Scott: Top 5 Clergy Movies?

[Pseudonym]

Since the question was asked of Emery, it seemed rude not to ask Scott, too.

[NH Baritone]

Since the question was asked of Emery, it seemed rude not to ask Scott, too.

The Exorcist?

[ScottBarger]

That's a tough one. Clergy tend to be stereotyped a lot, and subsequently don't seem to line up with my experience. But here goes (I only came up with four so far):

1) The Exorcist
2) There Will be Blood
3) Because of Winn-Dixie
4) The Apostle

[NH Baritone]

That's a tough one. Clergy tend to be stereotyped a lot, and subsequently don't seem to line up with my experience. But here goes (I only came up with four so far):

1) The Exorcist
2) There Will be Blood
3) Because of Winn-Dixie
4) The Apostle

Do you know the film "Priest"?

[ScottBarger]

I am not sure I do, do you recommend it?

[NH Baritone]

I am not sure I do, do you recommend it?

It is made within the Roman Catholic milieu, but it focuses on the flawed, wounded humanness of a priest, dealing with other flawed, wounded, all-too-human comrades and supervisors. That's a common experience, and you may find it worthwhile.

[mitchellmckain]

Frankly, I have seen too few of these for a top 5. This list is more a matter of coming up with any names of movies in this category and assuming that if I remember them then they were the best. I would not put the Exorcist in this category, but while we are on the topic, I it is Exorcist 2 that I liked, and not any of the others.

Movies
Name of the Rose (starring Sean Connery) Saw this twice and even read the book afterwards.
Nun's story (starring Audrey Hepburn)
Chariots of Fire
A man for all seasons (about Thomas Moore)
Therese (about the Carmelite nun canonized as a saint)

TV series
Cadfael (tv series)
Father Brown (another tv series)

These are others that occured to me but which I don't think I would call clergy movies
Joshua
Dune
Constantine (suggested by my eldest son)
Sound of Music

[Pseudonym]

Name of the Rose (starring Sean Connery) Saw this twice and even read the book afterwards.
[...]
Cadfael (tv series)

I loved both of these, too.

[Brad]

I'm not Scott , but do documentaries count?
If so, here are a couple of waaaaaaaaaaaaay different films about Catholic clergy (if monks can be considered clergy in the second case).

Deliver Us From Evil is a very, very, sad depiction of sexual (which is always psychological, too) abuse by priests, and worse, the efforts by bishops and popes to hide it and to allow for its continuation. Since the movie came out, much more on this has surfaced, of course.

Into Great Silence is a great - and long - film for those with patience, about a monastery and its monks in France, to be brief.
Beautiful film in lots of ways.
I'll bet Pseudonym would dig it, even if nobody else would.

Wait, wait, I forgot!

Non-Catholic docus:

Marjoe - about a Pentecostal scammer named after Mary & Joseph! Preaching from age 3!

And of course, the film evangelicals love to hate, "Jesus Camp."

[Pseudonym]

I'm guessing that Dogma doesn't count, right? I can't recall any actual clergy in that film.

[Brad]

I don't know, George Carlin was a sort of clergyman - of the First Church of Irreverence and the Seven Unholy Words.
Even his comic style was sort of evangelical, no?

By the way, Marjoe Gortner allows in the film about him that he copped his pulpit style from Mick Jagger!
How 'bout you, Scott?

[Brad]

Just to be clear, I certainly didn't mean in my query for Scott above to equate him with the scamming aspect of Marjoe Gortner. I have absolutely no doubt that Scott is 100% sincere in his convictions. I was just joshing / kidding as to whether he might employ any rock & roll swagger in his ministerial style.

The Baptist ministers I've seen generally seem to have obtained their style from some combination of Steven Wright and Larry the Cable Guy, albeit with far fewer jokes...

[KomradRed]

The Baptist ministers I've seen generally seem to have obtained their style from some combination of Steven Wright and Larry the Cable Guy, albeit with far fewer jokes...

But this would imply that Larry the Cable Guy was every funny at all.

[Brad]

Didn't intend to suggest that Mr. Cable Guy was actually funny. In his case, for the sake of accuracy maybe I should have said "attempted jokes."

But if you want to get an idea what I'm talking about, listen to the podcast featuring pastor Danny Edge.
Not that he tried to be funny - just imagine him delivering a joke.
It's in the middle of the book episodes.

But how many ministers/pastors/preachers are actually funny?
Glad to say that I have heard a couple over the years. Talk about comic relief!

But most - lawwwwwwd have mercy!
I used to wonder, when a minister offered up a really pathetic groaner and the congregation laughed, how much of that was due to the people being, let's say, "extremely easily entertained," and how much was that they were just primed to accept and soak up as wonderful and as "the gospel truth" whatever he (always he) said.

[ScottBarger]

"Jesus Camp" is a good one. We actually showed it in church once. Kinda scary though, eh?