(Associated Press)
Don’t let the title fool you, there is much more to this dramatic movie than a religious man with ammunition.
“Machine Gun Preacher,” tells the true story of Sam Childers. Childers, who spent most of his early life in and out of jail, fighting drug addiction and providing for his family by robbing drug dealers or selling drugs, decides to turn to the lord after another stint in prison.
From there, Childers is a changed man. He lucks upon a construction job and in a series of events one can only explain as “divine,” Childers eventually ends up opening his own construction business.
However, after finding the Lord, Childers takes it upon himself to open his own church. The church, which is a collection of broken individuals looking for a second chance, is simple and stated —just like its founder.
Even though the church is quite successful and Chllders’ life is back in order, he wants more. After a guest preacher comes to his wife’s church to plead for help in Sudan, Childers is inspired by the preacher’s message and gets the idea to build an orphanage in the war-torn country.
From Childers’ epiphany to build an orphanage comes the rest of the plot of “Machine Gun Preacher.” Wasting little time explaining Sam’s life pre-orphanage, a bulk of “Machine Gun Preacher,” takes place as Sam experiences the trials and tribulations that go along with building an orphanage in a country that is in the middle of a brutal civil war.
Taking a true story (especially one as heroic as his) and transferring it to film is a tough task for any director. However, “Machine Gun Preacher’s” director, Marc Foster, dealt with the heavy story line quite well, flip-flopping between his home life and the life he has on the Sahara of Sudan.
Foster seamlessly jumps from Childers’ two lives without wasting any of the audience’s time. In one scene, he could be reading his daughter a book as he is tucking her in and in the next, he is strapped with guns and explosives fighting off the LRA (Sudan’s Lord Resistance Army) as they try again and again to take over his orphanage.
Tackling the larger than life role of Sam Childers is Gerard Butler. Butler, known mainly for his roles in movies like “300” and “Phantom of the Opera,” looks more than comfortable behind the trigger of an AK-47.
Butler’s portrayal of Sam is honest and courageous, everything that his real-life counterpart exemplifies. In one particular moment in “Machine Gun Preacher,” Butler flexes his acting muscle as he slowly losses his mind in the orphanage in Sudan.
Most of his success can be attributed to his wife, Lynn Childers. Playing Lynn is Michelle Monaghan, known best for her role in “Source Code.” As Lynn, Monaghan is tough, honest, and one heck of a wife. Lynn has scene Sam at his lowest of lows, however for some reason, Lynn sticks by Sam, even when he sells his company and empties out the family safe in hopes of keeping his orphanage afloat.
“Machine Gun Preacher,” is almost as honest as films these days come. Foster takes no mercy on his audience as he displays the graphic (and very true) violence what Sudan is experiencing.
Even back in America, Foster still paints a dim picture of what Sam’s life is supposed to be.
In a way, “Machine Gun Preacher,” is more of a call to action than it is a feature film. At the end of the 127-minute running time, you can’t help but want to donate all of your life’s savings to Sam’s orphanage.
However, call to actions aside, “Machine Gun Preacher” is an honest film that features enough drama, action, and emotion to make it worth the price of admission.
And if Foster found a way to end the film with ease, the movie could be hearing Oscar buzz, but for it’s staggered finale, “Machine Gun Preacher” will be just another fall movie that slips between the cracks.
