The Washington Post - 13.03.2020

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the washington post

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friday, march 13, 2020

ers. But he was so contrarian

that when his publisher asked

for a sequel to his 1984 bestsell-

er “miami Blues” — made into a

1990 film starring Alec Baldwin

and fred Ward — he delivered a

manuscript that turned his

hero moseley into such a mon-

ster that it was never published.

Adapting “Heresy” — its un-

usual title comes from one of

Debney’s paintings — screen-

writer Smith relocates the ac-

tion of Willeford’s novel from

seedy South florida to pictur-

esque Italy, which softens the

hard-boiled cynicism of the

original. And yet the movie has

a way of sneaking up on you,

and its radical deviations from

Willeford’s narrative keep the

convoluted plot fresh, even if

you know the book.

It’s really the cast who help

deliver that plot. Bang has a

voice that recalls a young James

mason at times: Just listen to

him entice Berenice to a fancy

orange from 29 art party because, as he puts it,

“there just might be some cu-

cumber sandwiches.” He’s got a

perfect foil in Debicki. Berenice

sees through James’s smug in-

tellect, cutting him down to size

with a mix of blunt candor and

smart-alecky banter.

But the film’s biggest plea-

sure comes courtesy of a hilari-

ously hammy Jagger, who deliv-

ers such gems of art-speak as

“modigliani provenance” with a

gleefully upper-class air. It’s l ike

showing up for a gallery talk

and finding out that the rolling

Stones are your guide.

Like James, “The Burnt or-

ange Heresy” asks whether the

story behind a work of art is

more important than the work

itself. And that may or may not

be so. But thanks to small doses

of sex and violence — and a

healthy dollop of Jagger — the

movie that frames that question

is more entertaining than any-

thing any critic, including this

one, might say.

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Movies

ents (played by Gary Sinise and

pop-country diva Shania Twain)

scrimp to buy him a guitar before

he heads t o Southern California to

attend an evangelical Protestant

college. The school may be as

congenial as depicted in this mov-

ie, but its actual campus is in

reality a lot farther from the beach

than the swooping drone shots

suggest.

Camp makes canny use of the

new instrument, soon endearing

himself to earnest, pretty melissa

as well as a successful Christian

rocker, Jean-Luc (Nathan Par-

sons). The latter enthusiastically

furthers Jeremy’s musical career,

a sponsorship rendered a little

awkward by the fact that both

guys a re smitten with melissa. She

tries to navigate a safe path be-

tween the two men’s f eelings until

she’s compelled to choose Jeremy

by some urgent news: a diagnosis

of ovarian cancer.

There’s l ots of praying, whether

on stage or in hospital rooms, for

melissa’s recovery. As a dramatic

device, however, the possibility of

remission doesn’t pack much

power. It’s evident that Jeremy

and the other characters would

I Still Believe

A Christian soft-rocker faces a faith crisis in slickly sweet drama

BY MARK JENKINS

The spiritual crisis in “I Still
Believe” takes about two of the
movie’s dawdling 115 minutes.
Bristling with grief, Christian
soft-rocker Jeremy Camp (KJ
Apa) does a Pete To wnshend on
his acoustic guitar. But he quickly
regains control and realizes that
he — you guessed it — still be-
lieves.
Based on the real-life Camp’s
memoir of the same name, “I Still
Believe” recounts the singer’s
whirlwind college romance with
melissa Henning (Britt robert-
son), who succumbed to cancer
shortly after the couple married.
A sort of “me, God and the Dying
Girl,” the movie is well-made (if
slow) and features an attractive
cast and a lot of amiable (if bland)
religious pop-rock.
What it lacks is any serious
wrangling with the theological is-
sues raised by the seemingly ran-
dom death of an innocent young
person. A certain kind of believer
will probably accept the movie’s
acceptance. But skeptics and ad-
herents of other creeds — includ-
ing some varieties of Christianity
— will probably be unmoved.
Jeremy is introduced as an ear-
nest, handsome and musically
gifted kid from a financially
strapped Indiana family. His par-

draw the same message from her

death as from her deliverance.

“I Still Believe” was directed by

the filmmakers known as the Er-

win Brothers: Jon, who also

worked on the script, and Andrew

Erwin. They previously made “I

Can only Imagine,” a 2018 musi-

cal biopic based on the mercyme

tune of the same title, reportedly

the most played Christian rock

song ever. The siblings have ap-

parently found their niche.

No longer the devil’s music de-

nounced by some Christians a

half-century ago, the rock songs of

these movies are yearning but

musically easygoing. They are, as

Jean-Luc says with one eye on

melissa, “love songs to God —

mostly to God.”

Apa (“riverdale’s” Archie) per-

forms Camp’s compositions in a

pleasant tenor that’s lighter than

the voice of their original singer.

As he strums, the folkie ballads

are sometimes swelled by an un-

seen string section or an invisible

choir. The effect of the disembod-

ied accompaniment isn’t particu-

larly eerie. It just makes the songs

a little more like the movie itself:

slick and sweet.

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michael Kubeisy/lionsgate

Melissa (Britt robertson) and Jeremy (KJ apa) in “I Still Believe,” based on Christian soft-rocker

Jeremy Camp’s memoir of the same title that recounts the singer’s whirlwind college romance.

PG. at area theaters. contains

upsetting medical developments.

115 minutes.

In the raunchy comedy “Big Time adolescence,”
SNL’s Pete D avidson p lays a charming young-adult lout
who hangs out with a teenager (Griffin Gluck). Accord-
ing to Variety, the film i sn’t b ad, “but it’s a t rifle.” R. At t he
Angelika Pop-Up at Union Market and the ArcLight
Bethesda. Contains drug and alcohol use, pervasive
crude language and sexual references, all involving
teens. 9 1 minutes.

A remake of the 2011 Belgian road-trip comedy
“Hasta la Vista” — itself based on a true story —

“Come as You are” tells the story of three young

men with disabilities on a mission to lose their

virginity. “ It’s n ot the m ost subtle disability c omedy

you’ve seen, n or is it at a ll c oncerned with exploring

the ethical issues surrounding sex work,” according

to the Hollywood reporter. “But its lightness is a

virtue in the film’s rare sentimental moments,

which might’ve been too corny to bear in other

contexts.” Unrated. At the Cinema Arts Theatre.

Contains some disturbing violent content and ter-

ror. 106 minutes.

Also Opening

samuel goldwyn Films

From left, ravi Patel, Hayden Szeto, grant rosenmeyer and gabourey Sidibe in “Come as You are,” a
story of three young men with disabilities on a mission to lose their virginity.

R. at landmark’s e street cinema and the angelika Film center

mosaic. contains sexuality, nudity, strong language, drug use and

violence. 99 minutes.

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