Inchon, Noah, and faith-based filmmaking.

• Author: Krayewski, Ed
• Position: Follow-Up - Religious conservatism in Hollywood

In the October 1984 issue of reason, David Brudnoy wrote that conservatives "have a grudge against Hollywood, and against movie critics, too." But they had failed to create a sustainable alternative. While some movies may contain clear liberal biases, Brudnoy noted, movies funded by conservatives didn't do well. 1982's Inchon, for example, was "the most phenomenal money-loser of all time."

What happened? Brudnoy wrote that Inchon was "virtually impossible to sit through, embarrassing even to those who liked its politics." Better movies, though, didn't necessarily do bigger business; Brudnoy cites 1983's The Final Option, which "stood forthrightly against the left and for the established verities" but bombed in the box office. Brudnoy suggested "the right wing doesn't attend the cinema," and that is part of why conservatism didn't have influence in Hollywood.

Thirty years later, it's still possible to find antipathy toward Tinseltown among the religious right. Darren Aronofsky's epic film Noah elicited negative reactions from some quarters of the religious community before it even premiered. National Religious Broadcasters president Jerry Johnson said he identified an "extremist environmental agenda" inserted into the movie.

The industry periodical Variety reported on a survey by Faith Driven Consumer which found 98 percent of self-identified "faith-driven consumers" weren't satisfied...