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i finally got a chance to see the much-hyped, uber-controversial saved!last weekend...my friend craig rented it and loved it so much that he insisted we watch it...i, a self-proclaimed movie buff(paling in comparison to andrew, however) with a slight appetite for anything remotely controversial, of course obliged...i was really hoping i'd like this movie more than i did...i mean i guess it got it's point across and i do have to say that overall it was a pretty decent flick...billed as a comical look at life inside a modern day christian evangelical private high school...it was darn funny in spots (such as mandy moore screaming "i am filled with christ's love" all the while throwing a bible at a pregnant girl)...i'd say it met my expectations going into it...but overall, i'd say if i wasn't a christian and hadn't grown up a christian my whole life and witnessed some of the things that the writers were trying to satirize...it probly wouldn't have been that funny (or relevant really) to me...

it's obvious that it was a satirization...given the extreme nature of all the characters especially mandy moore - the christian "jewel" - and eva amurri (susan sarandon's daughter oddly enough) - the reprobate bad-girl - who both, by the way, gave great performances...macaulay culkin's character was pretty lame overall (if you've seen the movie you'll get that joke)...but no really...macaulay...stick to smokin' weed man...your acting days are pretty much wasted...haha...ok i'll stop with the jokes...then there's jena malone and patrick fugit...they were both likeable enough to be the protagonists...but neither one really overly impressed me...mandy moore definitely stole the show...

whether or not you get the movie really is based on if you have grown up a christian or if you've witnessed anything that they refer to in it...although i'm sure many are familiar with it...but if you've never been to a youth camp and heard a camp speaker trying to talk cool with the kids then you won't really understand why the pastor/principal in the movie is dropping some really outdated slang...or if you're unfamiliar with certain "christian buzzwords" for that matter or the inner trappings of modern day christian schools and the drama that ensues there...alot of what's said will seem trivial and this may seem like a very odd movie to you...

was about  trying to find God and find yourself all the while finding out that the "religion" you've grown up in may not be so real after all...especially when faced with trying times like teen pregnancy, friend abandonment, etc.

given that i think the movie's conclusion was pretty contrived...the whole "conquering human spirit pushing through" type of thing...


######Note: This post is from a very old Xanga blog of mine. A very, very old blog. In fact, it’s practically a museum. Be sure not to touch any old references or links. You won’t break them, they are most certainly already broken.

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Ryan Straits


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Ghost States

The art of the in-between

   Oct 18, 2004 Home Oct 22, 2004