A new movie genre debuts at the box office this weekend: the Christian comedy.
“Moms’ Night Out” starring Patricia Heaton and Sean Astin is opening on more than 1,000 screens, and it aims to do something no other Christian major motion picture has endeavored to do: make you laugh. On purpose.
From “The Passion of the Christ,” to “Fireproof,” to “Courageous,” the genre has historically leaned heavily on biblical epics and inspiration to stir the faithful, or evangelical fare designed to convert the masses.
But “Moms’ Night Out” is entirely different, a PG-rated comedy about the hijinks of middle-class Christian families, ordinary folks living ordinary lives.
“Middle-class Christian families in America have every right to have their lives reflected on film,” Astin said. “A lot of people will look at this movie and wouldn’t see it as evangelical polemic.”
In the film, three moms, played by Sarah Drew, Andrea Logan White and Heaton, need a break from diapers and messes and teenagers – never mind the societal pressure of being a perfect Christian parent. Desperate for a night out, they hit the town only to have their plans foiled by a missing baby, a car chase, their husbands, and cops with a Taser. There are laughs, there are tears and there is a bright hopeful message for parents: God loves you even in your imperfections and you are not alone.
Heaton said, “It’s nice to have this perspective because raising kids is sort of an unsung job. We need to constantly remember what an important job that is, because it’s not glamorous and it’s repetitive and it can be really difficult.”
Only at the end of the movie do you realize there were no sex jokes, no romps through strip clubs, and no crass profanity – bread and butter for successful comedies in the last decade.
“Moms’ Night Out” is squeaky-clean family fun. TriStar Pictures and its imprint AFFIRM films are betting there is a vast, untapped audience of people.
“Moms’ Night Out” has already taken heat from Christian reviewers who complained it is not Christian enough and secular reviewers who said it was unfunny and anti-feminist.
“We went in with eyes wide open and recognized this is uncharted territory,” said Rich Peluso, senior vice president of AFFIRM Films.
For this film to be a hit it will actually need to be funny to a wide audience, said Kutter Callaway, a professor of theology and culture at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.
“Part of what is necessary for humor, and why Christians do it so badly, is there needs to be a tension there. There needs to be something dark or tragic that makes life funny,” he said.
“Christians struggle with humor just like they struggle with how to posture themselves with anything that is dark or provocative,” he said.
Christian filmmakers have a tendency to scrub the darkness and focus on the light, Callaway said. “Because this film is coming from a Christian perspective … you worry about the comedy getting neutered. … Christians still need it to be funny and not trite.”
That tension between faith and funny may not be an impossible hurdle for the film, according to Craig Detweiler, a filmmaker and communications professor at Pepperdine University who has worked with studios on direct marketing to churches.
“I think it will surprise people who tend to associate Christianity with roots in tragedy instead of comedy,” he said. “But Jesus was known for his parables that ended in punch lines. He was pretty good with zingers.”
