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http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-178629120699935619# (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-178629120699935619#)

^full movie


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGpugekG8go

Marjoe (1972) - if you enjoy stuff like "Salesman" and "Harlan County USA" you should definately check this out. It's not quite as substantial as those but it is really good and won an Oscar. Marjoe gortner is probably best known if he's known at all to people at this site as a pretty nondescript b movie actor. He was in Viva Knieval, Starcrash and the one where the animals eat the potion and get big and everything and the poeple have to fight them.  

Before that he was a preacher of some reknown, most notably when he was a very young boy. He toured the country, ministered weddings,  made an album (http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2007/02/365_days_35_mar.html) and by his estimation also made about 3 million dollars, which his parents, both also evangelists, took.  As this documentary was being made he was in the process of quitting the preaching circuit. He liked aspects of it, the "group therapy" sort of elemnet and the showman ship (he cites Mick Jagger as an infuence and this is very apparent in his performance)  but  is essentially on autopilot: he really doesn't and never did believe in or contemplete jesus when he was up there and despite all outward appearences is basically on a completely different level than his audiences in his life and in these meetings.

It's a shocking claim because he really seems into it when he's doing it and some of what he said seemed profound to me " Jesus sleeps because he was human,  he gives us the peace of mind to sleep because he's divine" something like that. Once the shows are over,  Gortner goes into the phoniness of the whole thing.  He shows how to work up the right frenzy for a spiritual healing, we see him counting the nights money backstage with the other preacher while the marks, I mean revival tent people, are still out there flailing.  He does a hilarious bit where he heals his dog "can God heal a labrador! yes he can!" .  Atheism isn't discussed but  he appears to be not at all religious and expresses no religous sentiments when not in front of the crowd. He sees what he does as purely a business. Perhaps he is just bitter about his childhood or worn out from the work, who knows.

He may not believe but the people at the meetings do and maybe that's all that matters. I doubt this documentary affected attendence in the slightest. They are experiencing some kind of ecstacy that's helping them through their days and these cynical carnival barker predators are giving it to them. The lord works in mysterious ways as they say.

anyway, it's a cool  and fascinating documentary.  I would watch it again.

5/5

Don't forget MARJOE GORTNER was in EARTHQUAKE.   :teddyr: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1LGuolsvkI