Movie Write-Up: Revelation Road (2013)

Revelation Road is a 2013 Christian movie.

David A.R. White plays Josh McManus, a traveling salesman with a violent past.  Josh has a couple of tussles with a biker gang, and, in one tussle, he fights and kills assailants with unusual speed.  The local sheriff, played by Eric Roberts, wonders if Josh used to work for the CIA.

Josh meets Frank and Frank’s granddaughter Beth, as Josh defended the two from the biker gang at Frank’s store.  At a barbecue, Frank shares with Josh that he himself served in war and did things of which he was not proud, but he found a new beginning by embracing Jesus, and Josh can, too.  Josh responds that he is not religious, and Josh shares that he found salvation in his wife, a Christian woman who loves Josh.

Throughout the movie, there are earthquakes and flashes in the sky.  At some point late in the movie, there is a bright blue light in the heavens, shining on the people of earth.  This is Jesus, who is about to take the saints to heaven in the rapture.  As Jesus is about to do so, he gives some unsaved people a chance to receive him, in a deep voice.  The saints then turn into little blue lights and rapidly ascend to heaven.

After the rapture, Frank’s granddaughter Beth sees a stranger by the road.  This stranger is played by Bruce Marchiano, who has played Jesus in at least three Christian films (and maybe this is a fourth!).  The stranger supernaturally hides Beth while the biker gang rides by.  The head biker senses something is amiss, but he cannot see the stranger or Beth, so he rides on.

Here are some points about the movie:

A.  Frank, the devout Christian and former military man, was played by Ray Wise, who played the anti-Christian ACLU attorney in God’s Not Dead 2.  That was a change of character, especially since his ACLU character wanted to exclude a former marine from sitting on the jury, fearing that the marine would bring his “God, country, family” values to the court case.

B.  A theme that appears more than once in this film is whether people can change.  Josh is earnestly trying to change but finds himself falling back into old patterns.  Josh seeks to avoid conflict with bullies, not because he is a wimp, but because he knows that he can seriously hurt, or even kill, them.  When Josh hears domestic violence in the next apartment and attempts to help the woman, he ends up seriously hurting the husband and father of the family.  It is when Josh is talking to the abused woman that they discuss the question of whether people can change what they are.

C.  The rapture scene was well-executed.  The light blue lights and the soft, eerie music enhanced the scene.  I also like that Jesus was gently and lovingly reaching out to the unsaved during, and after, the rapture.

The movie has sequels.  While I enjoyed this first movie, I will probably wait a while before I watch the next ones.  I don’t want to spend too much money on Amazon, and these $2.99 movies can add up!