Because "Mormon" is already a tag, I figured I might as well review The Singles Ward, which I watched with no small amount of fascination. The Singles Ward is one in a series of Mormon comedies made by two members of the Church of Latter Day Saints. The plot follows Johnathan Jordon, idealistic young Mormon who come home one day to find his wife with beer in the fridge, rock on the radio, and a cigarette in her mouth. She leaves him that day, and Jordon is reassigned to his local singles ward (as opposed to the family ward), a humiliation he can't take. He leaves the church and becomes a stand up comedian, which he pursues until he meets another young Mormon woman who brings him back to faith and good behavior.The movie charts Johnathan's plunge into sin as only a movie made by the devote could. It starts perilously with his purchase of soda, follows him to a blockbuster where he rents all the Die Hard movies, and ends with him flirting at a bar with a woman who is definitely interested in having sex with him (they don't, but...the offer was there). Requiem for a Dream this is not. The filmmakers are sort of like my Amish family. They definitely know sin is out there, but they've definitely never seen it. They describe it with innocence and in hushed tones.
The movie makes a bizarre attempt to emulate the colorful youth / college films of the 80s. We have all the stereotypes: the great looking stars, the crazed goofball who can't stop mentioning how he dropped his car off a cliff, the inseparable band of lovable geeks, etc. etc. etc., all the way down to the final text snippets revealing what shocking/touching/humorous futures await our characters beyond the movie's plot. It takes a truly kind heart to tell oneself that there can be any jokes or surprises here. Everyone marries. Everyone has children. Everyone serves with honor at whatever mission site the church designates.
There is one sort of sad scene in the movie, where Johnathan realizes that his new squeaky clean act won't serve him on the college stand-up circuit. In fact, faith renders his professional life pretty much impossible. I'm not sure the filmmakers ever really took this moment to heart, as the movie ends somewhat optimistically "John and Cammie moved to California, where she became a mother, and he became a screenwriter." I assume John is the author of this very film, and it's hard to imagine that the Mormon movie market can support a family. In a way, it explains why there is a need for distinctly Mormon cinema when we already have a G rating system. If Mormons don't support Mormon screenwriters, who will? Even G movie stars drink Mr. Pibb, a much maligned figure in the singles ward. [Photo: Oh how zany! Has ever such a motley crew been so pious?]
