Movies - Saved!

	Movies - Saved!

Saved! is a 2004 comedy film written by Brian Dannelly and Michael Urban, and directed by Dannelly. It stars Jena Malone, Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit, Martin Donovan, and Mary-Louise Parker. It was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia but set in suburban Baltimore, Maryland. Michael Stipe of the band R.E.M. is one of the film's producers.

The movie's plot revolves around Mary (Malone), a senior at a Christian high school in Baltimore, Maryland, who becomes pregnant because she believes Jesus wants her to have sex with her boyfriend to help save him from being gay. Despite her "best effort" to save his soul from damnation because of his homosexuality, he is shepherded off to a very dogmatic "rehab" clinic which supposedly will change his "errant" lifestyle into something the community will find more agreeable and God-like. No such thing happens in the nine months he spends there (the entire school year, basically), and Mary is left to deal with the typical adolescent issues of finding acceptance simply as a teen, but also as one with an overwhelming dilemma of having to hide her pregnancy from a terribly judgmental student body and staff, not to mention her mother, who is shallow and hypocritical and flirts with her daughter's married high school Principal, Pastor Skip, despite her immersion in the "Christian life." Her mother tries to cope with the pregnancy by pretending to not notice, for doing so would present her with a reflection of her own failings as a parent, and her empty approach to being a Christian.

The film is generally agreed to be a larger critique of overzealous Christian fundamentalists that are arrogant and condescending to the disabled, gays, non-Christians, and anyone who deviates from their literalist interpretation of Biblical teaching. An instance of Moore's character heaving a Bible at Malone's character while declaring she is "filled with Christ's love" serves to highlight the hypocrisy and self-righteous behavior that is being mocked throughout the film. Whether it is specifically a critique of Christianity itself is debatable, but it is worth considering that the least dogmatic of the characters reveal themselves to be far more compassionate and three dimensional than they would appear when we are introduced to them. Culkin's character Roland, once admitting to not be a Christian, says this to differentiate himself from his ultra-zealous sister Hilary Faye (Moore), who rides roughshod over everyone in sight and is abusive to him because of his disabled, wheelchair-bound state, constantly holding his dependence on her (for transportation) over his head. Roland however is one of the most balanced characters who later turns a mirror to his sister's rampant zealotry and helps Mary maintain her dignity during her troubled pregnancy. To further illustrate the hypocrisy at the school, the lone Jewish student, Eva Ammuri's character Cassandra (who is the target of intensive efforts to "save" her and convert her to Christianity but simply ignores or mocks the efforts) is the one who turns out to be one of the most validating of Mary's delicate situation, offering her a measure of protection from the rampant bigotry around them. As the stress of hiding her pregnancy mounts, Mary questions her own faith and gains greater strength and clarity and appreciably turns a curse into a blessing. The movie wraps up on a note of positivity; diversity and complexity is what makes life interesting and beautiful to experience, and that more can be gained by embracing it than stigmatizing it.

Criticism

Much of the criticism of the film was over its politics. The film has been criticized as being "anti-Christian", endorsing the "homosexual lifestyle" and pandering to the political left. Critics have pointed to some of the characters, such as Hilary Faye, as being stereotypes of Christian fundamentalism having been created specifically for the audience to deride.

Reaction from Youth

Many high school kids, as well as other kids who are younger, are attracted to this film because of its message of tolerance and of being accepted in society and school. Additionally, it also touches upon the realtionships that develop between teenage friends.

DVD

A DVD version of the film is available with a director's audio commentary, access to deleted scenes, and some bloopers.

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