Reverend Billy and his Church of Stop Shopping are of the opinion that the masses have an opiate other than religion. And if it’s the merchandise that keeps us in line, then there is no time of year when we binge on our fix of choice like the holiday season. Bank accounts and credit card statements across the nation can do the testifying for us on this point. And so it is at the most appropriate time of the year that What Would Jesus Buy?, Rob VanAlkemade’s documentary on the Reverend and his cross country crusade to avert the “shopacalypse”, comes to theaters. If only the film itself was as worthy as its cause.
VanAlkemade’s film follows the Reverend Billy, née Bill Talen, an actor who got so fed up with the Disneyfication of Times Square a decade ago that he added a white collar to his catering uniform and began preaching the anti-Disney (and soon, anti-consumerism in general) gospel on New York Subway platforms and in guerrilla protests in stores. He gained a following, further developed his character, complete with a bleached-blond and securely Aqua-Netted televangelist’s pompadour, and is now the head of a fully functioning non-profit, plus a gospel choir and band nearly four dozen strong. In 2005, the group embarked on a month long trip all around the country (on two bio-diesel buses), culminating in a march through Disneyland’s Main Street U.S.A. that got Talen arrested and banned from all Disney facilities for life. Cameras followed them from start to finish.
If a political documentary focused on a month-long staged exercise to raise awareness of a corporate evil sounds familiar, look no further than the film’s executive producer. Morgan Spurlock, the writer, director and unfortunate McDonald’s feaster of Super Size Me has enjoyed continued success with the “30 Days” format through his FX television series, and VanAlkemade doesn’t stray far from the formula: follow your subjects on their canned quest, and sprinkle liberally with factoids and interviews with pundits and people who can illustrate your point.
Photo Credit: Fred Askew
