Sam Worthington Attempts a Comeback, Octavia Spencer Plays God in ‘The Shack’

Aryeh Harris-Shapiro

Christianity in film can take many forms. You’ve got your Christian-themed mainstream fare like “Hacksaw Ridge,” and “Silence,” your anti-atheist screeds like “God’s Not Dead,” and your innocuous church dramatic comedies like January’s “The Resurrection of Gavin Stone.” However, every so often, you get a truly weird film like “The Shack,” which blends faith-based platitudes, surreal mysticism and a gruesome serial killer framing device into a singular, must see movie.

“The Shack,” directed by Stuart Hazeldine and written by John Fusco, is a faithful adaptation of William P. Young’s best-selling 2007 novel of the same name. The film stars forgotten “Avatar,” and “Clash of the Titans” leading man Sam Worthington as Mack Phillips, a man whose daughter Missy is kidnapped and murdered by a serial killer in the titular shack. Mack descends into a deep depression until he receives a mysterious card in the mail urging him to return to the scene of the crime. Upon arriving there, he discovers a lush paradise and a trio of strangers led by a woman named Papa, played by Oscar winner Octavia Spencer. The strangers are – of course – the holy trinity, who lead Mack on a spiritual journey that transforms his relationship with the tragedy.

If that seems like a thin premise for a 132-minute film you’re probably correct, although no reviews for the film have yet been released. The film has still managed to garner some controversy without advance press. As with race-blind casting in superhero films, the film’s nontraditional portrayal of god has drawn fire from the religious right. On the Christian News Network, California pastor Joel Schimmel called the film’s casting a “dangerous and false image of God and idolatry.” Film and book alike have also received criticism for promoting universalism, a divisive doctrine that suggests that everyone goes to heaven. It’s a strange amount of noise over a film whose biggest claim to fame is an original song from Faith Hill and cast member Tim McGraw.

“The Shack” opens nationwide on March 3.