Day of Defense

This should stand as a warning to all LDS filmmakers about the perils of crafting films that can logically serve no other purpose than to bolster the belief of those who already believe. I can't imagine a single non-Mormon viewer of this film not coming away as having felt like missionaries had just been in their home. The gaps of logic in this film are so great as to make me question just how faithfully the script writers who adapted the book practice the religion. No missionary would knowingly be sent by the church blindly into this ridiculously perfect little Christian town as some kind of "challenge" if it knew of the strictures on proselytizing, and if the church did know of such a rule, it would never rely on mere missionaries to fight the battle for equal preaching rights. Since the whole point revolves around the missionaries being put on trial to prove they are "Christian" enough to proselytize in the town, it makes me wonder what kind of place has never heard of the First Amendment's freedom of religion and freedom of speech clauses? Indeed, where did the two Mormons go to school that they didn't know it.

And all that is to say nothing of the illogic of the actual trial and methods of "defense" itself. But do yourself a favor, don't go there.