Jesus, Honk. Save Your Soul REVIEW: Hollow Satire
Jesus, please honk! Save Your Soul is a comedy that pokes fun at megachurches, and the people who live in them. We meet Pastor Lee-Curtis (Sterling K. Brown), and his wife Trinitie, who are trying to reopen the church after a scandal. They believe that a documentary documenting the rebuilding process would help them to restore their image. So, there is a crew of cameras following them around documenting every aspect.
Hall and Brown are both captivating performers. The problem is that they don’t have much material to work from. The narrative repeats familiar beats and doesn’t offer any new insight into these religious institutions or the people who run them.
Given that the couple is meticulously manufactured, I can understand the mockumentary structure. It is therefore not difficult for them to capture any discrepancies. Despite the couple’s repeated requests to have things reshot or snipped, there are no cuts nor takebacks. The film sometimes departs from its own structure. The movie opens with us in the couple’s bedroom. It’s shot as a normal movie. It’s strange to be able to stick to a structure and then break off from it when it becomes difficult. There are many ways to communicate infidelity without actually going into the bedroom.
Hall and Brown bring so much energy to the screen. They do their best to flesh out the characters beyond what we see in the screenplay. Hall is especially good at communicating the subtleties of her character. Trinitie has become accustomed to being second fiddle to her husband. She’s used to be viewed as a prop to make him look good, and to show unity. It becomes difficult to pretend that everything is okay after the scandal. Everything they have worked for has been ruined. Lee-Curtis is so consumed in his vanity, that he refuses even to see the consequences.
It’s fascinating to see Trinitie dealing with the aftermath of the scandal and having run-ins against former members of their congregation. Lee-Curtis is there on one occasion, but she’s the one being confronted. She is clearly unhappy and ensconced with a husband who doesn’t care for her emotional needs. However, she is told to take it all in the name of what they are together.
Many people who visit their church seek spiritual guidance and want to be accompanied by a couple. It is actually the opposite, as the couple uses this spiritual aid to fulfill their materialistic needs. We never see a genuine turn to God. Prayer and God’s Name are invoked only for performance purposes. We see the same cycle with every new couple that set up their church.
It is clear that the original film was a short one. This explains why much of the movie feels stretched. Hall and Brown deserve better.
