God's Not Dead

College freshman Josh Wheaton (Harper) is enrolled in a philosophy class.  His professor, Jeffery Radisson (Sorbo), is an atheist and requires all students to write "God is dead" and sign the paper so that they can move on to other topics.  All of the students in the class sign the paper, but Josh is a Christian and refuses to sign.  To complete the assignment, Josh will be given 20 minutes at the end of the next 3 classes to present his case to the rest of the class, with them deciding the ultimate victor.  If Josh loses, he will flunk the class.

Professor Radisson is convinced that Josh will not succeed and gives him another chance to get out of the assignment or the class.  Josh's family and girlfriend think he should drop the class and believe the debates are a waste, made to make Josh look foolish.  Josh is determined and seeks the advice of Reverend Dave (White), who encourages him to make a stand.  Josh's decision sends ripples throughout the community, causing others to take a stand.


I went to see this film opening weekend, and sat in a packed theater.  It was a great experience.  The film was much better than I expected it to be; the trailers don't do it justice.  The story is based on actual experiences at college campuses, which scroll across the screen at the end of the film.

The title also comes from a song by the Newsboys called "God's Not Dead (Like a Lion)".  The Newsboys make an appearance in the film, and sing the title song in a concert in the film.  Duck Dynasty Star Willie Robertson and his wife Korie Robertson appear as themselves.

The film was produced by Pure Flix Entertainment and is their first big film, they have released several other smaller films over the years.  The story felt genuine and threw in a few curves along the way.  The cast is great.  Most message boards bash the film, but there is also a huge audience for this film (it did well in the first week of release).

A convicting film, that is definitely worth seeing.

God's Not Dead (2014) 113 minutes
Rating: PG for thematic material, brief violence and an accident scene
Director: Harold Cronk
Starring: Kevin Sorbo as Professor Jeffery Radisson
Shane Harper as Josh Wheaton
David A.R. White as Reverend Dave
Benajmin Ochieng as Reverend Jude
Cory Oliver as Mina
Hadeel Sittu as Ayisha
Trisha LaFache as Amy Ryan
Dean Cain as Mark
Paul Kwo as Martin Yip