Review of The God Who Wasn't There (2005) by Jay E — 16 Nov 2005

What startling revelations this documentary brings to the viewer. I'm definitely enlightened.

Director Brian Flemming has given us a lot of information regarding the fallacies, myths and just plain misconceptions about Christianity. It's done with a gentle prod (well, in most cases anyway) and humor. We are given a 6 minute version of the life of Jesus Christ using old film clips which, with a countdown clock, not only illustrates the advancement of filmmaking, it brings a smile to your face.

The audience is given the treat of several fine interviews with scholars including Sam Harris who wrote The End of Faith. Each person speaks plainly and intelligently about the subject matter. Each presents opinions that make a great deal of sense - common sense. All give the viewer plenty to think about and to ultimately come to the same conclusions.

There is an interview with a gentleman who is convinced that the rapture is going to happen during his lifetime. He has set up a website where people can write e-mails to their un-saved loved ones telling them that the rapture has occurred and that they're now in heaven. If they're all in heaven, who is going to press the Send Button on the e-mails? Or what happens when this gentleman's hard drive crashes?

We're shown that the story of Jesus Christ is similar and sometimes identical to gods in mythology. What made this story a keeper, you wonder?

The gloves come off when Mr. Flemming shows us the graphic and gratuitous violence in The Passion of the Christ. Using clips from Mel Gibson's movie, we see what many Christians believe is a movie that changed their lives. Scenes such as a crow pecking out the eye of a man being crucified (with close-ups to boot!) and Mary almost wallowing in Jesus' blood makes you wonder what the real purpose of this movie was. This documentary points out how excessive all the special effects were. So how can this be the truth the Christians claim it is?

Mr. Flemming also gives us insight into his personal hell when attending a private Christian school. He was constantly bombarded with threats of eternal Hell for things that every kid does. This school controls kids through fear and that's no way for anyone to live, much less drilling frightening damnation into the minds of children.

Christian and non-Christian alike - you can't watch this documentary without giving thought to what has been presented. Plus, you'll have some chuckles along the way. It's a great mixture of intelligence, commonn sense and humor.

I cannot recommend it too highly.