Religulous: Dear God, It’s Me, Bill Maher

You have to hand it to dry-witted comedian and talk show host, Bill Maher, for attempting to question and dismantle one of those American topics that is as untouchable as Roe vs. Wade or the legalization of marijuana.  In his mockumentary, Religulous, Maher challenges the often skewed religious views of such questionable figures as television evangelists, Mormons, anti-zionist Jews, Scientologists, and more.  While Maher’s satirical questions during the various interviews are far from objective, his sarcasm isn’t as disturbing as how easily the interviewees are able to contradict themselves in the film.  I have to admit I often found myself letting out a snort of laughter or two-okay several-during the movie.

Some of the more memorable interviews included Pastor Jeremiah Cummings, the former Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes member and founder of Amazing Life World Outreach in North Carolina, decked in Pimp-like bling, whose main source of income stems from the countless donations from his ministry, José Luis de Jesus Miranda who claims he is the second coming of Christ, and Mark Pryor, junior U.S. Arkansas Senator who supports creationism.  Maher even takes a field trip to a Disney-esque theme park in Florida called the Holy Land Experience in which there are reenactments of the crucifixion of Christ.  The film, strategically edited, included humorous cuts to clips from classic films and vintage commercials to help amplify the general silliness portrayed during so many of the interviews.  Much of the film’s satirical quality can also be attributed to director, Larry Charles, who directed Borat.

Interestingly enough, Maher confronts his own struggles and confusion with religion by briefly touching on his religious upbringing as part Jewish and part Catholic.  Conducting interviews with his mother and sister and recounting his sometimes indifferent feelings about religion as a child through photographs and stories, Maher allows the audience to get a glimpse into his religious past.  Maher, whose beady-eyed smirks often give me the impression of an unfeeling pervert, was surprisingly candid and refreshingly honest about not knowing, for certain, whether or not God exists.

With a lack of knowledgeable religious experts, Maher didn’t exactly make his argument a difficult one to dispute, but let’s face it, that probably would have defeated the whole purpose of this documentary.  In a world in which too many people claim to have all the answers when it comes to religion, it’s nice to have a humorous perspective.  If you’re one of those people that claim to have all the answers, this film is probably not for you.  But if you’re over all the ignorance, arrogance, and confusion over something that was intended to bring the world together, definitely check out Religulous.  And while I can’t say for sure whether Bill Maher-the man you either love or love to hate-is wrong or right in his very cynical approach, I can say the film reveals simultaneously what is so sad and funny about religion in the world today.