Christian movies have never really made a big impact in UK cinemas, so I like to support them when they arrive in my local area.
The King of Kings may have broken box office records in the US and elsewhere – making it the most successful opening for a biblical animated feature – but in the UK it is only being shown at selected cinemas.
I saw it at my local Odeon, with just a couple of rows full, and only two daily daytime screenings. The crowds were opting to see A Minecraft Movie or Disney’s Snow White instead.
This Easter, The Chosen: Last Supper Part 1 is also being screened, so this marks a rare achievement, with two Christian movies on release in the UK.
Just a few weeks back, I was entranced and challenged by the Bonhoeffer movie that was also shown at some British cinemas. That certainly deserved a much larger audience.
Ironically, The King of Kings should have had added resonance for UK movie-goers, with the Biblical story being voiced by so many British actors, and depicting the Victorian author Charles Dickens telling the story to his son, in his London home.
I’d recommend the movie to other British Christians, especially those looking for a way to engage younger audiences. The animation is excellent, the story is well-paced and deeply moving, and the involvement of a young boy in the story makes it engaging. It was good to see the film during Holy Week as part of my preparation for the Easter weekend.
I think, though, for British audiences the film may have a much larger reach when it is available on Netflix, Apple TV or one of the other global streaming services.
The success of The Chosen has proved there is a large global audience for the story of Christ. But the drift away from cinemas to the streamers means that big screen movies may not have the impact they once had.
I’ve never been one for the big Biblical classics like Ben Hur or The Ten Commandments, and my first brush with Christian movies in the UK was the 1967 film Two a Penny, starring singer Cliff Richard, showing at a local church. I don’t think it was noticed by the Oscar judges!
Then in 2004, I saw Mel Gibson’s epic The Passion of the Christ movie twice. First, at a preview screening at the National Religious Broadcasting convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, when several thousand evangelical delegates were moved to tears. And then, weeks later, at my local cinema, north of London, where I sat in a half-empty studio, and cinema-goers near me ate popcorn and chatted during the crucifixion scenes. Two audiences – two very different reactions.
More recently, I’ve enjoyed Christian movies Unsung Hero and Jesus Revolution on limited release in the UK, but it’s rare for such films to make the multiplex chains.
I wish well all those movie-makers seeking to attract UK cinema audiences to watch Christian films, and I hope they are successful. But I feel it’s going to be an uphill struggle.
Rev Peter Crumpler is a Church of England minister in St Albans, north of London, and a former communications director with the CofE.
