Newgnfr: End of the Spear (2005) Christian film reviews

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August 27, 2008

End of the Spear (2005)

Should I see it?
No.

Short Review: A beautiful, well-shot disappointment.

The story of the film is well known. A group of five missionaries go into the jungles of Ecuador to interact with the Waodani tribe. This tribe is a stone age group who is embroiled in vicious blood feuds that have resulted in untold violent deaths. The Waodani tribe, based on the lies of one of their members, slaughters the missionaries. Later, the wives and children of the missionaries commit themselves to bringing the Waodani to Christ and into civilization. Through the sacrifice of these families, the Waodani leave their savage killing behind and begin to prosper in ways they would never have dreamed.

This is an inspiring story of peace, Christian sacrifice and redemption. This film is none of these things.

On the positive side, this is a gorgeous film with lush scenery. It tends to go downhill from there. The acting is abrupt and far from convincing. The exception to this is Louie Leonardo who portrays Mincayani a strong-willed Waodani warrior who initially refuses the Christian’s efforts and who was a central figure in the killing of the missionaries. Leonardo provides Mincayani with a stoic stance that gives the character the only real natural presence in the film. The rest of the cast either blends into the scenery or overplays their parts. This is not really the actors fault. The script is clumsy and pulls the narrative along too quickly. The actors are stranded holding thin characterizations and uninspired dialog.

As a whole, this piece misses the mark because it doesn’t spend enough time with the characters. This is striking given that this is such a human drama. A group kills a father. The wife and son of the slain man then turn the other cheek and spend their remainder of their lives helping those who took their loved one. This incredible story of peace defines drama. Unfortunately, the script by Bill Ewing, Bart Gavigan and Jim Hanon never fleshes out this drama. We are provided with series of events without tension or depth. The central point is the conversion of the tribe to Christianity. They leave their pagan beliefs behind and begin to infuse the Christian doctrine of peace and sacrifice into their culture. This change is most important for Mincayani, who is shown as being the leader and main antagonist against this new way of seeing the world. The film spends its time building up to his conversion and when it arrives it is mentioned and then skipped. We see his pain over the death of his child, then we fast-forward years to see him wearing jeans and eating a prepared meal with his family at a table. What? Isn’t this like showing the Enola Gay dropping a bomb and then fast forwarding to show Japan in the 1980’s with its burgeoning economy and expanding prosperity? There’s a couple of details left out. Usually I believe films by Christians get too obtuse about presenting conversions. Generally, this is the place where most Christian films fall flat on their faces. The absence of it in this film is a critical mistake. Hanon and company push it aside in favor of a forced scene between Mincayani and the son of the missionary he killed (Steve Saint, now a grown man.) There is much made of the Saint forgiving Mincayani for the murder and this is offered as the moment of importance. While it is certainly a vital piece of the story it misses a point. Mincayani’s salvation isn’t found in Saint’s forgiveness. It is found in Christ's sacrifice on his behalf. To skip over the change in Mincayani’s relationship with God in favor of the change in his relationship with Saint is a mistake and removes a key piece of the dramatic puzzle.

Speaking of Christians being too obtuse in their handling of films, this production does a good job of trying to tell a story instead of preaching. The lives of Christians in many cases can offer good promotion of the faith instead of hitting the audience over the head for ninety minutes. An example of this is when the father (Nate Saint) is asked by his son if he will defend himself if the Waodani attack him. The father calmly responds "No son, we can't. We're ready for Heaven, The Waodani are not." This simple statement sums up Christian thinking without delving into the theology behind it. This film is well managed in showing Christians acting their faith in a way that doesn't come across as pushy.

Since we hold the bar low for them, as a Christian film this is well done. It is technically handled in a professional manner and it doesn't get overbearing with its theology (until the end). However, compared to your usual, everyday movie, it's lukewarm. Director Jim Hanon based this fictionalization on his brilliant and far superior documentary Beyond The Gates of Splendor. This is clearly a case of stopping while one is ahead. My advice is to put off this film in favor of the documentary. I’d further suggest purchasing the documentary to support these filmmakers. You can purchase a copy of the film by clicking on the image below.