Who Forgives God?

So, I mentioned the other day that I recently saw a film called The Rapture, and that it deeply affected me....
It was one of those occasional movies that just seems to get my mind racing. It's impossible to predict when this will happen, but sometimes, I'll just stumble across a motion picture that REALLY gets into my head. I'll walk around the room, sort of debating it with myself until four in the morning; I'll imagine that it had been MY movie; I'll identify little things that might be different about it if that had been the case....Hey, I'll even watch the director's commentary with great interest. Yes. I can get pretty obsessed with things when the mood strikes.


It's fun and enlightening to apply this level of analysis to a film because doing so almost always leads one to discover SOOO much more about it, and the process behind it, than one would assume with a mere casual viewing. I will now and then find it fascinating to listen to a director's commentary and find out just how intricately-conceived his or her project really was. For instance, I thought it was really interesting to learn from the commentary to The Rapture (which is excellent, by the way) that for two months prior to its shooting, director Michael Tolkin banned star Mimi Rogers from ever saying "Please" or "Thank you." Yeah, it seems Mimi is normally a very nice, polite sort of person, and that quality didn't fit so well with the nature of her character in the movie, so Tolkin wanted to get her to an appropriate emotional place before they even arrived on set. Random and seemingly minor factoid, I know, but a multitude of little things like that, all adding up, will enrich the final product and make it a more effective experience without the audience having the slightest clue.

There is so much more that goes into a good movie than most viewers could ever even imagine.

So, yeah -- I got REALLY into The Rapture, and must now provide my promised review. SPOILER: I give it five stars.

(Ebert liked it, too.)

Here goes.

The Rapture (1991)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102757/


Netflix description:
Needing meaning in her empty life, promiscuous Sharon (Mimi Rogers) becomes a born-again Christian. But when an apparent apocalypse nears and God demands Sharon perform an Abraham-like sacrifice, she makes a choice that could change her life forever. What will become of her husband, Randy (David Duchovny), her daughter and her devotion to her chosen religion? Michael Tolkin directs his own screenplay.


Well, The Rapture is about a promiscuous swinger named Sharon (Mimi Rogers) who becomes a born again Christian and utterly loses her mind. The results are tragic, profound, and ultimately, shocking.

Sharon has a slightly creepy boyfriend of sorts (Patrick Bauchau), and when we meet them, their favorite hobby is hooking up with other couples for wild sex parties in various Los Angeles area bars, etc. Hey, that's a perfectly noble pursuit, and I certainly see nothing wrong with it. In fact, I fully support and admire those who choose to engage in such activities!

And, oddly enough, I think the whole lifestyle-of decadent-sex concept behind our heroine was, for me, actually when the first seeds of horror in The Rapture were planted. I found the very thought of a sultry, promiscuous woman suddenly getting born again to be incredibly depressing from the get-go. Heck, they probably could have just ended the movie right there, and I would have been horrified. Sorry, but it's a sad day when a horny woman goes holy....

In the case of The Rapture, though, our woman-in-question's conversion is all the worse. She's so sexy, it's a downright TRAGIC loss to the slut community that she gets saved.

(Look, I mean that word in the best, most respectful, possible way, OK?)

Oh, and not to get too sidetracked here, but boy, is Mimi Rogers ever perfect for this role in that regard (among others). She just inherently OOZES sexiness, without even needing to try. Seriously -- there's a quality to this actress that is fundamentally seductive and womanly in an instinctive, sort of evolutionary way that surrounds her at all times like a divine aura. It's intrinsic, and cannot be taught. Such sultriness is worlds apart from the usual kind of "hotness" I've talked about a million times on this blog before. For instance, I might think that, say, Kristin Bell or Milla Jovovich or Zooey Deschanel are "hot"; but what they've got is NOT the same as what someone like Mimi Rogers has. I mean, Mimi would emit a sexual energy just by standing around reading the Yellow Pages, for goodness sake. What a woman!


Anyway....

As I was saying, Sharon may have a lot of fun with her late night indiscretions, but it's only fleeting; she's still a fundamentally lost person. Incapable of REALLY connecting with another human being or feeling fulfilled, Sharon is secretly just kind of drifting along and hoping for some answers. That's when The Cult comes in. See, she happens to overhear some zealot coworkers one day talking in whispered tones about dreams they've had concerning the apocalypse. Seems they're followers of some hot new modern prophet -- a young boy with incredible insight into the intentions of God -- who is predicting the End of Days. Sharon sort of scoffs at the gullibility of these folks, but there's a sad, longing look in her eyes when she does so that tells us she's actually somewhat intrigued (if reluctantly). A process of growing interest then unfolds, and one more encounter with a couple of proselytizers not long after that propels her into a full-blown religious fervor.

Sharon's awakening is swift and severe. She's laying in bed one night with yet another boyfriend, and suddenly jumps up ranting about the Bible and a newfound need to "cleanse" herself. The boyfriend is named Randy (David Duchnovny) , and he's an even more dedicated libertine than Sharon is, so of course he opposes her wild notions of a higher being and decision to submit to it. Yet, he's a little bit different from many others of his ilk in that he actually has a well-thought out philosophy: Randy tells Sharon that born again Christians are merely people who got lost and are now seeking satisfaction by replacing one addiction with another. -- That's PRECISELY what I've always said!!!

Hey, I was glad to hear someone in a mainstream forum come out and put it like that.

(Sorry, sorry. I'm actually not against religious people at all. Just read on, OK?)

ANYway, long story short, Sharon eventually finds a way to convince Randy to accept her new faith and they marry (basically, it boils down to the fact that he just plain LOVES her and is willing to make huge sacrifices as a result). The film then skips ahead several years, and we find the couple living comfortably in the suburbs, still super devout, and with a lovely young daughter. Seems like everything's worked out great for those crazy kids, huh?

Well, not really.

OK, OK, OK. Look, I don't want to spoil anything beyond this point by telling you many plot details, but the long and short of it is that Sharon winds up convinced God is planning The Rapture -- the day when He unleashes the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and true believers are automatically lifted into Heaven -- for, like, any minute now. Sharon gets this powerful vision, absolutely accepts it, and takes her little girl out into the desert to wait for The Man Upstairs to send for them.


What happens after that makes for some of the most horrifying, thought-provoking, emotionally-draining, and downright mindblowing drama that I have ever seen in any film, ever. The last 15 minutes of The Rapture, in particular, hit me like a bus -- TOTALLY unexpected, and really, defining the entire film. Had this movie ended another way, it merely would have been GOOD; but Michael Tolkin, out of nowhere, takes it in a direction so audacious that I honestly broke into tears when the screen finally faded to black and the credits scrolled by in absolute, unbearably eery, silence. I'm STILL struggling with what happened -- it's just so brazen and psychologically jarring that I remain utterly blown away. Friends, I believe that The Rapture goes places where no motion picture had previously dared.

And, with that final sequence, the entire darn experience was put into perspective. This movie is truly inspired; it is SPECIAL.

Performances across the board are top notch -- especially from Mimi Rogers, who as I've previously noted, flat out deserved an Academy Award for this film. I had never given Rogers much thought at all before this, as she's generally overlooked as an actress and is mostly just renown for having married Tom Cruise, but now, I'm a sincere fan. In The Rapture, Mimi is positively genius, conveying a range of nuanced emotions with little more than a distant gaze, going from lethargic to manic with an ease that at no point strikes one as even remotely forced or contrived. Her Sharon is a tragic figure with whom we can sympathize, even when she commits the most unthinkable acts. This is a talented, brilliant actress we're dealing with here! Why in the world isn't Mimi Rogers more famous???

(OK, so maybe this is a partial explanation for why she didn't hit the A-List. But whatever.)

The Rapture boldly grapples with serious questions about faith in a manner that, I believe, is neither insulting to those who have it, nor preachy to those who don't. Sure, plenty of the more hardline Christian types will feel instantly offended by this movie, most likely turning it off before it's even halfway through, but they're the dumb ones who aren't really interested in serious philosophical exploration, and therefore, aren't worth including in the discussion. You know, even though I personally have no first hand understanding of what REAL faith actually is, I find the concept of it to be interesting and think that, if one DOES, in fact, have true faith, he or she should feel no reluctance about delving into its nature. While The Rapture certainly strives to challenge faith (often with abrasive frankness), it does so in a thoughtful and even-handed manner which open minded folks of all stripes ought to welcome.

What does it mean to REALLY BELIEVE SOMETHING, at the very core of your being, regardless of all evidence and/or doubt against it? How does it feel to simply have an idea in your heart that will never be shaken, in spite of all circumstances, because YOU'RE JUST SO SURE of it?? And, if you make the firm decision to stick with and commit to that premise, IS IT REALLY AS SILLY to do so as the skeptics would assume??? I mean, we're talking GOD here, man! If He really is what they say He is, then He doesn't have to explain or prove a damn thing to any of us, now does He?

I think The Rapture poses these questions. Perhaps I'm wrong, but I walked away from my 12 screenings in three days with the conclusion that this film is at least addressing the concept: God only wants you to believe in Him, and He will not meet you halfway on any of your bullcrap doubts, either. That's kind of THE POINT -- to get the rewards that the Head Honcho in the Sky promises, you just simply have to accept it and expect nothing else.


Fascinating, and occasionally dangerous, philosophical territory...but entirely worth exploring. I mean, look -- as noted, I personally have no faith whatsoever, and can't imagine that ever changing (despite having been raised as a proper Polish Catholic); but I honestly do not look down on folks who do. I understand, in an academic sense, why they believe, and have no trouble with it. In fact, I can't even call myself an "atheist" because I'm so irritated by the arrogance of many of those who identify themselves as such. Like, Bill Maher, for example. --While I do love most things about him, I also think he can be a real a-hole when he starts mocking religious people and calling them insane/stupid/whatever. Just shut up, Bill. You're going too far.

Listen, If you've got faith, I say that's great! I ACCEPT that, and will never insult you for it (well, assuming you don't want to infringe upon my freedoms by imposing your religion's rules on everyone else's personal behavior, in which case we'll be duking it out with gloves off). That is, at the end of the day, I think the great Voltaire said it best when he opined, "May the man who has the most goats also have the most--"


Huh??? OH...uh, sorry. Didn't mean to go off on a tangent there.

So, yeah -- The Rapture....

It's a film that deftly raises all of these profound issues in a mature, often brazen manner, and I am convinced it deserves the deepest of accolades. I mean, this here motion picture excels in all conceivable measures of quality while presenting a shockingly revolutionary premise which I TOTALLY didn't see coming in the end. Its story arch, its character development...hell, every single shot -- all are deliberately crafted with the skill of an honest to goodness artist. As I said in a previous post, I SOOOO WISH this had been my movie. Even though it's largely forgotten and passed through theaters with little fanfare upon its release, I would have died satisfied in the knowledge I had once made a movie that does what The Rapture does....

Few films are so artistically bold, folks. I mean, I don't want to hype it up TOO MUCH, but the truth is that I have not been this stimulated, engaged, and impressed by any picture in a long, long time. The Rapture is one of the best movies I have ever seen.

Watch it. You will serve yourself well by experiencing this original, brave, and deeply unsettling film.

5 out of 5.

b.