A Joyful Noise Movie Review: Some Things to Be Joyful About & Some Not

From Brent

• It’s cleaner and more “wholesome” than 99% of what Hollywood and TV produces. That’s not a huge endorsement given current entertainment standards but it is true relatively speaking.
• The movie contains no real violence, overtly vulgar language (again, compared to what Hollywood typically produces, more on the language below because there is cursing in the movie), or graphic sex, immodesty or nudity (a negative about that below too)
• For most of the movie it appears the typical Hollywood message that “conservative (and especially) Christian parents are intolerant, out of touch, close minded and need to be enlightened by the liberal, worldly and in particular the youthful characters” is going to be played out to the end… but in a refreshing twist, the mother confidently and accurately puts the smart-mouthed rebellious daughter in her place and the movie doesn’t use that as “proof” the mom is a jerk. Wow! What a concept!
• The mom gets to say what every parents wants to say to their ungrateful, spoiled, self-pitying teen and it leaves the crowd applauding. Normally, Hollywood only puts in that kind of scene when it makes the parent look even more controlling and close-minded. Not this time. The mom looks like the wise, strong, parent deserving of respect. Amazing that a movie actually (FINALLY) portrays a Christian, authoritative parent in that kind of positive light.  (Caveat: but even still, the subtle final message is still that the mom loosened up and let her 16 year old daughter “grow up” even though she was allowed to put her foot down against the blatant rebelliousness and self pity.)
• The music is clean and entertaining though hardly “Christian” in any substantive way. It’s pop music sang in the best tradition of black gospel.
• The story ends up with family reconciliation, portrays faithfulness to marriage vows, and implies the strength of traditional family.
• The movie shows whites, blacks and Asians all getting along and living together just fine in a small, southern town. That drives liberals CRAZY who sincerely believe that all southern states are really just closeted KKK hotbeds. While there is no doubt racism is alive and well (from ALL COLORS) in American MOSTLY IN BIG CITIES NOT RURAL TOWNS, it has been my experience in 40 years of small southern towns that the ’60’s Lyndon Johnson idea of racism is rarely seen today. Whites and blacks and browns and reds and yellows in conservative small town America live and work and worship and play together without a whole lot of thought of “race”. You’ll never convince Washington or Hollywood of that though because it would erode the power of people who live and prosper by fanning the flames of racism.

Some Not So Joyful Noise

• Casual fornication (no sex scene but the deed is obvious) between two choir members is played off mostly as a joke and it’s never seriously implied (or stated) that fornication is a sin to be repented of.  Even the Pastor makes a joke about it at a funeral (the man died from a heart attack while having sex).  It’s also implied several times that if you haven’t had sex for several years, you can’t help but want to jump in bed with someone.
• Cursing: there are a couple of scenes when unbelievers or the rebellious say a “mild” curse word and that could have been livable as demonstrating  “real life”. But the movie goes much further with a couple of dozen or more curse words used casually and without concern even from the Christian characters in the movie.
• There is one scene where the mom comes down on the daughter about cursing,  the mom spouting some curse words then saying “see I can cuss too. It’s easy and it proves your stupid” (I’m paraphrasing). That kind of message I can live with. The gratuitous cursing for a laugh or simply because no one, even the Christians, think it is any big deal is not something I can pass over as no big deal. The movie in total leaves you with the impression that “mild” cursing is not a concern. I guess that’s a good selling point in light of some of today’s Christian writers like Doug Giles (whose thoughts I agree with but I’m concerned about his growing use of crass verbiage and cursing).
• The typical Hollywood message (particularly to the youth) that no one who is a serious student and Christian can possibly be living life to the fullest is present and never completely debunked.  The rebellious daughter, the wayward grandson and the worldly grandmother are sympathetically portrayed as compassionate, thoughtful, earthy, feeling and really embracing life. The uptight mother and pastor are close minded, controlling and stifled.  A couple of other Christians are buffoonish rednecks and simpletons. Yawn…. typical Hollywood.  It’s not NEARLY as blatant in this movie as most but the message is clear. At the end of the movie the mom’s strictness is shown to be somewhat positive AFTER she softens towards her daughter and the rebel boyfriend. Three steps forward, one step back.
• In one scene, the black gospel music presentation is almost clownish (specifically their “competition” from a Detroit black church)… on a positive note, the primary choir the story revolves around is entertaining and dignified even though the music is not Christian, it’s pop music.
• Other than some casual contemporary Christian stanzas, no serious Christian music (doctrinally speaking) is used in the movie; the choir sings pop music from the likes of Michael Jackson. The church service is where the performances are rehearsed.  It adds to the overall subtle message (in my opinion) that Christianity is more social than anything, and not something to be taken very seriously. Unbelievers are invited to be in the choir because of their music talent and the Sunday church gathering is trivialized. The rebellious unbelievers come to accept the Christians because they like the music but it’s never portrayed or implied that they accepted the Christian Gospel.
• The Christians in the movie are wholesome for the most part but apologetically worldly and no serious Christianity or Gospel message is portrayed in any substantial way.  Even though the entire movie is about Christianity, “Jesus” and supposedly faith, not one single serious message about Christ, the Bible, prayer or any Christian doctrine is expressed; not even a hint about the Gospel.
• The Pastor declares the church can only remain “open” because of rich a member and her support (any real Pastor would recoil at referring to the Church as a business that depends on rich donors). In the end, the Pastor sends that same member packing because she tries to demand his obedience for her support. But… she then pulls another (weird, not very creative) trick out of her bag and ends up with the Pastor in her pocket again at the end of the movie.  Of course, typically, the uptight Pastor eventually comes around and loosens up like everyone else.

• A good clean family movie compared by Hollywood standards? Yes.
• A “Christian” movie that portrays morality, holiness and faith seriously and accurately? No.
• A movie devoid of liberal Hollywood messages about enlightened youth and close minded authoritarians? No.