The Case for Christ

The Case for Christ

Starring Mike Vogel, Erika Christensen, Faye Dunaway, L. Scott Caldwell

Directed by Jon Gunn

The Story:
In 1980, Lee Strobel (Mike Vogel) is an award-winning journalist for the Chicago Tribune, married to Leslie (Erika Christensen), and the father of a young daughter and a baby on the way.  One night at a restaurant their daughter almost chokes to death, but is saved by nurse Alfie Davis (L. Scott Caldwell), who thanks Jesus for having them be at the same restaurant - because they were going to go somewhere else, but she felt led to that place.

Moved by what she heard and how Alfie saved her daughter, Leslie goes with her to church and becomes a Christian, to the chagrin of her atheist husband.  He sets out to disprove the existence of God by focusing on the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus - for if he is able to disprove the resurrection happened, he could cripple Christianity and bring his wife back.

The Synopsis:
Christian movies in the past were a very niche market, where only the faithfully devout would even step foot in the theater.  Movies like "Left Behind" (the ones with Kirk Cameron, not Nicolas Cage), "The Omega Code" and "Extreme Days" didn't really garner any commercial - or critical - success.  Then, in 2004, Mel Gibson brought "The Passion of the Christ," which became the highest grossing R-rated movie of all time, as well as earning critical success.  That was followed by the C.S. Lewis series "The Chronicles of Narnia," along with several lower-budget films like "To Save a Life," "Courageous," "Fireproof," "God's Not Dead," "Heaven is for Real" and "Miracles from Heaven," and soon Christian films found a more mainstream audience and garnered more revenue.

"The Case for Christ" is a more daring approach to the Christian film market, as it centers around the life of one man that - if you aren't in the Christian community - you've probably never heard of.  However, for even the average Christian, the name Lee Strobel is synonymous with intellectual Christianity, as his conversion occurred not by some super spiritual experience, but by intense scrutiny and study of the hard evidence found in Scripture and history.

The film could've been seen as a way to proselytize the unbelievers, "The Case for Christ" instead focuses on the facts that Strobel discovered in his journey by meeting with the best in the fields of medicine, archaeology, religion and psychiatry, while becoming more and more of a jerk to his wife and others.  His wife, however, grows in her faith and shares with her husband that - even though he's constantly fighting with her and belittling her faith - she somehow has loved him more deeply and more profoundly than ever.  It's this love that sets Lee over the edge after all his scholarly pursuits lead him to one conclusion: that God is real.

Going into the film I didn't have very high expectations, and thankfully I found myself actually enjoying the film.  There was a lot of interesting facts that Strobel uncovered, but it's the relationship between Lee and Leslie that was the crux of the film.  Mike Vogel and Erika Christensen had great chemistry together, but there were some scenes between the two of them that felt repetitive, and the film could've been better if it had either shortened the runtime or focused more on Strobel's discoveries. 

Another thing that elevated the film is the cast.  Mike Vogel - best known for his roles on "The Bates Motel" and "Under the Dome" as well as films "Cloverfield" and "Grind" - tackles Strobel in a way that elevates his career to a more adult-centric role (even if his mustache, which looks very much like the porno kings of old, sometimes detracted from his performance) as he portrayed Strobel in a very unlikable light, yet in the end revealing his jerkiness was due to his own convictions he didn't want to face.  Erika Christensen - star of "Parenthood," "Swimfan" and "The Upside of Anger" - gives a subtle, humanistic performance as a woman who was once an atheist, but became a Christian after her young daughter almost died.  Faye Dunaway, Robert Forester, Frankie Faison and L. Scott Caldwell also give great performances as well.

The Summary:
While it probably won't garner any new converts, "The Case for Christ" is a highly passable movie featuring a well-performed cast and a very intellectual argument for the existence of God.

The Score: B+