There is a solid
foundation of successful faith-based films within the Christian community, but
these safely constructed movies made by Christians for Christians tend to
inspire little thought. Not only are they shoddily made and too often starring
Kirk Cameron, they shy away from any real discussion in favor of ‘safe’
entertainment that won’t offend. At the same time there is usually a spiritual
message or theme that the audience is pounded with, using all of the subtlety
of a sledgehammer. Then there are the Hollywood
imitations, which try to imitate this success for a sincere cash grab. Oddly
enough, there are very few independent Christian filmmakers trying to insert
their beliefs into more subversive content, though I would consider Believe Me a sincere effort to do just
that.
Filmmaker Will
Bakke has previously tackled documentary filmmaking, mostly using his college
buddies as subject matters in discussing the relevance of religion in their
lives. This is his first attempt at narrative filmmaking, and it is grounded in
a fairly clever plot. When college senior Sam (Alex Russell) suddenly discovers
that he is short the money needed to pay tuition through graduation, he comes
up with a brilliant scheme to grift his way into financial stability. Sam
convinces his three roommates and drinking buddies (Sinqua Walls, Miles Fisher,
and Max Adler) to join him in a plot to scam the gullible and generous
church-going crowd with a fake ministry in Africa .
This fake
charity is convincing enough to attract the attention of a large traveling
cross-country ministry, led by a man named Ken (Christopher McDonald), with a
daughter attractive enough to make Sam question what he is doing (played by
Johanna Braddy). The film also co-stars an array of talent, including Zachary
Knighton as the vain worship leader with rock star ideals, Christian rapper
Lecrae as Dr. Darnall Malmquist, and Nick Offerman in an all-too-brief
appearance. Coincidentally, the direction for these actors is one of the film’s
weakest points. While Bakke’s ideology has transferred well from documentary to
narrative fiction, his abilities as a director are still somewhat amateurish.
The film has moments of brilliance which are lost within a sloppy screenplay
and leading actors whose comedic reach often exceeds their grasp. Regardless, Believe Me is light-years ahead of the
content coming from Sherwood Pictures or Kirk Cameron.
The Blu-ray
release probably does more to highlight the shortcomings in the technical
aspects of the filmmaking, from off-focus shots to sub-par sound. The film
itself is uneven, with some scenes looking far better than others. The special
features on this high definition disc include a handful of extra footage, from
deleted scenes to cast outtakes. There is also a trailer gallery.
Entertainment Value:
/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: /10
Historical
Significance: /10
Special Features:
/10
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