Review of Religulous (2008) by Connor D — 22 Jun 2010

Very funny, but I feel it could be much more. I love Bill Maher's work, and I love his style of humor and I think he's brilliant, but this piece is a bit underwhelming. Even as an Atheist (and probably because, ironically) I'm a bit disapointed with this one. I expected so much more. It depicts the insanity of religion well, but I still feel it could have done much more in that aspect. With that said, there's still quite a few memorable moments and laughs. The film suceeds partially in delivering its message, although a little talk at the end doesn't seem to have that much of an effect and doesn't seem to hold a lot of power (although I do think there's a decent amount, just that it could have been more). Maybe his talk should have been longer and placed more throughout the film so that it connects more with what is seen (but perhaps that would have tooken away from the scenes on display)? Overall, that 10 or so minutes of the end doesn't make much of a difference (and if anything it's much better than just fading to black without any sort of discussion), as there's some decent thought provoking ideas about religion already displayed throughout the entirety of this film; during his talks with the faithful, which is the big strength of this film. Maher does do a decent job at hitting religion at its core, and one doesn't have to be a religious skeptic to appreciate this film, because it's just plainly funny. If you are of the "faithful", then just laugh at the other religions and press the mute button when he's using the same arguments used to expose the weaknesses of other/all religions against your own. Despite some flaws, it still has a enough witty humor and enough thought provoking ideas to make it a solid film.

B-.