Monday, December 17, 2007

What Would Jesus Buy

Reverend Billy and his Church of Stop Shopping star in this coverage of the 2006 (?) Christmas season. They tour the country, preaching and singing the message "Don't buy gifts, put love back into Christmas", and generally being escorted off private properties (and occasionally into jail).

Overall, it's a general anti-consumerism film: Wal-Mart is evil, don't buy anything not made in America, small-town America has no sidewalks, etc. Typically, the grey areas of these issues are ignored (What would sweatshop workers do if they weren't employed? Don't Wal-Marts low prices benefit the unemployed and disabled?), so don't expect any depth added to the debate; Reverend Billy's are pure showmanship in service of a simple message.

Still, one character ( I believe it was the Wal-Mart pastor, amusingly enough) made the good point that America has to choose between low prices and high wages; every solution is going to be double-edged. And you have to hand it to Reverend Billy and the choir: he is entertaining, and they are talented.

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What Would Jesus Buy? (IMDB)

Wince : [**___]
Flinch : [_____]
Retch : [_____]
Gape : [*____]

Beerequisite : [**___]
Pornability : [_____]
Obscurity : [***__]
Explicability : [***__]

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