The Rapture

This is one of those films that come along in a great while that both enthralls and disturbs you. Mimi Rodgers plays a woman caught up in depressing job as a directory assistance operator with her only escape, the sexual games and encounters she has with her lover. Driven to seek a better life, she is drawn into a religious cult that has her believing the Apocalypse is near. She is chosen by the group to go out to the rugged landscape and wait for a sign from God. What happens there is the remarkable and torturous journey of a woman brought to madness and questioning all that she believes in. This film haunts you long afterwards like witnessing a roadside accident. You are mesmerized by the horror of it while at the same time wanting to turn away. This film is powerful, provocative and deeply moving. A must see for serious film lovers.

The Rapture is one of the most courageous films I have seen in a long time, one of the most daring. It's themes of religion are scary to anyone seeing it, on whichever side you are on.

Mimi Rogers in the lead role is fantastic. She goes from a sinner to a believer to a sinner back again. Since I had never heard of this film before I saw it, I did not know what to expect. It started off very bleak, with amazing dialogue, and as the film goes by it's tone changes. The film also forces us to hear it out, to witness the distressing things that this woman does, yet she is not a villain in any way. The scary thing is that there are actually people like this out there in the world. Here we go back to the focus of the film, God. Obviously a film like this will never get unanimous approval because of the religious subject matter, and because people always have different opinions. Some will agree with the lead character, some might see where she is coming from, others will completely despise her, and in terms despise the film. However, one thing is certain, the film is coming from a group of very talented people. Technically, the film is brilliant, the cinematography very focused and 'normal' at the right time and in the end it shows us another side of the film.

I do not really understand the ending, but this is a film that goes where rarely any films go, and should be seen by anyone. I am surprised I had never heard of it, and while many will disagree because of the actual focus of the film, I think it is really something great.

It's hard to form an opinion about this movie really, since it's hard to say what the movie is actually trying to achieve and say. This also means that the movie is quite an unique one really, which is something that still makes this movie interesting and a good watch.

Thing I'm still confused about is if it was supposed to be Christian propaganda or one that criticizes and openly questions it. That movie does both things really, which also does make the movie more or less unpredictable, which is however also a positive thing though of course. Perhaps this was also exactly what the film-makers were aiming for; confuse its viewers so that they can openly question and think about things and get into discussions with each other. Seems to me that everybody will interpret this movie in their own way and both Christians and atheists can both get plenty out of this movie.

So really no matter how you feel about this movie, you'll still get intrigued by it. This is a great power that this movie has and the foremost reason why I actually ultimately ended up liking it, even though I didn't always understood what was going on exactly.

This is a bit of a problem with the movie. It gets a quite messy one at times and due to its storytelling, we have to take a lot of things for granted. Not everything feels- and flows naturally, which doesn't always make this the most believable movie.

But perhaps it feels a bit off and odd just because the movie is taking such an original approach and features an unique concept in it. Because of that it is hard to compare this to anything we know and are familiar with. It's just a one of a kind movie that you should also take that way. Don't think too much about its storytelling or acting, just focus on its themes instead and you'll see that this is a quite good and intriguing movie.

Christian or atheist; the movie doesn't really pick 'sides' with anyone and everyone will get something different out of this movie.

7/10

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Since I have always been a Christian from childhood and agreeably conspire to my faith today, I am always curious about what causes others to "be saved" later in life. "The Rapture" tells this story with fascinating insights into the modern Christian perspective and what scares the public about its predictions. Mimi Rogers (in a heart-wrenching performance) plays Sharon, a telephone operator who leads a tedious and extremely boring life by day, but resorts to group sex and orgies to add excitement to her nightlife. She discovers Christianity through people pamphleting at her door and other employees in her office she never cared to talk to before. They use the imagery of a pearl to describe their experience of being saved, and Sharon longs to discover what it is about this religion that can bring fulfillment to her own life. David Duchovney, before his stint on "The X-Files," co-stars as Sharon's boyfriend and later husband she meets through her reckless "dates," and whom she induces to join her spiritual quest to find God. After their marriage and birth of their daughter, her faith is tested to intense extemes in ways I would not dare describe, but can honestly say are truly harrowing. I was surprised that, even though I am a devout Christian, I was not offended by this film, what can be seen as a blatantly sacreligious movie. I think every religious individual should see it to get a better understanding of what they conspire to, as well as how others may conceive of their faith. "The Rapture" is not a tame flick, and does not shy away from controversial discourse, but all in all, this is a rewarding picture that gets its viewers to think about their lives and what they believe in. No doubt you will be entranced. Rating: Three stars and a half.

Woah! Rarely does a movie leave me speechless, but The Rapture did just that. It has a lot to say about religion, cults, and the search for meaning in our lives. I definitely don't envy the marketing team who had to try and find a way to advertise this movie to the masses. It defies description or genre altogether. Mimi Rogers is fantastic in the lead role of a woman who's desperately searching for meaning in her life and turns to religion to find it, leading her down a very dark and scary road.