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The lights go down and the
screen stays black. Then there is the pounding noise
of thunder, growing louder and louder; the screen
lights up with a burst of lightning, and we see a
man running across an open field. The bolts of lightning
crash all around, and one strikes the ground right
next to him. He falls face down in mud, crying out
in absolute terror, "Save me, St. Anne. I'll
become a monk. Save me! Save me!" It is so realistic
you feel like ducking under your seat and making a
few promises of your own. So begins Luther,
the new movie on the life of the Reformer. It will
be released this Fall, September 26, in 300 theaters
in 55 major urban areas across the country—with
more theaters added throughout the rest of the year.
After the storm, we see
Luther becoming a monk; then the story moves to Luther
celebrating his first mass, trembling in fear at the
moment of consecrating the elements of Holy Communion.
The movie continues with scene after scene in the
life of the younger Luther. It pulls you in and keeps
the drama and action moving to the very end.
The years covered are July
1505 to June 1530. This is the greatest challenge
for the movie. It may also be a chief criticism of
it. How is it possible to fit these twenty-five tumultuous
years into a space of less than two hours? Is there
too much to make sense? What has to be left out? One
can only imagine the agonizing decisions that had
to be made in the process.
This is my only concern
with the movie. Is it too much for the audience to
follow? I am concerned that in fact so much is packed
into it that the movie might tend to be a bit confusing.
I may very well be wrong. Various focus groups of
all ages indicated how they were thoroughly captivated
by the movie and consider it dramatic, moving, and
exciting. One young lady of 22 said that she can't
wait to see it again and will gladly pay to do so
this time. Another person involved in distributing
films professionally in Hollywood, California, said
after seeing the movie, “This is the Lutheran
Braveheart!”
The movie is stunning, dramatic,
powerful, and beautiful. For a Lutheran, the movie
is intensely emotional. The movie takes a few liberties
with the sequence of certain events, and even some
details, for the sake of making sense out of things
for the viewer. Where the movie does portray an actual
event and relates actual details, the level of fidelity
to the actual history is remarkable and powerful.
I came away in awe at the level of detail and historical
accuracy, far more than I expected or even hoped for.
The acting is very well
done by the lead, Joseph Fiennes, who portrays Luther
as a young monk gaunt from his monastic life, profoundly
intense, and passionate about the spiritual care of
souls—both his own and others. Those who play
supporting roles in the film do a very fine job. All
are very authentic and believable, communicating through
voice and expression, the entire range of human experience.
Does the Gospel come through
in this movie? Absolutely, yes. Would I have appreciated
more? Yes, absolutely. Let me hasten to add that it
was breathtaking to hear the Gospel come through as
clearly as it did, when it did. A major Hollywood
distributor said that he loved the movie and wanted
to distribute it, but he had one condition. He asked
for all the "Christ stuff" to be taken out.
It wasn't, thank goodness. I appreciate how the movie
revolves around the theological issues and doesn't
make Luther out to be a social revolutionary, or champion
of free speech, or any of the assorted other misunderstandings
of Luther that are often offered up.
The movie shows Luther's
progress in realizing how in Christ God is a loving
heavenly father, not the harsh judge who is appeased
only through works of piety on the part of the faithful.
I would have appreciated a bit more than what the
movie did, but I cannot help but be thankful for the
Gospel that is in the movie. There is no question
that it is Christ whom Luther discovered.
The moviemakers had to choose
which major events, leading to the Diet of Augsburg,
to show. They therefore chose to leave out the Heidelburg
Disputation, the Leipzig Debate, and the Sacramentarian
controversy. I can’t fault them for these decisions.
Again and again when I think to criticize, I ask myself,
“But what could they have done in two hours that
they didn't do?” I think the decisions on what
to feature and what not to include were, overall,
wise. I'm not sure I agree with a fictitious scene
early in the movie, but for dramatic effect, it was
included.
Luther does a marvelous
job portraying the problems of the church in the 16th
century; the scenes of Luther’s visit to Rome
and the selling of indulgences by Tetzel are absolutely
brilliant. The moviemakers use a fictitious woman
and her child to bring home the personal impact of
the sale of indulgences and Luther's very pastoral
response.
The costumes, location work,
and cinematography are stunning. The historical accuracy
is also impressive. For example, Lucas Cranach’s
paintings are seen in the elector's palace. The relics
on display are very authentic looking, and the costumes
show the stark contrast between the “haves”
and the “have nots.” Those who are aware
of these details will appreciate the depth of detail
in the movie. The movie was filmed on many locations
throughout Europe, and therefore the movie has a level
of realism and authenticity that is very impressive.
The movie shows Luther’s
multifaceted personality, warts and all. The depth
of his spiritual anguish is shown in disturbing reality,
as he writhes in spiritual, emotional, and mental
torment—contemplating a God whom He can never
make love Him and Satan constantly seeking to devour
him. It is painful to watch. Do we take matters this
seriously? But then we see the bold, confident man
of faith, clinging to the Word and standing up courageously
for what the Word of God teaches about Christ and
salvation.
The movie ends with a dramatic
portrayal of the courage of the princes of the German
territories at Augsburg informing Emperor Charles
V of their decision to defend the teachings of Luther.
We can be thankful that
the movie does not pander to “political correctness”
but shows the reality of that period and the faults
and failings of all concerned. Politicians are shown
to be shrewd and wise, but also men of faith and conviction.
Peter Ustinov, as Luther’s faithful defender
Elector Frederick, is simply a delight. He masterfully
shows
Frederick moving toward supporting Luther and defending
him and then embracing his beliefs. The movie takes
liberties with history to show Luther meeting Frederick
and presenting him a copy of the Bible in German,
a powerful moment in the film.
The movie has not yet been
assigned a rating. One would imagine that it will
be a PG-13 movie. The scenes of death in the movie
are graphic. There are no battle sequences, but the
results of the peasant war are graphically presented,
along with several images of hangings. This is not
a movie for younger children, nor should it be. The
portrayal of violence is necessary to show just how
powerful an impact the results of Luther's work and
its misinterpretation were.
Luther is portrayed as uttering
a vulgarity when in the midst of spiritual torment,
a term then that was very common. It may disturb some
to recognize just how human Luther was, but should
it? This movie is dealing with reality, not fantasy.
I applaud the producers for showing us just enough,
but not too much. Some may disagree. The bottom line
is that if one is looking for a G-rated movie, one
that presents an idealized picture of things, one
would be better served by sticking with the 1950s
era Luther movie in black and white. Reality in full
color is something quite better, in my opinion, in
more ways than one.
Reflecting on the movie,
it would be easy to quibble and find fault with all
sorts of things; however, does the movie deliver a
dramatic and engaging portrayal of Luther and his
work? Yes. Does it articulate the Gospel? Yes. Does
it articulate it clearly enough? Perhaps not, nor
as often as we would like, but yet, clearly, it is
Christ to whom Luther is pointed and to whom he clings
for hope and salvation. Christ is named and is the
focus of Luther's work. It is remarkable that the
moviemakers got the Gospel as right as they did. Those
looking for a docudrama may be disappointed, for there
is simply no way a movie that is slightly less than
two hours can deliver that.
This reviewer left the movie
theater inspired, uplifted, and profoundly moved by
the power of this movie. It encouraged me to dig more
deeply into Luther's writings and Luther biographies.
It brought many aspects of the man Luther to life
and lifted him from a cold, printed page to a living,
human reality. Of course, it is still a movie, but
the opportunity to view things in this manner has
greatly increased my interest in learning even more
about Luther. I have spent most of my professional
life studying Luther and reading Luther, and this
movie did not leave me disappointed. For those who
know little about him, I am sure they will be fascinated
as well.
The goals of this movie
were to provide a motion picture that would attract
interest in and present a powerful moment in history,
a moment of high drama with action and emotion to
bring audiences in—and then—once there,
to give them a chance to meet Martin Luther and have
a sense of what he went through. It is that interest
that we can capitalize on to help people learn more
about Luther and his beautiful exposition of the Gospel.
I am convinced that this
movie really will open doors for people interested
in Lutheranism, wanting to learn more about Martin
Luther, his life, and his work. What a great opportunity
for Lutheran congregations! It will provide a valuable
tool for years to come to help portray the essential
truths of the Lutheran Reformation. Many thanks are
due to Thrivent Financial for Lutherans for seeing
this project through to completion.
Luther will be released
on DVD sometime in February 2004, after running its
course in the theaters in the U.S.A. and Europe.
Concordia Publishing House
has a companion
book—a very clear, direct, and simple biography
that will fill in many gaps and articulate much more
clearly the essential truths the movie covers.
Cordially in Christ,
Rev. Paul T. McCain
Concordia Publishing House
St. Louis, Missouri
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