Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.

 

Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.

Starring Regina Hall, Sterling K. Brown, Nicole Beharie, Conphidance

Directed by Adamma Ebo

I started going to church when I was around sixteen or so, and it was a huge megachurch in my area that I didn't realize at the time, but was filled with hypocrisy, greed, and egotism - much like most megachurches are. They hide their sins and act like they're holier than thou, and when something unexpected bubbles to the surface they do everything they can to conceal and hide it in order to maintain appearances and keep the parishioners (and their money) growing. Recently the church I used to attend (I proudly say I don't go to any church now, especially after the majority of Christianity has now abandoned the real faith in favor of Christian Nationalism) was exposed for hiding sexual misconduct by one of the satellite campus's pastor's son, and his illegal, sinful, detestable crimes were met with silence and an attempt to cover it up - but like the Good Book says, "all things become visible when they are exposed to the light." Anyway, I'm stepping off my soap box and will now focus on this satirical, almost shockingly real film - a comedy that obviously hit me close to home filled with great performances and a unique blend of humor and comedic tragedy.

Lee-Curtis (Sterling K. Brown) Childs is a pastor at a megachurch Baptist church in Atlanta that's home to over 25,000 followers, and his wife Trinitie (Regina Hall) serves by his side. They live in the lap of luxury with a mansion, fancy cars, high-end clothing, and fashionable shoes - until Lee-Curtis is accused of sexual misconduct and their church attendance falls to just five people. Wanting to maintain their social and economic status, Lee-Curtis and Trinitie plan to re-open the church and brings in a documentary crew to film their supposed meteoric ascent to power once again - but they're hindered by two of their former parishioners - Keon (Conphidance) and Shakura (Nicole Beharie) Sumpter - who's rival church welcomed most of the Childs' old congregation, and they plan on opening a new campus on Easter Sunday: the same day the Childs plan to re-open theirs. As the documentary crew follows them around, they maintain the facade that everything is fine and things are going according to plan, but when the crew leaves their real fears, doubts, and insecurities bubble to the surface, threatening to undermine their upcoming return.

"Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul" is interesting in that it's separated almost into three sections: one section is the documentary crew that films things that happen, the other is the personal lives of the Childs when the "cameras" turn off, and the third is an abrupt tonal shift from a satirical look at megachurches to a very dramatic, and surprisingly powerfully performed, conclusion. While it could've spelled doom for the film to change so drastically at the end, it's to the impeccable talents of Sterling K. Brown and especially Regina Hall that steers the ship in the right direction.

On the "documentary" side, you see the Childs giving their best performance when they're not on the pulpit (again, coming from a former church-goer, I can attest that the majority of a church service is nothing more than a performance piece) and appearing that they're a loving, caring couple who love and care for everyone around them, while still showing off their lavish lifestyles and claiming it's all for the glory of God. At least that's how it starts off, but as the film develops, you begin to see the cracks that start to rip them apart, especially Trinitie, who really is a balance between a victim and a villain, a woman who will smile to your face and curse you the moment you turn your back, but also someone who's struggling with her husband's alleged infidelity and deciding to stand by him - if not for love, then for appearances. Through it all, Lee-Curtis has this sense of delusion that everything will go back to normal and there's nothing to worry about - but also as the film crew keeps pressing, his cracks begin to show as well. By then, however, they're already in too deep, and can't turn back now, or else they'll lose the prestige and the profit from being pastors at a soul-less megachurch.

On the "real" side, you see Lee-Curtis and Trinitie as who they really are - a couple on the rocks, and two lonely people who, despite their claims that they're sinless and flawless, are anything but. This is what happens behind the scenes when the lights go out and the church doors close - you get the real, authentic thing. Sterling K. Brown is best known for his award-winning work on "This is Us," and here he manages to showcase his traditional dramatic side but also lets loose and allows the comedic chops to come out: something he rarely gets to do, and he hams it up for all its worth. Yet it works, because that's how megachurch pastors often act - like they're putting on a show, because they are.

On the opposite end of the acting spectrum, Regina Hall is best known for her comedic performances in the "Scary Movie" franchise as well as her recent stint as co-host of the Oscars, and here she allows her comedic timing to play off with pitch perfection, but also underlies everything with a growing sense of dramatic dread. She can change her attitude with just an expression from her eyes, and you see both the hurt and the jealousy that lies underneath her facade, leading to a dramatic ending that only Hall could pull off with full-on mime makeup. She plays the pastor's wife role perfectly too, especially when she's passively-aggressively talking to a former congregant and you see she just wants to explode on her, but keeps her composure with classic Southern insults like "bless your heart." Hall is the heart and soul of the film, and she gives a fantastic performance.

While the film is a satirical look at megachurch antics, it's also a shockingly real look behind the glass of how churches run nowadays in America. They're not the holy shrines where God resides, but rather another building filled with imperfect people who want power, prestige, and profit. The church in America is a business, and lately business is failing - hopefully it'll be a wake-up call for them to change their ways, but there's some miracles only God can accomplish...and here I go on my soap box again, but suffice it to say "Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul." might over-exaggerate in some areas, but they're surprisingly toned down in others.

The Score: B+