Saved!
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| Saved! | |
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| Directed by | Brian Dannelly |
| Produced by | Michael Ohoven, Sandy Stern, Michael Stipe, William Vince |
| Written by | Brian Dannelly, Michael Urban |
| Starring | Jena Malone, Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit, Eva Amurri, Martin Donovan, Mary-Louise Parker |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | January 21, 2004 |
| Running time | 92 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | ~ US$5,000,000 |
| IMDb profile | |
Saved! is a 2004 satirical teen comedy film written by Brian Dannelly and Michael Urban, and directed by Dannelly. It stars Jena Malone, Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit, Eva Amurri, Martin Donovan, and Mary-Louise Parker. It was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia but set in Maryland. Michael Stipe of the band R.E.M. is one of the film's producers.
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[edit] Plot
Mary (Jena Malone) is a good Christian girl who goes to a good Christian high school where she has good Christian friends, mainly Hilary Faye (Mandy Moore), and a perfect Christian boyfriend, Dean (Chad Faust). Her life seems perfect, until the day that she finds out that Dean may be gay. After "seeing" a vision of Jesus in a pool, she does everything in her power to help him turn straight, including offering up her virginity. But none of it helps because Dean's caught and sent to a "degayification" center and Mary ends up pregnant. It's during her time of need that she becomes real friends with the school's set of "misfits," including Cassandra (Eva Amurri), the school's only Jewish girl; Roland (Macaulay Culkin), Hilary Faye's wheelchair-bound brother, and Patrick (Patrick Fugit), the skateboarder son of the school's principal, Pastor Skip (Martin Donovan); whilst Hilary Faye turns her into a social outcast.
[edit] Criticism from conservatives
Saved! has been criticized by some as being anti-Christian, and presenting one-dimensional stereotypes of Christians and youth activities, such as its negative portrayal of the Christian character, Hilary Faye. A reviewer from christiananswers.net quoted as being "a picture of how many people in Hollywood view evangelical believers," in which '"Christians are portrayed as violent and devious" and "depicted as liars, adulterers, and hypocrites" and gave the film a 'moral rating' of "Extremely Offensive"[1]
[edit] Responses to criticism by liberal Christians
The film is quite popular among younger Americans, especially those who are gay or gay-friendly, and among those who were raised by fundamentalist Christian parents.
Supporters of the film, including Rolling Stone, claim that the film was a strong social commentary, and didn't depict all of the Christian characters negatively. An example of one of the film's "good" Christians was Patrick, who according to Slant magazine, held his Christian faith proudly, and was "sweet". [2]
[edit] DVD
A DVD version of the film is available with a director's audio commentary, access to deleted scenes, and some bloopers.
[edit] Trivia
- Jonathan Larson, the author of the Broadway musical RENT wrote the book, music, and lyrics for a musical satirizing the religious right in the 1980's called Sacraimmorality, later renamed Saved!
