Director: Marc Foster
UK Release Date: 2nd November 2011
Running Time: 129 minutes
Starring: Gerard Butler, Michelle Monaghan, Michael Shannon
Machine Gun Preacher is a film based on the real life of Sam Childers. Gerard Butler stars as Childers and the films title is a true reflection on what the film is about. In short, Childers was a biker who recently released from prison, is hooked on drugs and alcohol. However he turns his life around after finding Christianity with his wife and goes on to save the lives of children in South Sudan against the Lord's Resistance Army.
Butler plays the role in a convincing manner having that 'biker-ish' look and was able to stand out in the film as the lead. The other characters all pop in and out throughout with no one in particular standing out impressively. What is portrayed very well in this film is the emotions between characters and between wanting to something good while not having the money or resources to do so. Butler does a great job and you can really feel the emotions he is having when torn between helping the children in South Sudan and leaving his family behind which causes his relationships with his wife and daughter to suffer.
Critically the film was not a success and at the box office it flopped. Here at M+F Reviews we believe that the audience can take a different meaning away from the film rather than just whether we enjoy watching it or not. Obviously most of us watch films or go to the cinema to have a good time but with this film the true story of Sam Childers is a difficult one to like and there are a few reasons as to why.
- Sam Childers was a drug addict and alcoholic and although he found Christianity it can be difficult for the audience to associate with a character linked to taboo subjects.
- The topic centres around the problems in South Sudan where the Lord's Resistance Army were attacking and killing innocent civilians. Like Hotel Rwanda (2004), this topic/subject is difficult to enjoy watching.
Due to these two factors the content is overlooked and other aspects are examined under increasing pressure leading to bad reviews critically. However, the film tackles real issues and troubles and should be applauded for this and its efforts to bring it to a larger audience. It is obviously an ongoing problem in our world from the Holocaust, to genocides in Rwanda, Sarajevo, South Sudan and in current times, Syria. Problems portrayed in this film are still ongoing and more needs to be done to get the word out for support and film is a great medium for this.
This however takes us into another dimension - truth in film. Can truth be portrayed in film or does the fact that huge budgets and pressure to receive good reviews critically override and alter the truth? This film focusses on the positive - Childers turns his life around to help save children who are suffering - however reports have surfaced about Childers story. Questions have been asked as to whether his story is true and reports have surfaced on how well looked after the children are that have been saved by Childers. The fact that the truth is somewhat being questioned makes it even more difficult. However, director Marc Foster has interpreted the story for the big screen and while some parts of the story may not be true - the film does convey a message and this consists of truths.
Although Machine Gun Preacher suffered badly at the hands of the critics it is definitely a film people need to watch. It addresses world issues that cannot be ignored and the fact that it can be shown through film is great as it means these issues can reach a wider audience.
M+F Rating: 7/10
Reviewed by M+F Reviews.
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