Matthew Chapman

Outspoken atheist, and great-great grandson of Charles Darwin (“The Origin of Species“), Matthew Chapman has written and directed a new film called THE LEDGE (Charlie Hunnam, Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler, Terrence Howard). He hopes that it will be the BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN for atheists. He says that this movie is an “emotional appeal…for people in the middle of the country questioning what it’s all about” and for people to see atheists in a more positive way.

The film follows an atheist named Gavin who gets to know a married couple, Shana and Joe. After a heated debate about God and faith where Gavin is insulted by Joe’s evangelical Christian and holier-than-thou views, Gavin decides to seduce Joe’s wife. Joe finds out about the affair and gives Gavin an ultimatum: either Gavin kills himself by jumping off a building ledge or Joe will kill his wife. Ideas about where morality really comes from and whether there is an afterlife are explored.

What I find fascinating about this film and its intentions is that it can’t exist without attacking Christianity. By its very nature atheism is a belief in nothing. Which means that it can’t stand on it’s own. It can only stand in opposition to something else. Therefore, a protagonist who fights for this ideal, also believes in nothing. That doesn’t sound very exciting or interesting. But what if this hero could fight against an evil Christian?

Chapman said in a CNN interview: “I’ve traveled a lot in the Midwest and the South and seen a lot of people like Joe, the fundamentalist in the film. And I’ve never seen a portrayal of that kind of a character put in conflict with someone who shares my beliefs, which are that there probably isn’t any God and we need to think about, you know, reality in life in a rational, humane way.”

The problem is that in trying to show people that atheism is good, the film attacks some of those who Chapman is trying to win over. Not only does the atheist hero, Gavin think it’s okay to sleep with a married woman (one on-line reviewer defended this by saying: “no laws were broken”) but the film inaccurately portrays how a true Christian should behave.

Wherever a story is posted about this film, fierce on-line debates about it follow. In reading through them though, it’s clear that the film isn’t winning anyone over except those who already hate Christianity. One supporter of the film defended it by saying: “This is the first Hollywood movie ever with an all-star cast and an atheist hero. I am an atheist and I think it’s great to see a handsome, positively portrayed atheist. … More importantly, I love how Joe, the Christian character, is somewhat likable in the beginning but he slowly becomes more evil as his situation and his religious reasoning bring him closer to tempting decisions, not further from them. In a lot of thrillers, the bad guy has no real reason to be bad, he or she just is. But in this movie, there is a direct connection to the motivations of the bad guy, and it shows very clearly how religious thinking inflates rationalizations.”

Ah… so this is a good movie because it attacks Christianity.

Chapman wrote on the film’s website: “This could be the BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN moment for atheists, our tipping point, when we finally get the attention we deserve.” However, just like his intention to win people over to atheism seems in doubt, it also seems unlikely that THE LEDGE will get the attention Chapman thinks it deserves either.

Despite a strong cast and some publicity surrounding the controversial nature of the film, the film didn’t do well. THE LEDGE was produced for $10 million dollars, was released on July 8th and made about $5 thousand at the box office. Maybe a film actually about nothing would have done better? It worked for “Seinfeld”.

- Blog by André van Heerden, Writer, Director (2012: PROPHECY OR PANIC?, 12 BIGGEST LIES)