Growing numbers of church leaders are discovering that many films are able to impact viewers with gospel truths almost as well as a good sermon. Ed McNulty, a former pastor and longtime reviewer of films, offers this guide to help church leaders enter into dialogue with contemporary films. McNulty carefully crafts a theology of movies and then provides practical suggestions for creating and leading movie discussions with groups. In addition, he provides people from all across the theological spectrum with a framework to understand whether the overall message of a film outweighs concerns over profanity, violence, or sex in the film. He concludes by introducing twenty-seven films and including provocative questions about each that will prepare leaders to assemble and facilitate a group.
Popular films explored include The Color Purple; Crash; Hotel Rwanda; The Matrix; Million Dollar Baby; O Brother, Where Art Thou? and The Shawshank Redemption.
