User reviews

This is a great movie; I enjoyed it very much.

Being a movie nut and all, I have to say that that the production quality was top notch. I saw no glaring continuity problems, the camera work was well done and the "designs" were fabulous (costume, scene, etc.). I also think the script was terrific. As one other reviewer noted, the scripts and acting in some "Christian" films showing at regular cinemas in recent years has been a bit rough. Not in this movie; it's all great.

I was there. In the years 1971 to about 1973, I sat in the front pew (if there were space for me) in that church in Riverside, CA (aka All Saint's Episcopal Church) within 20 feet of Greg Laurie (sometimes being amazing at the length of his beard). I had some of those tracts he designed and I listened to Love Song and many of the other popular bands of the day. I went down with a bunch of kids from the Redlands/Yucaipa of So. CA; we went to our own church services, at various churches, in the morning then we would jump in several cars (yes, one was a VW van) and drive to Riverside for the evening service at All Saint's Episcopal Church with Greg (and the bands, of course). The song book we used (illustrated by Greg), the tracts, the cassette and 8-track tapes for sale, were all Calvary Chapel and Maranatha! Branded. It was a heady time and deserves a place in American religious history.

I thought all of the acting was great. I especially loved Kelsey Grammar in the role of Chuck Smith. When, I heard he was going to play Chuck, I let out a loud YES! Of approval. He was an excellent choice. I simply thought that, yes, he could do it. He could pull off Chuck Smith.

As the movie began with a very accurate presentation of the time, I expected the movie to continue that way so I was disappointed at parts in the middle and end that seemed to take "artistic" license with some of the events, people and locations.

The movie avoided some tough stuff; which was probably the right thing to do, maybe leaving it for a future movie or book. I'll avoid specifics not to spoil things for those who have not yet seen the movie but trust me, there was some tough stuff to the movement too.

I loved this movie. It took me back. And it adds to the record and the significance of the Jesus Movement in American religious history.

Like much of the Christian drama genre, Jesus Revolution suffers from lots of stilted, VERY on-the-nose dialogue that prioritises getting the message across over sounding natural.

But unlike most of the Christian drama genre, the film is shockingly well-focused, prioritising it's characters and their stories just as much as it's religious messages that do admittedly preach to the choir.

There's a lot of care put into this movie; it's shot and acted with plenty of artistic prowess, and the story is refreshing in how it is purely centred around its flawed human characters as they work on their broken lives, bad habits, and strained relationships.

The familial element of religion is what helps them find the purpose they're looking for, and it's refreshing to see a Christian film that really tries to tell a compelling story about fleshed-out characters rather than just peddle a message without a beating heart and visible soul.

Although the film is too long-burdened by repetitive scenes that don't add anything new to the story-and the dialogue is often clunky and unintentionally silly, I was impressed with how much this does right when it comes to filmmaking and storytelling. It's infinitely better than most in this subgenre.

I was pleasantly surprised by this film; it was a Faith-based Christian film that didn't feel like it was trying to get me to drink the Kool-Aid (and I say this as a devout Christian myself). And although the Christian Faith is central to the film's plot, you absolutely do not need to be a Christian to enjoy it. The movie centers more on how we all are imperfect - broken - and it's up to us to believe in Jesus or not. Great quote from the film: "Don't be so arrogant that you think God can't work through your mistakes." That, in a nutshell, is the core meaning of this movie; it's not so much about who Jesus is, but rather, who people are (or can be) with Jesus.

Nostalgic and relevant! Love the way the people are portrayed. This is not just good Christian filmmaking it's just good filmmaking. The people are flawed, real and multi dimensional. The story is well worth watching. And it is a true story. Times were so similar to today. The Holy Spirit is thriving. Even if you are not a Christian, you'll like the film. Young people will be able to see what their grandparents were like. As in the movie, we can still learn from each other and we all need acceptance and love. It's better than the competition this weekend (Cocaine Bear. Really?) Give it a shot you won't be disappointed.

I watch a lot of Christian movies, I found this one to be the least cheesy christian movie out there. I appreciated the Humor and the message of repentance and love.

I love Calvary Chapel, I enjoyed the constant moving of the story and I never felt it was boring or preachy at parts. I appreciated the realness of the movie and I think anyone regardless of their background can see this movie and enjoy it! I liked that it showed the flaws in everyone and it was a raw movie.

I did not give it 10 stars cause there was some historical inaccuracies in the movie itself.

Overall I recommend this movie and think it is a wonderful movie!

Great trip to the movies 2/2023. Kelsey Grammer and Jonathan Roomie provide the foundation for this very well done film on the Jesus movement. It shows that Christians are not perfect and that life is rough, but that there is an answer to the questions of life.

There is a balance of character development when Greg and Cathe become prominent in the telling of the early days of the "Jesus Revolution".

It is beautifullybfilmed and the soundtrack had some iconic 60s songs that supported the themes being developed -- desperation and the search for truth even when life gets messy.

There is so much in this film that those who seek truth will find it.

Jesus Revolution is a faith-based drama that tells the story of how a group of hippie teenagers in California became part of a nationwide spiritual awakening in the early 1970s. The film focuses on three main characters: Greg Laurie (Joel Courtney), a rebellious youth who finds his purpose and calling as a preacher; Chuck Smith (Kelsey Grammer), a conservative pastor who welcomes the long-haired newcomers into his church; and Lonnie Frisbee (Jonathan Roumie), a charismatic leader who struggles with his own demons.

The film has some strong points, such as the authentic recreation of the era, the sincere performances by the cast, and the uplifting message of grace and forgiveness. It also shows how Christianity can be relevant and inclusive to people from different backgrounds and cultures. However, the film also suffers from some weaknesses, such as an uneven pace, a lack of depth and nuance in some characters and themes, and a tendency to gloss over some of the darker aspects of the movement. The film sometimes feels like a disjointed collection of scenes rather than a coherent narrative.

Jesus Revolution is not a bad film, but it could have been better. It is a movie that will appeal to fans of faith-based cinema and those who are interested in learning more about this historical phenomenon. But it may not satisfy those who are looking for more complexity and realism in their dramas.

Even if religion isn't an important part of your life this movie is spectacular in many ways. It begins with two different storylines which connect together seamlessly. The aspect of it that it excels in the most is that it shows how groups of people who appear to be pushing in two different directions can both be genuinely searching for the same goals and the good life. The movie examines the pitfalls of nihilism and absolute relativism but also how being closed minded to possibilities and ideas can be limiting. All of these themes are displayed without the movie trying to force upon its audience any particular set of religious beliefs.

Not only does the story have good pacing, it has just the right amount of humour, and the camera shots of the California coast are nostalgic and stunning. The acting is also quite good with Kelsey Grammer and Jonathan Roumie both delivering exceptional performances . The love story also feels reasonably organic and the soundtrack on its own is 10/10.

The only downside to it for me was that some scenes needed a bit more variety in their presentation. The latter half of the film seemed mostly filled with what I would call epic speech making and not so much natural dialogue. For those like myself who were fully engaged in the story this probably wouldn't be an issue, but for those not particularly enjoying themselves it could come across as rather corny and artificial.

Overall, I am a huge fan of this movie. I think it has a wonderful message of hope and love while also encouraging order and structure. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a feel good movie that sends you away feeling optimistic.

Jesus Revolution tells an interesting story about the confluence of the hippy movement and religion in the late 1960s in California. It's a fascinating story, but I just don't think this film does a very good job of telling it.

The main reason for this is that there are almost too many 'main' characters. The film seems unable to settle on a protagonist, and had they done so it might have felt like a tighter narrative with more impact. As a result I found it hard to get truly invested in any of the characters as they felt too poorly fleshed out.

Still, the film does have a lot of ground to cover and there were quite a few influential figures to navigate, so perhaps I am being a little harsh. A lot is crammed in and for the most part it does all land.

The performances are all pretty solid, particularly Kelsey Grammer and Jonathan Roumie, with their relationship and interactions forming the more interesting parts of the film.

I also thought that the message of the film was conveyed quite well, even if the events weren't translated that well onto screen. The essence of what the movement was and the feeling was captured very well, and despite not being religious I did find myself swept up in certain moments and feeling quite emotional.

Despite there being a few missed opportunities, this is a decently enjoyable watch with lots of great moments. I do think it is a bit messy and could have done with maybe 15 minutes more to get into some of the characters and events in more depth, but this film is really more about the feeling and that is conveyed well enough.

This is how you make a Christian movie.

This is how you make a movie that makes a person think and feel a certain way when you leave the theater.

Like i've said many times, i rate movies by what they are suppose to accomplish and not the other hyped up things that dont matter.

This movie hits the nail on the head perfectly (for me anyways). It preaches to ALL audiences saved or not, and makes you think and makes you FEEL what the writer wants to say without hitting you over the head with a bible and losing 99% of the audience.

Very well written.

Very well acted.

Great sound track.

Awesome cinematography.

Didn't feel intrusive or too 'preachy'

It was a little preachy, but not in the same way most christian movies are.

I didn't know coming into this that this was also about Greg Laurie and his beginning. It didn't affect anything for me. Actually, it fit perfectly for me.

Watch this. You will NOT be disappointed.

It's a religious revival drama set from 1969 to 1973 in Costa Mesa, California. It recounts the early history of the Christian Jesus Freak movement from the perspective of one of its early leaders.

The movie begins on two tracks that gradually merge. Chuck Smith (Kelsey Grammer) is the middle-aged pastor of a small non-denominational Calvary Chapel composed chiefly of elderly parishioners. He's out of touch with his daughter, Janette (Ally Ioannides). One day Janette brings home a hippie, Lonnie Frisbee (Jonathan Roumie), who has struggled with drugs but is now a fiery charismatic Christian with a strong Pentecostal bent. The film follows Smith's gradual integration of Frisbee and his friends into his church, which gradually explodes with non-traditional young people searching for a more long-lasting truth than drugs.

The parallel story follows Greg Laurie (Joel Courtney), the teenage son of a dysfunctional alcoholic mother (Kimberly Williams-Paisley). Greg goes through his own druggie period, during which he meets Cathe Martin (Anna Grace Barlow). Cathe leaves the drug culture first, and eventually, both are attracted to Calvary Chapel because of the charismatic Lonnie Frisbee.

"Jesus Revolution" follows some of the conflict and rupture between Chuck Smith and Lonnie Frisbee and takes us to the beginning of Greg Laurie's ministry at age 20.

"Jesus Revolution" was better than I anticipated. The editing and cinematography are of good quality. However, the script is relatively narrow and avoids addressing some key questions. It paints the conflict between Smith and Frisbee as personality differences and Friebee's hogging the spotlight. In actuality, their theological perspectives were very different. Frisbee believed in miracles and speaking in tongues; Smith did not. The film also avoids controversies that arose later around Frisbee, who also helped inspire the later Vineyard movement. The film ends at the apex of the Jesus Freak movement in 1972, after which it began a relatively swift decline. Smith and Laurie remained more subdued and ended up in the Southern Baptist Convention. Unfortunately, Kelsey Grammer looks the 20-years-older than the man he is portraying; someone else should have played Chuck Smith.

Thankfully, "Jesus Revolution" sticks to storytelling and does not try to convert the viewing audience. Persons with an evangelical background from the early 1970s might well enjoy this historical review.

I struggled to put into words for a while why I didn't like this movie until realizing that it would have been better as a documentary. I was told that it wasn't preachy compared to other Christian movies. I beg to differ. I have an unlimited movie viewing account for regal so I gave it Jesus Revolution try despite not being religious. That said I was a Christian and was raised within Christianity in California in a non-denominational church which had some members who had a similar idea of Christianity as many of the hippie Christians in this film.

Overall I had nothing bad to say about the cinematography, directing, acting or editing. My issue was with the writing and content of the movie itself.

No character outside the Jesus Movement in the movie seems to raise many of the questions and concerns I had about the movement. The story seems to go after the boring puritanical Christians and the more traditional hippies of that late 60s/early 70s era who are all about the sex, drugs and rock and roll, by presenting the "Jesus hippies" as the mid-way solution. I appreciate people having the freedom to be "Jesus hippies", but to me the movie did seem to be preaching Jesus hippies and a specific brand of Christianity as the answer to people's problems and societies problems. And in the movie their "proof" was that the movement became popular and was featured in a Life magazine by a writer who was surprised how interested he became in the movement while covering the movement.

It reminds me of that Super Bowl ad from a few years ago trying to conflate a need for Christians finding a central common ground with American finding a common ground. As a proud citizen of the U. S. who doesn't identify-with or worship either side, it feels annoying to be shown that combining the two sides is "the answer" to establishing peace for humanity (or the country in the case of the Super Bowl as). There is never an attempt by any of the Christian characters to really address a lot of the more outdated and troublesome claims in the Bible, like misogyny or God condoning slavery and God or Jesus never claiming it to be be wrong. They also never address why anyone should treat a historically alleged "holy book" as "holy" in the first place. I guess my thought is that if the movie wanted to preachy, they should have better committed to being preachy rather than the subtle preaching displayed in the movie. And if they didn't want the movie to be preachy, they should have better defending an understanding that many hippies felt better off not being Jesus hippies and planty of people felt better off not being Christians or their brand of Christian. And there is no real proof that someone's life or afterlife will be ruined by not being a hip Christian.

Another issue I had was that a character who is shown joining the Jesus movement is shown shortly later trying to lead another congregation without any scene devoted to showing him actually learning anything about the specific claims of the religion he joined. I feel the average Christian in the United States would get very annoyed if another religion was presenting in such a manner where someone has an experience which they interpret as mystical, and then later they are shown preaching that religion which they attributed as being mystical without the character ever shown learning or even addressing any of the actual tenets and claims of the religion besides being baptized. It felt like the movie wasn't sure if it was trying to recruit non-Christians or comfort existing Christians. And IMO it really would have been better off objectively discussing the Jesus Revolution like a documentary.

Absolutely amazing and powerful in every way. The actors were perfectly matched to their characters. Stories were woven and tied together and brought to life. Many moving and emotional scenes.

Script was real, period music and wardrobe, and again, absolute perfection in every way.

I just hope people will not be turned off before they even see it just because of the title. For us Christians, especially who attend a Calvary Chapel church, to see how it all came together.

The movie is so well done, that you can't help but feel the overwhelming power of it and leave feeling much better than when you walked in. We needed this movie to be done and shared on the big screen.

First, I'd like to say that I love God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Having said that, on the other hand, I cannot stand much of the hypocritical and bigoted religious preaching and narratives. And this is the problem with most films with God, Christ or religious themes, they always fall into the same trap of the corny and manipulated way of telling a story, because religion itself, unlike God and Jesus Christ, tends to be hypocritical and prejudiced, and this film, even though it's a true story, prefers to be religious than Christian.

Cinematically is excellent, from the photography and editing, to the direction, filters and production, everything is impeccable, the only things that fluctuate a little are the soundtrack (excellent songs from the 60s and 70, but terrible original score) and some actors, where we have great performances by Jonathan Roumie, Kimberly Williams-Paisley and Kelsey Grammer against very weak by Joel Courtney, Anna Grace Barlow and Ally Ioannides.

If cinematographically it's in a high level (which justifies me not giving it a very low rating), conceptually it's more of the same among religious films, hypocritical, corny and empty, which is a shame, because as a Christian I'd like to watch higher content in terms of true human nature and spirituality.

Starting with the characters, 99% white and 100% heterosexual, and ending with the true story itself, which omits that Lonnie Frisbee was homosexual and drug user and that Greg Laurie was an anti-LGBT radical, the film opts for a vaseline and superficial script, which once again tries to convert people into the concepts of social hypocrisy, typical of the vast majority of the churches of the world.

I may be wrong, but my way of seeing God and Christ is very far from this proposal, much more focused on the concepts of love, truth and spirit than religious dogmas and social prejudices, even though I have often admired some specific ceremonies and religious texts, as well as I really like sacred art and music.

8 out of 10 for the cinematographic quality itself and also for the courage to make a film involving God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit at a time when mankind is increasingly distancing itself from spirituality and treating spiritual things as crap, and 1 out of 10 unfortunately for choosing the manipulated and hypocritical regiligious/church path once again. Trying to strengthen the pros more than the cons: a final 6 out of 10.

We all know many faith based films are well-intentioned but poorly executed. However, this movie avoids the usual pitfalls of the genre, and it also unexpectedly offers Kelsey Grammer's best performance of his long career. I was VERY skeptical when I first heard Grammer was going to play Chuck Smith, but I was stunned by how well he portrayed the famous pastor. Grammer really proved me wrong and I'm very glad to say so!

The movie took seven years to come to the screen but it came at a particularly opportune time, with the public interest in Asbury going viral. And it is the right film for this particular time, as it doesn't settle for mere nostalgia, but it fleshes out the full story of the movement through following one of the main players of the movement, Greg Laurie.

In short, this is the right movie at the right time.

It's the height of hippie culture in the late 60's and early 70's. Southern California pastor Chuck Smith (Kelsey Grammer) looks on in dismay with the younger generation. Time Magazine asks, "Is God Dead?" Chuck asks God to send him a hippie to explain it all. His daughter Janette (Ally Ioannides) brings home Jesus loving hippie Lonnie Frisbee (Jonathan Roumie). Meanwhile, Greg Laurie (Joel Courtney) leaves the ROTC and rebels against his single mother (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) to follow beautiful Cathe (Anna Grace Barlow) on a journey of self-discovery.

This is the true story of the religious revival growing out of the 70's hippie culture in California. It does feel a bit meandering around the midway point. I couldn't figure out where the story is going to end. Some reorganizing could generate a better dramatic flow. Lonnie's mania needs some foreshadowing which would help the story. This probably needs to be more about Greg. It's a pretty good Christian film.

I was about 5 years too young, on the other side of the country in New York, and under the deceptive influence of the Roman Catholic Church. Glad I could watch this movie and see what I missed.

Being a hippie at heart, I enjoyed the nostalgia. What moved me, was how you could see the hand of God through everything. There are no coincidences with God. It showed how God can take the most unlikely, broken people and transform them into messengers of His love, power, and salvation. It's the movement that birthed the Calvary Chapels and Pastor Greg Laurie, who's depicted in the movie.

Every church should go see it. I pray that it starts a new Jesus Revolution - we need one NOW!

I was real interested to see this film. The presence in cast of Kelsey Grammer and Jonathan Roumie was the main premise , like, in same measure, the subject.

But, against beautiful work of Joel Courtney, I was not exactly convince or seduce or enthuasistic about Jesus Revolution. No doubts, being Greek Orthodox, I do not feel very well Neoprotestant believes and their expressions.

For me, this movie, off course good intentioned, remains a sort of salad, mixing family troubles, romance, Christianity, conflicts, enthusiasm, preaches , miracles, selfishness, the hippy spirit and the American christian movement of 1970.

Maybe, too much .

But, off course, I am more than subjective. Good points- the hard effort of actors to give credibity to their characters and the scenes with Jonathan Roumie and Paras Patel.

Jesus Revolution: the flagship Christianity film of the year. I rarely watched faith-based on the account that they are usually preachy, not entertaining, have the wrong focus/shame the audience, and are just bad movie experiences. This one I very much enjoyed as a picky movie watcher.

Jesus Revolution is centered on its accuracy to the movement with a little bit of embellishment here and there, or is it? Most viewers were not part of the Jesus movement during that time. I can assure you however, that it was far different and more impactful (in different ways) than presented. Christianity is, and always will be the most difficult film to pull off.

It's always difficult to film "spiritual experiences" when you're not actually filming the Spirit at work. It will ALWAYS feel fake, not much you can do there. This is the biggest barrier for non-Christians that watch this film. It will feel foreign, dangerous, and culty. The question is, is this movie for lukewarm Christians, on-fire Christians, or is it an evangelistic tool?

Movie aspects: Sound design was seamless. Soundtrack was noticable but probably the weakest part of the film. Cinematography was excellent, save for the drug trip scenes (it was obvious many of the folks working on it could have benefitted from listening to several people talk about their trips in detail). The editing could be a lot better, however. Significantly better than past Christian movies. The script was standard. A little messy trying to follow three stories, but considering how the cards were stacked against the writers they did better than any writer I know. Some lines made me cringe, but that's in the nature of any kind of movie that is based on drama more than anything.

For the budget (15 million based on Wikipedia) this is a masterclass of excellent filmmaking on a lower budget.

If you're a Christian, I recommend Jesus Revolution any day of the week. It will convict you, entertain you, and encourage you. If you're not a Christian, you may not enjoy this movie if you're caught up in "this movie is trying to convert me". It is, but so is every other movie. If you haven't enjoyed a Christian film in the past, proceed with caution. 7/10 for a solid, enjoyable movie experience.

"Jesus Revolution" is a 2023 movie based on a true story about how hippies in California began a movement towards Christianity in the late 1960's. I do want to point out that the trailers seem to bury the lead of this movie. Most trailers are advertising this by its biggest name star, Kelsey Grammar. It sells the movie on the idea that the story is about Grammar's Chuck Smith learning to be more accepting to unfamiliar people. That is not the movie we are getting. The main protagonist and POV character of the movie is not Chuck Smith nor Lonnie Frisbee, it is Greg Laurie, played by Joel Courntey. That is not a spoiler for the movie, that is just me being up front to the audience, unlike the trailers.

The movie has its fair share of heart-warming moments, offset well by its darker more melancholy scenes. The actors all do a good job in their roles. And I admire the fact that the movie does not shy away from showing all of the characters' flaws. At times, based on true story movies can be afraid to show their heroes in unflattering lights, out of fear of offending the real-life counterparts. In this movie, as in real life, nobody is perfect. Everyone has their flaws, and that helps them be more engaging characters. By showing faults on both sides, the movie doesn't feel like it is pushing that "hippie-ism" is 100% right nor that Christianity is 100% perfect. The characters are just people searching for the truth.

I admire their attempt, but in execution this movie is flawed. It feels like there are one too many subplots going on in this movie. There are characters that completely disappear from the story, and when they pop in again later, I have to remind myself, "oh yeah, Chuck Smith has a daughter." The movie is a little all over the place as far as the story goes. One minute it is focused on Chuck Smith, the next on Frisbee and finally settles on Gary. Like many based on true story movies, the story we get feels incomplete. Some characters have changes of hearts for reasons we don't get to see. Character progression is delegated to off-screen growth. With the two hours the movie has, it just doesn't feel like they used their time wisely.

It may not be a perfect film, but I feel its heart is in the right place, it can repent of its sins and find salvation someday.

I came in expecting a decent, well acted Christian film based on the reviews that I had read. I left, moved to tears. The acting was superb. The script was excellent. The music was great more importantly, the story was powerful. This is not your average low budget Christian film. It wasn't cast with one decent actor, surrounded by fillers.

Each actor held their own. I felt like I was experiencing firsthand the Jesus revolution that started in California and spread across the country.

It also didn't paint a completely rosy picture of that movement. It was filled with excitement, drama, and even real disappointments. I would highly recommend this movie to any Christian and non-Christian alike.

On the entertainment hand, I found the movie to be pretty well cast and scripted, a "feel good" movie with a few tugged heartstrings. Though the actors' ages jibe poorly with the actual characters' ages at the time of the events pictured, the cast was still pretty believable. The actor portraying Lonnie was too old for the character but it was a minor distraction.

On the factual side (since the movie identifies as documentarial in nature), I feel like the movie whitewashed its main characters into a ministry of "all are welcome, open heart, open doors" when that isn't quite true. Evangelical Pentacostal at the root, faith-healing, speaking in tongues, anti LGBTQ, association with Billy Graham Crusades, Southern Baptist Convention and some pretty right-leaning messages broadcast via mega churches and the Trinity Broadcasting Station leave me convinced, as usual, that the real reason churches in general continue to proliferate is to generate wealth for a few at the top of the pyramid and keep the sheep in the audience hypnotized by lulling messages.

Do some research on Chuck Smith, Lonnie Frisbee, and Greg Laurie, as well as Harvest Christian Fellowship and Harvest Crusades. This movie leaves a lot out of the real history of Chuck & the kids.

Watchable, but with a spoonful of salt.

*For the record, I'm an old white lady who walked away from a Pentacostal church as a teenager and, after decades of searching for a spiritual home, find myself happily identifying as agnostic. Go ahead and come at me, I'm too old to give a crap.