Movie Review: The Least of These: The Graham Stains Story

Philippians 2:3-4 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well.

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

Review: Moving, intelligent and powerful Christian film.

When I first came into this movie, I was thinking the main character would be Graham Stains (Stephan Baldwin) himself. However I was mistaken. Though in many ways the plot revolves around Stains, we follow a young journalist (Sharman Joshi), who is hired to find evidence of Stains breaking the law. The more I think about it the more I think this works to the movie's advantage. One reason is that it gives a unique perceptive different from the many biopics out there. Another reason is it shows us, how beautifully God worked through Stains and how through God Stains became a selfless man giving of himself for others in the way the bible teaches. If we were to just follow Stains than we would never have to face our cynical side that says such a thing can't be true. It is much more powerful to see a person who is skeptical of Graham Stains, slowly discover that he was wrong and that God's love truly lived in Stains. We are offered the chance to feel cynical and skeptical at first. This makes when we learn what Stains has really been doing all the more powerful. Adding to this is that we like and respect the reporter. He is smart, loves his wife and is determined to make good. When he comes to believe in what God has done through Graham Stains, we have little reason not to as well. Because we respect him this discovery is all the more powerful.

Adding to this is that the movie never talks down to its audience or sugarcoats anything. Everything feels honest and real, with the harsher realities of the world being fully in place. As is seen through the journalist, not automatically believing in the good works being done does not make a character a one dimensional stereotype, instead these characters can be fully though out and real characters. On the opposite side the same is seen through a leper who at first our main character refuses to even ride with. This also shows are main character as being anything but perfect. This film is also not all happy as anyone who knows the true story on which it was based would know. I admit I shed a few tears during one scene.

Adding to all this is all around excellent performances from the cast who truly bring much heart and warmth to this film. The whole movie is fantastic though and I couldn't recommend it enough. As a Christian I am happy to see so many great Christian movies come out lately, but I think this movie will appeal extremely well to unbelievers as well, because good storytelling is still good storytelling and this is good storytelling.


-Michael J. Ruhland