The movie adaptation of the best selling book, Blue Like Jazz, is opening at theaters today. The book’s author, Don Miller, was one of the primary people involved in developing the script (so I expect that it will be a good adaptation in contrast to the stereotype of movies not being as good as the book).
I’m a fan of the movie’s director, Steve Taylor. This is something he’s given several years of his life to. They’ve had a difficult time getting support because people don’t believe there is a market for intelligent Christian media. People in the industry think that only inspirational “fluff” will sell to Christians. The hope for Blue Like Jazz is that it will be a catalyst to prove that there are people interested in intelligent, honest films (and other media) about faith and Christianity. In other words, this movie could be important for opening up dialog about Christianity.
My understanding is that the basic plot of the movie has the main character wrestling with the faith that he grew up with. He struggles with the problems of faith, yet eventually retains his belief in God, though it doesn’t look like the traditional, “in-the-box” beliefs he grew up with. Of the movie, lead actor Marshall Allman says, “To me, Blue Like Jazz is a quintessential American story. So many people are just like Don—raised Christian and go off to college only to abandon their beliefs in order to fit in or be accepted. Or like Don, they get burned by the church and live the rest of their life out of resentment toward anything Christian. I was surprised that this story had not yet been told on film, since it’s such a pervasive one in our culture.”
Since the movie is something Steve feels is this important, I’m willing to take a risk and do what I can to support and promote the movie. Since they only have a fraction of the marketing budget of other even independent films, they are relying a lot on word of mouth and social media. It’s important for Blue Like Jazz to have a good opening weekend. If they do, more theaters will show it; if not, it may even get pulled from those which are planning to show it. This is why I’m promoting it so much. So please spread the word. 8 )
Go to Blue Like Jazz to find tickets.
