tlavideo.com

Review

In this must-see new romantic drama, two Mormon missionaries fall unexpectedly in love and risk their future in the Church to be together.

In the Mormon religion, all young men have a duty to serve God through two years of missionary service. They are taught that serving their mission faithfully will help them to become a stronger student, worker, husband and father in the future.

In the beginning of The Falls, Elder R.J. Smith (newcomer Nick Ferrucci) is genuinely excited about starting his missionary work. He will travel six hours away from his Idaho home to small-town Oregon where he will preach the Book of Mormon and the teachings of Joseph Smith to potential converts.

When R.J. gets to Oregon, he meets Elder Chris Merrill (Benjamin Farmer), a slightly more experienced missionary who acts as a mentor, partner and friend. The two of them hit it off almost immediately. They hit the streets with great optimism and preach to strangers during the day. At night, they spend their time studying scripture and getting to know each other better. Their positive attitude begins to change, however, after an encounter with a religious skeptic and a separate incident with a homophobic bully who accuses the boys of being "fags."

Elder Merrill starts to seem a bit conflicted. He enters a crisis of faith which soon rubs off on R.J. The two start shirking their duties – spending time at the movies, going on long walks and experiencing life outside of their religion for the first time. During one particularly eventful walk, Elder Merrill works up the courage to confess that he has strong feelings for R.J. – feelings that R.J. secretly shares in return.

The feeling of relief is palpable as the two embrace one another for the first time. They find great comfort in each other’s arms, but have to be very careful not to let their superiors learn that they have become secret boyfriends. If their relationship were to be uncovered, they could be cast into “outer darkness” for all of eternity.

Writer/director Jon Garcia mixes heartwarming romance, high drama and unexpected moments of levity (the scene wherein the two boys smoke pot for the first time is truly hilarious) to deliver a powerful message film that is as titillating as it is inspiring. The performances are also top-notch. With the right mix of innocence, blind faith and hidden desire, Nick Ferrucci and Benjamin Farmer lend their roles a remarkably natural, memorable charisma. Ferrucci, in particular, hits powerhouse levels by the film’s tear-jerking climax.

The Mormon religion is often used as an easy target for mockery, but Jon Garcia treats it – and the kind-hearted, well-meaning folks who subscribe to it - with respect and dignity. Aside from their intolerance of homosexuality – which, of course, is not limited to just one religion – the film paints a pretty flattering portrait of Mormonism. It shows how, through their mission, young men are taught to venture out into the world and stand strong with their beliefs in the face of great adversity. The Falls draws interesting parallels between having pride in one’s faith and in one’s sexuality. Missionary work teaches R.J. to stand up for what he believes in, no matter what the consequences might be. It also teaches him that you don’t have to be straight to be a good Christian.

 -- Robert O'Neill