2008 brought us two documentaries dealing with religion. One was pro-religion "Expelled" by Ben Stein; the other is this polemic by Bill Maher. I saw both films this year, 2009, in the same week. "Expelled" I thought to be okay, no where near as bad as its reputation. But "Religulous"...this is the better of the two.
For those familiar with Bill Maher, it should be no secret that he's not exactly a friend of religion. If anything, he's anti. And REALLY. Many times on his shows he's criticized it, but "Religulous" truly shows the full extend of his views.
This film has been criticized for being biased and all that stuff, focusing on the nitwits of religion rather than the smartest and most dignified of it. Yes it's true that this film does focus on the likes of Ted Haggard rather than the more sophisticated theologians. But the thing is, there's probably nothing wrong with that. This film is called "Religulous," a combination of "religion" and "ridiculous." From that title, it should be clear what this film is about: it's about the ridiculous side of religion, and it focuses only on that. It should be noted that this is less of a documentary than a *mockumentary* -- while it documents about religion, it's also a comedy and satire about it. And as a satire, it's just so darn funny.
Bill Maher is just so entertaining to watch. His quips are really witty and genuinely funny. But most of all, they illustrate a point. Maher does not hold back. His opinion on organized religion is clear, and he does a heck of a job commenting on it. This film targets Christians, from the Evangelicals in Middle America, including an appearance by Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis, to that scene in the Vatican. Orthodox Jews, moderate and extremist Muslims, Mormons, and scientologists are also not spared.
In the style of "Borat" (and even having the same director), this movie features live interviews with actual people in actual places. In fact, it's this realism that makes it so good. The people being interviewed are portrayed as they are, and that includes the whackos of religion. This movie is candid. In fact, too candid. "Religious" isn't afraid to show the awkwardness of the scene. In the scene showing the crucifixion reenactment in the Holy Land Experience theme park, there is the sound of a jet airplane, and the camera immediately takes a shot of it in the sky. In the scene in the Dome of the Rock, the camera takes a shot of people vacuum cleaning he place. This adds a lot of the mockery of the scene, and the hilarity of it all. Heck, this film even shows people in opposition to Maher and his crew filming them, like the scene in the Mormon Temple where they get kicked out!
Maher's interactions with the people are casual, upbeat, and playful, with a controlled mockery. The use of subtitles (speaking for Maher when he actually could not), an extra-commentary on the scene, was rather unexpected, and thus funny. The use of footage, from many different films, also adds a lot and do carry Maher's point even farther.
If there's any problem in this movie, it's probably the end scene. Showing all the religious turmoil in the world, and the dramatic music playing in the background, and with Maher calling all unbelievers to come out, make this some sort of anti-religion propaganda. It's almost like a rant, and Maher is merely preaching to the already converted. It takes away this film's purpose as a satire. For that, I deduct a few stars.
But overall, "Religulous" is a enlightening look at the crazy side of faith and a creative, witty, and genuinely funny comedy. It's a splendid mockery of what Maher considers laughable, in this case, organized religion.
For those familiar with Bill Maher, it should be no secret that he's not exactly a friend of religion. If anything, he's anti. And REALLY. Many times on his shows he's criticized it, but "Religulous" truly shows the full extend of his views.
This film has been criticized for being biased and all that stuff, focusing on the nitwits of religion rather than the smartest and most dignified of it. Yes it's true that this film does focus on the likes of Ted Haggard rather than the more sophisticated theologians. But the thing is, there's probably nothing wrong with that. This film is called "Religulous," a combination of "religion" and "ridiculous." From that title, it should be clear what this film is about: it's about the ridiculous side of religion, and it focuses only on that. It should be noted that this is less of a documentary than a *mockumentary* -- while it documents about religion, it's also a comedy and satire about it. And as a satire, it's just so darn funny.
Bill Maher is just so entertaining to watch. His quips are really witty and genuinely funny. But most of all, they illustrate a point. Maher does not hold back. His opinion on organized religion is clear, and he does a heck of a job commenting on it. This film targets Christians, from the Evangelicals in Middle America, including an appearance by Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis, to that scene in the Vatican. Orthodox Jews, moderate and extremist Muslims, Mormons, and scientologists are also not spared.
In the style of "Borat" (and even having the same director), this movie features live interviews with actual people in actual places. In fact, it's this realism that makes it so good. The people being interviewed are portrayed as they are, and that includes the whackos of religion. This movie is candid. In fact, too candid. "Religious" isn't afraid to show the awkwardness of the scene. In the scene showing the crucifixion reenactment in the Holy Land Experience theme park, there is the sound of a jet airplane, and the camera immediately takes a shot of it in the sky. In the scene in the Dome of the Rock, the camera takes a shot of people vacuum cleaning he place. This adds a lot of the mockery of the scene, and the hilarity of it all. Heck, this film even shows people in opposition to Maher and his crew filming them, like the scene in the Mormon Temple where they get kicked out!
Maher's interactions with the people are casual, upbeat, and playful, with a controlled mockery. The use of subtitles (speaking for Maher when he actually could not), an extra-commentary on the scene, was rather unexpected, and thus funny. The use of footage, from many different films, also adds a lot and do carry Maher's point even farther.
If there's any problem in this movie, it's probably the end scene. Showing all the religious turmoil in the world, and the dramatic music playing in the background, and with Maher calling all unbelievers to come out, make this some sort of anti-religion propaganda. It's almost like a rant, and Maher is merely preaching to the already converted. It takes away this film's purpose as a satire. For that, I deduct a few stars.
But overall, "Religulous" is a enlightening look at the crazy side of faith and a creative, witty, and genuinely funny comedy. It's a splendid mockery of what Maher considers laughable, in this case, organized religion.