I've been a member of "the choir" since grade school and, frankly, I need to hear the preacher's message too. Sometimes I need that message drummed home. I don't want it hidden among metaphor. I don't want the preacher to hold back out of fear of turning someone off. He needs to proclaim his message truthfully and loudly. Unashamed.
Just like sometimes, I need to read that preachy book. I need to have the message broadcasted billboard-like across its pages.
And viewers love it.
A recent look at Rotten Tomatoes shows a 37% reviewer approval on its Tomatometer, yet 94% of viewers liked it. After six weeks in theaters, Courageous ranked #12 in its weekly gross (per Box Office Mojo), amazing for a movie that shows in 2/3 fewer theaters than wide releases.
I've seen it twice. Once as a pre-screening with my teenage son and two friends who DO NOT go to "religious" movies. They liked it. I saw it with my husband, son, and daughter later. My husband will deny it, but he shed a few tears as he held our teen daughter close. Yeah, the acting isn't the greatest, and some of the dialogue is stilted, but that didn't take away from the story or the message--a message that is drastically needed today.
I know this is just one example, but in my opinion, sometimes a sermon mixed in our stories is exactly what we want.
What do you think about preachy books? Movies? Can you think of any overtly sermonizing novels/movies you would recommend? Or that you can't stand? Why?
