As Easter is celebrated the world over, what better way to mark the holiest holiday in Christianity than to note four new in-the-works movies that are sure to cause dissent and controversy amongst the faithful? Soul sister site Deadline examined the increasing power of the religious filmgoer and picked out a quartet of flicks that are sure to be dubbed sacrilegious by some. Throw another crucifix in the urine bucket and take a look!
WHAT: The Final Testament of the Holy Bible
ITS SINS: It's the story of the Second Coming of Christ in modern-day America, and this time the Son of God is a hard-drinkin', boot-knockin' bisexual Lothario. Plus it's based on a book, written by noted bald-faced liar James Frey. Says Frey, "I believe that the Messiah would not eschew the use of alcohol, nor restrict his ability and willingness to love based on what they do for a living or their gender."
ITS SINS: To be directed by Showgirls auteur Paul Verhoeven and based on the book that he co-wrote, it's a film that's chockablock with Evangelical flamebait. For starters, Verhoeven's Christ is a Jesus denuded of all his miracles, his virgin birth and his resurrection; in fact, Verhoeven posits that Jesus was the product of the rape of a Jewish girl by a Roman soldier. According to Verhoeven, Jesus' death was less a religious event but more of a political reaction: "It's not about miracles, it's about a new set of ethics, an openness towards the world, which was anathema in a Roman-dominated world. I believe he was crucified because they felt that politically, he was a dangerous person whose following was getting bigger and bigger."
WHAT: The Master
ITS SINS: Paul Thomas Anderson's roman à clef about a belief system that starts up in the 1950s and spreads like wildfire has run into various roadblocks on its way to finding funding, though Megan Ellison and Cross Creek Pictures are reportedly opening up their checkbooks. Anderson has claimed that the movie will be less about Scientology but more about the desire to believe in "a higher power." Maybe Paul Haggis wants in too?
WHAT: The Book Of Mormon
ITS SINS: The hit Broadway musical from South Park creators Matt Parker and Trey Stone is being shopped around to become a big screen musical, and while some more liberal Mormons are laughing along, others aren't so jolly. The story centers around three dewey-eyed missionaries as they attempt to convert a Ugandan village but running into a hard dose of reality. Song highlights include lyrics that translate to "fuck God," another song stressing the importance of stifling gay urges and yet another about maggots infesting a man's scrotum.
·Hollywood & Religion: More Controversy To Come If New Films Anger The Faithful [Deadline]