Category: Movie Reviews
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Mormonism and the Dangers of Historical Fiction
Netflix’s “American Primeval” has sparked a rare rebuke from LDS Church, which slams the series for its “dangerously misleading” portrayal of Brigham Young.
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“American Primeval” and the Mountain Meadows Massacre
Netflix’s American Primeval takes a wildly fictional swing at the Utah War, portraying Mormons as bloodthirsty villains in a brutal massacre of a U.S. Army camp that never happened.
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Suffocating Memories of a Mormon Mission
A new “spine-chilling psychological horror” movie starring Hugh Grant is slated to be released in November. Titled “Heretic,” the premise of the film is this: “Two young missionaries are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant), becoming ensnared in his…
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Onward and Upward: The LDS Church’s Parable of the Slope
In late May The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released a new video, “The Parable of the Slope.” This video is a condensed/edited version of a General Conference talk given by LDS General Authority Seventy Clark G. Gilbert in October 2021. The church has taken the main talking points from Mr. Gilbert’s address…
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New LDS Easter Video Means To Offer Hope, but It Doesn’t Deliver.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released a new Easter video last week. Titled “Rise,” the 1-minute 43-second video is described in a church news release as portraying “some of the challenges of life and the hope and help that Jesus Christ brings to those who follow Him” (“New Easter Video from Church…
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LDS Church Releases Video on the Nature of God (According to Mormonism)
A month ago (10 July 2019) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints posted a video in its “Now You Know” series titled, “What do Mormons Believe About God?” The video begins with the statement, “Some of the most fundamental questions in life are centered on the nature of God.” The goal of the…
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A Mormon’s Disdain for Evidential Faith
Latter-day Saint Taylor Christensen recently posted a heartfelt video that begins, “This is not an anti-Mormon video.” Taylor talks about his own journey through so-called anti-Mormon information as he sought to understand why so many people were leaving the Mormon Church. In the process, Taylor discovered difficult truths about Mormon history including (but not limited…
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In the Shadow of the Temple
On October 10th (2009) a new documentary will debut at the Exmormon Foundation Conference in Salt Lake City. In the Shadow of the Temple by Pepita Productions promises to provide 55 minutes of interesting and insightful glimpses into the lives of people who have chosen to leave Mormonism. From the producer’s blog site: Documentary Film…
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No Love Lost Between Mormons and HBO’s “Big Love”
Have you heard about the next episode of HBO’s Big Love, set to air on Sunday (March 15, 2009)? It’s being widely reported that the television show will be depicting the LDS temple endowment ceremony as one of the main characters faces losing her LDS Church membership. Read more about it from The Associated Press.…
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Movie Review: Twilight
Reviewed by Bill McKeever Let me begin this review by making two confessions. 1) I haven’t read any of the books by Stephenie Meyer, and 2) had Meyer not been LDS, I doubt if I would have ever had any desire to see Twilight, a film based on the first of her four novels (The others…
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Movie Review: Emma Smith: My Story
Reviewed by Bill McKeever When I first saw the billboards along Interstate 15 advertising Emma Smith: My Story, I wondered how much of “Emma’s story” was going to actually be told. When the trailers for the film started airing on local Salt Lake television stations and I saw that much of the film appeared to…
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Movie Review: September Dawn
Reviewed by Bill McKeever and Aaron Shafovaloff
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The Mormon Church vs. Hollywood
Today the Hollywood movie September Dawn opens in 1000 theaters nationwide. The dramatized portrayal of the Mountain Meadows Massacre–wherein Mormon men massacred 120 emigrants as they peacefully passed through southern Utah in 1857–is unwelcome among Latter-day Saints. The film has been called “controversial” by the news media, but has received stronger condemnation from Latter-day Saints.…
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Obeying Orders at Mountain Meadows: Would You?
Michael Medved’s criticism of the film September Dawn has garnered support from the LDS community, but many argue it overlooks historical complexities of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, questioning the motivations behind its portrayal.
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Movie Review: The Testaments: Of One Fold and One Shepherd
Reviewed by Bill McKeever Located in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building directly east of Temple Square, the LDS Church is currently showing The Testaments: Of One Fold and One Shepherd. The film is a fictional story meant to give the Book of Mormon, the nineteenth century book “translated” by LDS Church founder Joseph Smith, a…
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Movie Review: The Other Side of Heaven
Reviewed by Bill McKeever There is no doubt that many people will be caught off guard when they sit down to watch the Hollywood film “The Other Side of Heaven.” Several media outlets have touted this as good Christian entertainment. However, it should be known that this is a Mormon film based on the memoirs…
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Movie Review: The Passion of the Christ
Review by Bill McKeever With all of the publicity surrounding Mel Gibson’s film depicting the last 12 hours of the life of Christ, it was absolutely necessary that I see for myself if all of the accusations (and accolades) were warranted.
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Movie Review: Mobsters and Mormons
Reviewed by Bill McKeever If our oversensitive culture has robbed you of being able to laugh at typically funny stereotypes, then Mobsters and Mormons may be a film you may want to bypass. If you don’t fall into that category, have a good sense of humor, and are somewhat familiar with both the Mormon and…
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Movie Review: The Work and the Glory
Reviewed by Bill McKeever