me say this. He was an amazing profound and deep poet. He was a saint who related to Christ's sufferings equally to his blessings and in doing so almost always seemed to be directly dialed to him. Second, he had huge talent! Third he had a truly sacrificial heart! He was amazing! Lastly, I thought I would hate the film any way because after all who could ever be Rich ? Even pretend or act to be Rich? I enjoyed the film more than I thought I would. I think they did a good job that was one of the toughest. When you play Lincoln or George Washington. There aren't too many people around to know how they were in real life. I would say they did as good as they could and it was awesome and entertaining and moving! It even touched my life as a father to my kids. Was it as good as seeing Rich do Rich? Well, it was the next best thing, but wish I had more time with him. He was once in a life! Love you Rich! See this movie. You'll not regret it!