Seven Kickstarted a Trend of Christian Thriller Movies
David Fincher‘s Se7en is widely regarded as one of the best thrillers in recent memory. Its tight script, slick cinematography, tragic themes, and impeccable performances have gone down in film history and have inspired numerous filmmakers to explore similar “meditations on evil.” Starring Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman as two hardened detectives patrolling an unnamed metropolis, they soon find themselves on a case that involves a John Doe killer (Kevin Spacey) “preaching” through the Seven Deadly Sins. Though these sins aren’t actually compiled as such in the biblical narrative, their connection to the Catholic Church and Christian theology makes Se7en a strange example of a religious thriller that challenges our heroes’ perceptions of right and wrong, good and evil, and even the question of God.
‘Se7en’ Inspired a New Wave of Movies
No doubt, Se7en‘s complex plot and compelling characters influenced plenty of other detective thrillers and horror flicks in the immediate years after. Denzel Washington‘s 1998 supernatural thriller, Fallen, followed a cop on the tail of an apocalyptic serial killer, one who used cryptic messages and symbols relating to demonology to mess with our hero’s head. In 2000, Bill Paxton directed a psychological thriller, Frailty, which challenged our perceptions of those who are “commanded by God” to do terrible things. Both these films, along with a heap of others around this time that include Resurrection, End of Days, and even the multi-season Chris Carter series Millennium, took apparent inspiration from Fincher’s classic. Or, were at the very least green-lit because of its success – all the while creating distinct characters and worlds of their own. Whether it was intentional or not, Se7en made an explosive impact on Hollywood, but it didn’t end there.
As Se7en continued to produce various copycat thrillers and inspired a resurgence in supernatural or apocalyptic detective mysteries (ironic, given that Se7en itself contains no supernatural elements), it primed Christian and otherwise religious moviegoers for content that would be tailored specifically to them. Though, religiously-fueled mystery thrillers weren’t exactly new to most Christian audiences. The late ’90s and early 2000s were rife with Christian thriller novels like the Left Behind series that caught the Evangelical world by storm. Movies like Se7en, which could touch on these deep spiritual themes and ideas, were just the final straw that opened the floodgates for the rise of faith-based horror – and it wouldn’t take long before Hollywood would catch onto the trend itself.
Faith-Based Movie Studios
20th Century Fox was the first major Hollywood studio to get involved in the faith-based horror scene. Hoping to cash in on the Se7en model and the explosive popularity of Mel Gibson‘s The Passion of the Christ, Fox saw the Evangelical market as untapped potential, and the studio intended to use that to its advantage. By 2006, they started FoxFaith, a division of the studio made specifically to match faith-based films with religious audiences. Of course, they weren’t the only ones to do this. Soon, Sony, MGM, and Lionsgate all had their own faith-based wings or partnerships, but only one faith-based company worked hard to make the “Christian horror movie” happen, and that was Namesake Entertainment.
Namesake Entertainment was founded in 1996, just one year after Se7en was released, and produced a cable thriller, a Disney Channel Original Movie, and the first feature film adaptation of the Left Behind series (yes, the Kirk Cameron one) before it gained enough traction to venture into strict horror territory. This, and their relationship with veteran Hollywood producer Ralph Winter, known for his work on the X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Star Trek films, opened the door for a partnership with 20th Century Fox. To build a bigger brand, Fox and Namesake sought to enlist the hottest Christian authors to lead the charge. If Se7en could reach vast audiences, the question was, why couldn’t they produce “high-quality, life-affirming family entertainment for values–seeking general audiences” that could do the same? This is where authors Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker come in.
Adapting the Novels of Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker
Frank Peretti, once called a “sanctified Stephen King,” had been well-known in Evangelical Christian circles since the mid-1980s with the release of his groundbreaking novel This Present Darkness. The book blended the supernatural world of angels and demons with a college-town conspiracy that threatened to darken the souls of Ashton. It quickly became his most notable work, spawning a sequel, Piercing the Darkness, and other supernatural mystery thrillers such as The Oath, Prophet, and Monster. Likewise, the works of Ted Dekker, another prolific Christian thriller novelist, were brought to the attention of Fox. Dekker had written various popular novels, such as Blink, Obsessed, and The Circle Series, and would go on to write many more. Because of their popularity among Evangelical readers, and their similarity in style and subject matter to films like Se7en, they became a clear basis for these faith-based horrors.
Peretti’s Hangman’s Curse – geared more towards younger audiences – became a feature film in 2003, the first of his works to be adapted by a major Hollywood studio. Although the film bombed at the box office, DVD sales, TV rights, and international distribution saved the production, encouraging Fox to pursue this venture further. The next adaptation of Peretti’s work, The Visitation, was released straight to DVD in 2006. A thriller about a small-town healer who claims to be the Second Coming, this one starred Martin Donovan, Edward Furlong, Kelly Lynch, and Randy Travis, who all play their parts well for such a dry script. Truthfully, The Visitation (which was a much better novel) feels more like a bad episode of The X-Files or Supernatural rather than an exciting supernatural horror, but it tries its best.
With the official launch of FoxFaith in 2006, the studio released a film adaptation of Dekker’s psychological thriller Thr3e, which starred Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum, Marc Blucas, as their flagship product in 2007. The film, which clearly stole its title and color scheme from Se7en, was in theaters for just over two weeks before it was pulled, making only half of its budget back. Due to the film’s plot and psychological themes, Thr3e was criticized as being a rip-off of Se7en, Saw, and the screenplay written by Nicolas Cage‘s character in the movie Adaptation. Though, since Dekker’s original novel was released in 2003, a full year before Saw and only about six months after Adaptation, not all of this plot criticism is especially valid. Admittedly, the movie invokes Saw and Se7en on numerous occasions, just without clearly defined stakes. You might not see the movie’s final twist coming, but that doesn’t mean it’s anything to write home about.
Faith-Based Horror Was On the Way Out
After this final failure, FoxFaith gave up on faith-based horrors, moving its brand towards uplifting content that included biblical epics, period romance, and other dramas. However, other studios still saw potential in the Christian horror scene so Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions teamed up with Namesake to adapt Peretti and Dekker’s collaboration novel, House. Also directed by Robby Henson, who had previously directed The Visitation and Thr3e, the film starred Michael Madsen as the “Tin Man” with Lance Henriksen providing the character’s voice, and followed two couples in rural Alabama as they found themselves running from a maniac who claims to have “killed God.” With a $2.5 million budget, House made just over a million dollars during its limited theatrical release and didn’t make it back on home video. That, combined with some terrible reviews, put a halt on any future Christian horror productions based on the works of Peretti and Dekker.
Namesake Entertainment folded not long after that. With no companies striving to create more Christian thrillers for the big screen, this B-movie subgenre crashed and burned before it even got off the runway. Sony would venture into faith-based horror territory on one more occasion with the 2014 Affirm Films release of The Remaining, but this found-footage apocalyptic thriller (which starred Alexa Vega and Shaun Sipos) was a one-and-done production. Of course, there was also the Nicolas Cage Left Behind reboot, but that movie’s hardly worth the mention…
Why Did These Movies Not Succeed?
So why did The Visitation, Thr3e, and House ultimately fail? Well, for one, none of these pictures starred current, big names. These movies usually starred actors whose careers were (at the time) on the decline, which is made obvious in that they agreed to be a part of these productions. That’s not to say they don’t perform well or give it their all, but they don’t really have much to work with as these films aren’t very well written. Another few passes on the screenplay, and there might’ve been something really solid to work with here, but alas. For some reason, the studios didn’t hire either Peretti or Dekker to adapt their own work (though, maybe they didn’t wish to), but had they done so, these films may have been better just on principle.
There’s also the issue of the film’s production quality. As stated before, many of these movies look like bad episodes of mid-’90s/early 2000s television, and while some of us may hold a soft spot for that era of TV (this author included), that’s not exactly a compliment. These Christian horror productions put the B in B-movie, which is a real shame given they had some excellent source material to work from. The Visitation is an incredibly interesting concept that criticizes cults, cult leaders, and blind followers (not to mention the neo-charismatic movement), all the while being a story of broken faith. There’s a lot to work with from Peretti’s original novel, but because of the poor execution, the film suffers.
Christian Horror Can Be Enjoyed by All Audiences
This leads to the biggest issue with this wave of Se7en-inspired Christian horrors: they’re kind of unnecessary. This isn’t to say that catering to a religious audience is bad, nor is it foolish to make faith-based horror films. Adapting from the works of Peretti and Dekker is an excellent idea, as they could be easily marketed to general audiences and not just Evangelical ones. You see, Christian themes and religion have already been a part of the horror genre for over a hundred years. Bram Stoker‘s Dracula deals clearly with issues of faith, religion, and horror, all while pulling in both religious and non-religious audiences along the way. The countless movie adaptations and interpretations of Dracula have often stayed true to this, with the faith of Abraham Van Helsing and his companions usually intact. The Count himself literally can’t go into the light or near a crucifix, it doesn’t get more Christian than that.
Likewise, demonic-based horrors such as The Exorcist or The Conjuring series are rife with Christianity, both in theme and in content. This is especially true of The Conjuring films as the first two installments were written by brothers Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes, two Baptists whose faith inspired the original movies and took deep root within them. They also wrote religiously-inspired horrors such as The Crucifixion and The Reaping, the latter of which being very reminiscent of Se7en. This isn’t even to mention how The Nun, a Conjuring spin-off, ends with the demon Valek defeated by the literal blood of Jesus Christ. The difference between these productions and something like Thr3e or House is that these were not only well-made but well-marketed to general audiences despite their religious under/overtones.
Faith-based movies don’t have to be bad or preachy. The Book of Eli, Hacksaw Ridge, and even M. Night Shyamalan‘s Signs, among others, have already proven this fact, and Se7en alone shows that audiences may even adore movies with religious themes and content. What the general audience cares more about is compelling characters, an interesting plot, and production value that immerses them in the world. Although this era of Christian B-horror failed, there is still hope that the works of Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker may be properly adapted in the future, or, at the very least, that Se7en would continue to inspire faith-based thrillers, just ones that are well-written and well-made.
Source link