Machine Gun Preacher Review

As you are probably and unfortunately aware, Machine Gun Preacher is not the tale of a man of god that takes to the mean streets of LA armed to the teeth to deliver some righteous justice and stick it to the man. Along with Hobo with a Shotgun, it’s one of the best exploitation titles you could hope for. In real life, however, Machine Gun Preacher is the true story of Sam Childers, former hell-raising bad-boy, who, after the kind of epiphany only brought on by stabbing a homeless person half to death, turns to Jesus. After seeing the light, Sam begins working in Sudan, caring for the orphans of the war zone.

The DVD release of Machine Gun Preacher is timely, given the recent internet outcry over Kony 2012. The backlash against that video (and to some extent the ‘panning’ Machine Gun Preacher received on its release) is somewhat aggravating; is it important how and why people are made aware of real world issues as long as they are made aware in the first place? The humanitarian disaster happening in Sudan right now is appalling and Machine Gun Preacher should at least be applauded for its largely unflinching and mature portrayal of the crisis.

It isn’t the point of a review to judge how worthy a film’s subject matter is though, and the narrative itself can be somewhat plodding. It also takes director Marc Forster over two hours to tell a story that is in real life on-going, meaning that it’s both overlong and inconclusive. And while Gerard Butler gives a generally rather mature and focused performance, his wild man act at the beginning of the film feels somewhat more like a caricature than a portrayal. Towards the end of the film however, things do get interesting as Sam begins to undertake his mission more aggressively, to the detriment of both his family and his new-found faith.

There’s also able support in the form of Michael Shannon and Michelle Monaghan and Madeline Carroll (whom sharp-eyed readers will recognise as creepy Ben’s childhood sweetheart Annie from Lost) is also rather good as Sam’s daughter.

Machine Gun Preacher is a much more challenging and occasionally more interesting film than perhaps its title and the presence of Butler would suggest. It’s no must-see, but as a competent and sober depiction of a continuing travesty, it more than does its job.