Format

It has a very unique format. It's not quite a documentary, and it's not quite a movie. It cuts back and forth between two formats. One is experts and normal people talking about their struggles with sexual brokenness and how they got out of it. The other part is a modern retelling of the story of the prodigal son. And it doesn't use any words during this retelling. It was a very conscious decision on their part to have this story playing in the background with no words. It made it more relatable, dramatic, and less cheesy.

Not Cheesy

What is it about most Christian movies that make them feel cheesy. They feel inauthentic and they feel very forced because they're trying to convey a certain message in a certain way. The message matters and the authenticity matters.

Heart of Man is very authentic because of the real stories you hear from people. You can see the emotions as they're retelling their story. You can tell that it's still hard for them to talk about.

Jackie

When Jackie was telling part of her story, I teared up quite a bit. She was pushing her boyfriend away, and they were going through a rough time in their relationship. And then her boyfriend just texted her that he loves her. It was cool because she was pushing him away to try to give him a chance to prove that he didn't really love her. And it was an opportunity for him to be a good example of what a man is. She hadn't had any examples of that in her life.

Dr Dan Allender

Dr. Dan Allender didn't share his story, but I just loved the things he had to say. He put things into normal words that I've thought before. It's a great confirmation of who God is and how much he loves people. I really loved his enthusiasm, you can tell he has a passion for this topic.

One of my favorite quotes from him is "Lust is desire gone mad."

The Movie Portion

It's broken down into different scenes that give you a visual language to latch onto. If the movie was just talking heads, I would have walked away thinking that there was some really powerful stuff said, but I can't really remember it. This visual story that is threaded thoughout really cemented the ideas in my mind.

There are some scenes that are really surprising and very powerful. There's a scene where he goes into the water to kiss a woman, and then it turns out that she's actually the leprous skeleton. And there's a scene where he just walks off this massive cliff. He's not even paying attention to the cliff, his eyes are just straight ahead, focused on this island, on this misplaced desire. He's just drawn towards it and directly away from God.

And I just love the cave scene, where God shows up and hands him the new violin. And when God hugs him in the cave, he's getting this gross blood and dirt all over himself, and he doesn't even care. He just wants to hold him. Afterwards he looks up and realizes that there are all of these other people in the cave. He didn't notice them the whole time. And all of them think that they're alone. It's so powerful because it's so true. In our sin, in our struggles, sometimes we just feel so alone.

It's a great lie that Satan tells us, that we're the only one dealing with this, and that we're the only one who has a problem. As long as you belive that lie, you'll think that no one will understand you, that you can't talk to anyone about it, because all you'll get is guilt, condemnation, and more shame.

I love that this is a modern parable. We have the parables in the Bible, but they can feel dated. And it's funny that this feels modern, because it's set in what feels like an ancient setting. Having the visuals on screen help so much.

This movie doesn't hold back. It talks about pornography, affairs, sexual abuse, and everything. And not in a way that glorifies any of those things, but in a way that acknowledges them. It gets straight to the heart of the problem and it goes straight to the hardest problems that we deal with as people.

Even if you don't have problems as hard and the people in the film, you can still relate to the shame. The title is not gender specific, it's more like "Heart of Mankind". Anyone who watches this movie can find something in it for them. It hits a nerve where you realize that you've felt that level of guilt or shame before.

After Show

At the theater there was an after show with some of the people in the film. I really enjoyed the after show, because I felt like I missed some things. I still had some questions. It was more like a conversation, and it felt like a video podcast. I might have enjoyed the after show more than the actual movie and I really hope that it's included when they release the movie.

Leaving the Theater

I just know how many people who have been in church a really long time would watch this movie and leave so angry. And how many people desperately need to hear the message of this movie. This movie is definitely not for children. It's dark, and it was surprising to me how long it focused on the darkness before it gets to the rescue scene. This film is something everyone needs to hear. There is a God who love you radically in a way bigger than you can imagine. What you've done, however far away you've run, however messed up, however dirty you think you are, God still love you. He delights in you. He's a redeemer, he love to redeem. He's not scared of you, he's not disgusted by you.

There is this idea in church that God can't look at sin, he can't be near sin, he can't be around you when you're sinful. And this movie, just blows that out of the water

It made me want to share things with people. It encourages conversation, honesty, and vulnerability. And it made me excited to spend more time with God.