God's Army

Although imperfect, God's Army gives a pretty good idea of what it's like to be a Mormon missionary

Minor spoilers

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints often get the short end of the stick when it comes to portrayals in film. For years, there have been only two kinds of "Mormon movies": movies made by the Church itself, and movies made about the Church by others. Neither of these usually make for a good moviegoing experience for Church members—Church-made films are usually designed specifically for proselytization (see Legacy), and movies made by those outside the Church are often wildly inaccurate, defamatory or both (see Orgazmo—or rather, don't).

Enter Richard Dutcher, a young LDS moviemaker who believes it's time for Mormons to tell some of their own stories. Dutcher, through his company Zion Films, wants to prove to his fellow Mormons and the general moviegoing public that there is a niche market available for films about visibly LDS characters. God's Army is his first film, and considering what Dutcher is attempting—the Herculean task of creating a whole new film subgenre—it is remarkably successful.

The title appears to be derived from the old Christian hymn "Onward Christian Soldiers," in which one of the verses declares, "Like a mighty army moves the church of God." Unsurprisingly, then, this film is centered around a group of Mormon missionaries serving in one of the Los Angeles missions. The focus is on Elder Brandon Allen (Matthew Brown), a greenie missionary from Kansas with problems of his own. Leaving behind a troubled family and a stepfather in prison, Allen is shaky in his own faith; he has gone on a mission largely because he feels it is expected of him.

The mission president swiftly pairs Allen up with Elder "Pops" Dalton (Dutcher), who at 29 is the oldest missionary in the district. Dalton is particularly gung-ho—on their way home from the airport, he hops out in a random neighborhood to start Allen out door-to-door "tracting"—but there's something about the sincerity of his attitude that, despite his zeal, makes him a likable character. He starts by teaching Allen the basics of missionary work—that their job is only to present the message, not to convert others ("the Spirit converts").

In Dalton there is an aspect of the missionary experience that is largely invisible to those outside it—a strength of faith that spurs one to action. If Dalton did not fervently believe what he was teaching was not only true, but vitally necessary for others to hear, he never would have gone on a mission in the first place. As the audience soon discovers, Dalton doesn't have long to live; had he stayed home or checked into a hospital, he could have prolonged his life—but his chosen priority is to make the gospel of Christ available to as many people as he can before his time comes to die. Regardless of your chosen belief or unbelief, this character displays a certain nobility, a quality existentialists might describe as authenticity. His actions are backed by the power of his faith.

Dutcher's directing style keeps the candy-coating to a minimum and focuses on the storytelling—the missionaries have some antagonistic encounters, they sometimes say the wrong things, they goof off. One is made aware of the fact that there are teenage boys under those white shirts and ties, most of them nineteen or twenty years old. Many of them have never lived away from home before. They're immature, nervous, unsure, sometimes afraid, and several are shaky in their faith. One elder finally loses his religion and bolts for home. This isn't a film you'll see in the Missionary Training Center. But one of the things I keep hearing from people who served a mission is that God's Army most closely resembles what the day-to-day missionary experience is really like—right down to Sister Fronk (Jacque Gray), the attractive but antagonistic sister missionary.

Of course, the film doesn't get every detail perfect. These elders have a lot more time to goof off than most full-time missionaries do, and one might get the impression that every L.A. convert is baptized in the Pacific Ocean rather than in the far more common baptismal font. A scene where a miraculous healing takes place is somewhat overdone, even if you believe—as I do—that such things can and often do happen in the Church. Also, it's not always clear who the target audience is—Mormons don't need all the clarification provided in some expository scenes, and non-Mormons may get lost in the LDS jargon and miss some in-jokes ("Sandoval the Lamanite" comes to mind). Despite these minor weaknesses, Dutcher appears to have hit the mark, creating a film made for and about Mormons that is also attractive to sympathetic non-Mormons. His hunches regarding a niche market also seem to have paid off—this little indie film, produced on a $300,000 budget, has grossed over $2.5 million in limited release. I expect to see good things from Zion Films in the future.

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