Watch Come Sunday For Free

Simply Perfect

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

One question for Carlton Pearson: If everyone gets to heaven, why did Jesus Christ have to die on the cross for our sins?

And then, the non-religious film lover watched COME SUNDAY, and he was struck by the light of amazement. For he had seen a film about belief and faith that did NOT overwhelm him with cheesy imagery, flat dialogue, or flip-flopping character arcs that made no sense as the players struggled with the deciphering of the Lord's word... No, THIS was a film that impressed him.No, really. I mean that in every word.COME SUNDAY stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, an actor with a name that I have to copy and paste every single time I write it. He first impressed me when I saw him play the ruthless assassin in SERENITY, and ever since then, he's consistently been amazing in every role I've seen him play. Going into this film, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect.As I said in my mostly joking opening, I am not a religious man. It's a topic I've struggled with for most of my life, and for the most part, I'm on the side of the atheists, believing that there's no proof, so there must be no "God". But I have to say. This film has me wondering.Having girlfriends that have been very religious seems to be a theme with me, and so far every one that I've been really serious about has loved "the Lord" in constant vigil. And, what you can expect goes along with that territory, for a man who's either on the fence or on the opposite side of the fence, there've been more than a few heated arguments over the years. None of which I've successfully won, because let's face it, even when you win a fight with your lover, you seem to lose. It is here that I have witnessed some very poor cinema, with regards to the Almighty.More on that in a bit, though.COME SUNDAY is about a preacher who has a moment of... divine intervention, it seems, when he watches the massacres of Rwanda on the television of 1998. It is here that his faith is most questioned, the simple argument being that those that are not saved must go to Hell, in this case being the 400,000 children that were murdered without question. How could children who had no chance in life be sent to Hell, simply because they were born in the wrong place? And thus, the preacher's dilemma begins. Because as he shrieks in pain witnessing such horrors, the voice of "God" speaks to him.Smartly, the director (Joshua Marsden, whom I regret to say I've never seen any other movies of--YET) chooses not to attempt to simulate the Lord's voice, instead simply showing our preacher (the real person, Carlton Pearson) simply struck by a thought in his head, without verbal acceptance or bolts of lightning. Instead, it ends up being more of a moment of enlightenment. A vision, if you will. A shift in his perspective. And when all is said and done, he declares to a church full of believers, that he no longer believes in Hell.This of course sits very poorly with his miraculous band of white and black worshippers, who cannot accept what comes from his lips, with even Martin Sheen (FINALLY given the chops that this fantastic actor is due, instead of just sliding him in for face value) playing the real Oral Roberts, telling our preacher that it is most likely the Devil that is doing the speaking in Carlton's head, not the Lord. And thus, the movie unfolds.This is not a Lifetime movie, where you get useless platitudes and patched-together stories fixed by quick writing adjustments, to stand in for real deliverance and destiny--this is challenging, believable fare, and wonderfully done at that.It's not perfect... There are moments when the pacing of the film slows things down a bit, but the absolutely BEAUTIFUL shots that pull the pieces together do a wonderful job of trying to keep things moving, and there are no actors who do not deliver one hundred percent in every scene they are in.When all was said and done, I was more than happy that I was able to watch, for the first time, a movie about faith and religion that made me want to believe that such things were real, and such people were possible. This is a true event tale, supported strongly by what I'm still trying to accept which is now a FILM STUDIO based off of the really incredible radio show and briefly done television show on pay cable that I used to watch, created by Ira Glass, THIS AMERICAN LIFE, which is about as close to real, HARD truth as you're ever going to get. It is as wonderful as it is painful to absorb, but certainly one of the greatest things that has ever been attempted or created.I will watch this again, and I did love this film tremendously. I recommend that everybody watch it, and make your arguments one way or the other, even if what you see shocks and/or offends you. This, after all, is the purpose of great art.And of great cinema.

The plot of "Come Sunday" tells a lot about the political agenda that's behind it. What could be more in tune with our times than the story of a Protestant preacher who believes God has literally told him there is no hell, begins to teach this and is unjustly excommunicated from his church for threatening the status quo? Add some racial tension, hint at the pain of a homosexual teen trying to live up to God's unreasonable standard, and you will surely get a blockbuster... If only the movie wasn't so unbearably dull. Any potential drama or thoughtfulness is overshadowed by a not too subtle assault on Christianity and its hateful God. Don't waste your time with another forgettable piece of social engineering.

Acting goodI liked the actors. I didn't like the plot. A "crisis of faith" normally means debating whether God exists. The "crisis of faith" advertising was misleading.