Films 'for Mormons by Mormons' on the rise

LDS cinema offers alternative entertainment opportunity

MOLLYWOOD — If the recent surge in popularity is any indication, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are ready for their close-up, Mr. DeMille.

"Basically, in the last few years we've had an emergence of the genre," said Rachel Sego, media relations representative with Excel Entertainment Group, a distributor of faith-based theatrical films based in Utah. "LDS film is generally films for Mormons by Mormons."

Sego explained that the genre first came about with the 2000 film "God's Army," about a Mormon missionary coming to terms with what he believes.

"From there, (the genre) expanded," Sego said. Other LDS films, some released by HaleStone Distribution, include "The Singles Ward," "The Other Side of Heaven," the war movie "Saints and Soldiers" and "The Work and the Glory," a film about the founding of the Mormon church which Sego said has had "the biggest budget of any so-called Mormon films.

"(There's) kind of a wide variety," she continued, noting that the purpose of the films is not to go out and convert the world to the Mormon faith, but provide wholesome family entertainment.

Jeff Fairchild, owner of the Fairchild Cinemas in Moses Lake, which has shown several of the titles, most recently "The Work and the Glory," said that there is a demand for such films in the area.

"We've had enough people coming, we played ('Work and Glory') for four weeks," Fairchild said, noting that several groups have attended the films.

LDS films are also occasionally referred to as "Mollywood," Sego said, explaining that it is a take-off of a funny name used for more straight-laced Mormon members, a Molly Mormon. That's because some of the films have poked fun at universal Mormon beliefs and traditions.

Sego explained that an adaptation of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" was set at Brigham Young University. Jokes can include things about the way Mormons date, or Jell-O being the state food.

"It's kind of a joke that any time (we have a) dinner, someone will bring a salad made of green Jell-O, carrots and stuff," she said.

Vaughn Hunsaker, president of the Moses Lake Stake, said that "The Singles Ward," was set in a ward for young adult singles, noting that one is in Moses Lake and he was bishop there for several years.

"I had to go see this," he said, noting that he doesn't make an effort to see every LDS movie. "(It was a) spoof, poking fun at the types of people in young adult singles wards. You could recognize the same characters (in any singles ward). It was just a joke, they were not trying to show great principles, it was strictly entertainment."

Hunsaker said that the movie was plainly a comedy, and that people who saw the movie would recognize it as such, rather than be offended. But some of the movies might not make sense for those not familiar with the Mormon culture. In the case of "The Singles Ward," Hunsaker said if he were not a member, he probably would have asked for his money back.

"In the past, (the films) have really appealed to a niche market," Sego echoed. "They're funny, but not nearly as entertaining to an outside audience …. We're trying to move to films that have a broader appeal but still remain true to those values that we embrace."

Hunsaker said that "The Work and the Glory" is a little different. They obviously had more of a budget to work with, he said, and explained that it is an adaptation of a very large, very popular series of historical novels.

"Whoever put the movie together made an enjoyable story," he said. "I would think you don't have to be Mormon to see that one and kind of enjoy it."

Maxine Ivory, public affairs director for the Moses Lake Stake, said that she has seen all the LDS films that have been released.

"I think the production crew, they do such a good job," she said, citing comedies "The RM" and "The Best Two Years."

"They're very well made," Ivory continued. "'The Work and the Glory' had a really nice background, scenery, and it was true to the story … It followed the book right to the letter."

Sego credited the recent surge in popularity to the revival of an interest in religious films and entertainment, citing examples like "The Passion of the Christ" and even "The Da Vinci Code."

While last year's popular film "Napoleon Dynamite" had an LDS writer-director in Jared Hess and an LDSstar (Sego said she remembered seeing "Napoleon" actor John Heder around BYU), Sego called it "a little bit different."

"That movie was so wildly popular here, everywhere," she said. "It straddles somewhere between LDS and cult classic. It's something all its own, but it's great — we love it."

Less so Hunsaker, who said he had heard about the movie because it was filmed in the town where his son lives.

"To me, that was the dumbest movie I had gone to in 20 years," he said of "Napoleon" with a chuckle. "I just don't get it. It's not meant for me, I tell you."

Hunsaker said he figured that the recent increase in LDS movie offerings over the last several years was that movie producers and writers could see a possible audience in the Mormon community.

"They just appeal to Mormon people, I guess," Ivory said. "We all watch in the theaters, and then we buy them on the DVDs. I think they're making money on them."

"Maybe it's just supply and demand," Sego postulated. "For members of LDS faith, it's really important to have alternative sources of entertainment … It's safe to say most LDS aren't going to go out and look for an R-rated movie. Even with PG-13, it's so hard to know you'll go into a film and it's going be something you would feel comfortable watching."