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"Three Pastors
Preaching To A Flock Of
Seagulls" |
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Directed by Steve Taylor
- Written by Chip
Arnold, Ben Pearson
Starring Michael W.
Smith, jeff obafemi carr,
J. Don Ferguson
Distributed by
Sony/Triumph - 2006 -
103mins - Rated PG13 |
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Same faith. Same City. Different Worlds. |
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Opening this weekend
in limited release, "The Second Chance" is Hollywood's latest attempt
to build a bridge between the secular and Christian communities by
offering contemporary, inspirational films that address real life
issues with solutions offered from a Christian perspective.
Starring contemporary Christian singer Michael W. Smith as Pastor
Ethan Jenkins, an associate pastor at his father's mega-church "The
Rock," "The Second Chance" is reminiscent of two recent films, last
year's unexpected hit "The Gospel" and the Howie Mandel film "Crown
Heights."
In "The Second Chance," Smith portrays a pastor that could easily be
seen as himself. Pastor Ethan is an attractive, financially prosperous
young minister with a beautiful fiance', a strong music ministry and a
book having just been published. He is, according to his own board of
trustees of "The Rock," a "rock" star who is brash, spoiled and
undisciplined.
Each year, "The Rock" offers a fund-drive to support its inner-city
mission, Second Chance Community Church, the spiritual community where
Pastor Ethan's father started everything during the 60's civil rights
movement. "Second Chance" is now a run-down church in a run-down,
crime-ridden part of the city pastored by Jake Sanders (jeff obafemi
carr), an equally brash, aggressive pastor who sat side by side with
Ethan's father in the 60's and who has, at times, seemingly become as
hardened as those he serves.
"The Second Chance" is, essentially, the journey of these two pastors
to give each other a second chance along with their communities. When
Pastor Ethan is called by the Board of Trustees of "The Rock" to serve
in "Second Chance Community Church", he does so with great reluctance
and bitterness. Likewise, Pastor Jake has grown weary of those who
believe that it is enough to open pocketbooks without providing the
heart and soul of compassion and service.
"The Second Chance" is unashamed of its Christianity, and yet is not a
film I would consider to be preachy in its presentation. It is a film
about two pastors whose lives intertwine, connect and this connection
reinforces faith and empowers the men to become more faithful,
effective pastors.
Michael W. Smith is surprisingly effective as Pastor Ethan,
particularly in displaying the discomfort of a young, up and coming
pastor who suddenly has the very roots of his faith challenged in
dramatic ways. Smith's stage presence works wonders here, and while he
seemed, at times, uncomfortable with surrendering to the full emotions
of the more intense scenes he, nonetheless, was quite effective in
portraying a pastor in transition.
Likewise, jeff obafemi carr is a revelation as Pastor Jake, a
tough-talking inner-city preacher whose idealism has, at times, been
replaced by cynicism and whose courageousness in confronting injustice
often becomes foolishness. carr, who uses all lower case in his name
as a commitment to humility, makes his feature film debut here after
serving as a commentator on National Public Radio.
Popular Christian rock singer Steve Taylor, who quit music in 2003 to
focus on film, directs "The Second Chance" with a strong commitment to
showing the harsh realities an inner-city church faces. The end result
is that rare Christian film that garners a PG-13 rating for its
realistic portrayals of violence and conflict.
Taylor, much like was done in "The Gospel," shows the challenges and
benefits of life in a spiritual community and is unafraid to poke a
little fun at the Christian church in the process. Yet, Taylor is also
blessed to have a script (which he co-wrote with Chip Arnold and Ben
Pearson) that offers rich, subtle characters down to the most minor
roles. Each of the supporting characters seems to have their moment to
shine, from young brothers heartbreakingly supporting each other as
the youngest one tries to leave a gang to an older "slow" White male
who serves "Second Chance Community Church" in a maintenance type role
who is absolutely mesmerizing in a scene where he seeks forgiveness
for having wrongfully judged one of the teens in the church.
As one could expect from a film featuring Michael W. Smith, the music
is wonderful here including original songs from the likes of Smith,
Third Day, Ruben Studdard and John Legend. Likewise, the production
design is appropriately gritty and urban, without ever seeming
condescending.
The ending, which I certainly won't share here, is the perfect close
to a film about the faith journey. As obstacles are confronted, biases
and issues revealed and conflicts resolved we see Pastor Jake, Pastor
Ethan and his father all standing together in the most unique of
situations. The ending isn't about a "happy ending" or about any
man-made resolution. The ending of "The Second Chance" is about three
pastors who surrender to God and receive their second chance to
rediscover faith. |
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© Written by Richard Propes |
TC Candler's Comment
n/a
Jacob
Hall's Comment
n/a
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