Biblical stories make a return to the silver screen

"[Christians] boycotted Hollywood, but they've finally realized that Hollywood doesn't respond to criticism. It responds to the box office."

The aforementioned quote appears in the March 31 editions of Time magazine, in a story about the recent spate of financially successful religious movies: "Son of God," which opened earlier this year, and "Noah," which recently opened. Another film in this genre, "Exodus," starring Christian Bale, is set for a Christmas release.

I'd like to ascribe this change to studio heads' acquiring a conscience, but the truth is, it's all about the money. Whatever the motivation to get these pictures made, moviegoers are the beneficiary. Bible films are again gonzo box office hits.

In the 1950s and early '60s, religious-themed movies made money: "The Ten Commandments" (1956) and "Ben-Hur" (1959) were box-office gold for the major studios.

In 1965 "The Greatest Story Ever Told" was a flop, though, and its failure ended, says Time, the era of big Bible films. The '65 film featured almost laughable casting, with Telly Savalas playing Pontius Pilate and John Wayne as a Roman centurion stationed at the foot of Christ's cross and uttering a single line in his trademark Western drawl, "Surely this man was the Son of God." (You have to hear Wayne utter the line to hear the humor. Wayne in this role is perhaps the most miscast actor in screen history.)

The movie studios are packed with some smart people. They follow the dollars and could not have failed to notice the huge sales of Christian-themed books and recordings during the last quarter century.

Ten years ago, Mel Gibson couldn't find a single studio willing to underwrite "The Passion of the Christ," in which all of the actors speak in Aramaic with captions in English. Gibson himself financed the film, managed to win the support of church leaders nationwide, and this labor of love pulled in half a billion dollars of box office receipts -- the highest-grossing R-rated movie in history.

Hollywood discovered that tens of millions of Americans take their faith seriously. Many churches bought out theaters to show the movie. The congregation I served at the time in west St. Louis County was one of them.

I keep hearing from people how good a film "Son of God" is. Haven't seen it yet. But I will. "Noah" opened just a couple of days ago with Russell Crowe, the hard-driving Australian actor, playing the lead. Should be interesting.

What the filmmakers apparently have been surprised to learn in pre-release screenings, is just how many people know the Noah story only superficially, even churchgoing Christians. Noah gets drunk in Genesis; most people don't know that. Noah's neighbors don't make fun of him as he builds the ark (according to the Bible's first book), although many people assume verbal abuse is part of the oft-told tale -- probably because 2007's "Evan Almighty" says it is.

I hesitate to view these films because I know the filmmakers are going to take dramatic license with the story. But I tell myself Hollywood didn't have to make them at all. A biblical story told inaccurately is probably better than one ignored.

If you go to see "Noah" or "Son of God" and you hear an unpleasant sound behind you, don't bother looking back at the offender. It's probably just me grinding my teeth a bit.

We'll see you at the movies.

Dr. Jeff Long, of Jackson, is executive director of the Chateau Girardeau Foundation and is a part-time instructor in religious studies at Southeast Missouri State University.