Slaying Goliath
A personal musing on the film, Facing the Giants
The clamor of voices echoed throughout the stadium as a deafening silence suddenly sliced through the fog of surprise. The stadium filled with raucous spectators hushed to a silence.
Before the night was over, hearts were already crushed by the onslaught of senseless despair.
Despite all hopes, the Shiloh Eagles have lost again. They almost made it... just almost. Grant Taylor, the head coach of the besieged team, screamed his head off - not at his charges for fumbling - but out of a frustration that welled up in his soul, now bubbling out in ever-increasing tides.
The scoreboard was nothing but the revealer of a stark truth. The Shiloh Eagles are but a team of losers. Have always been. For six consecutive seasons running. The beating of the drums sing in rhythm as the opening credits usher in the title of the movie. In bold silver letters the screen cries out...
"Facing the Giants."
Envisioned by the brother-team of Alex and Stephen Kendrick, Facing the Giants is a dream fulfilled for a duo who have always dreamt of producing movies. Movies with a Christian message that can make a difference in a world constantly watching silver screens dirtied with profanity, immorality and violence.
An underdog story likened to that of Remember the Titans (minus the chimera of Hollywood), this film might appear at first to be filled with satiating platitudes. It almost has that incredulity of a make-believe fairy tale, until you realize it is a movie about faith.
Faith is seeing beyond the now of the present to the hope of glory of the future. Faith is reaching out to what we cannot see and believing that it is indeed possible.
Taking on the movie with this spiritual lens in mind, Facing the Giants will transform into a visual pulpit for the soul. Casting aside the biblical undertones (which might befuddle, if not irritate, non-Christian viewers), it is in itself an inspiring tale of courage and hope against adversity and strife.
Yes, many may compare it with the Hollywood genre-setting counterpart Remember the Titans, or even the very recent Gridiron Gang which featured the same sport of American Football, albeit with the macho antics of The Rock, courtesy of WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment). But what sets Facing the Giants apart from the former two is the explicit Christian value of faith it attempts to bring across to the audience.
We are introduced to Coach Grant Taylor from the very first scene - that frustrated coach whose time is running out. His professional frustrations not withstanding, they are reinforced by the very probable issue of infertility, as his wife Brooke is unable to conceive.
We are also invited to live with young David, an amiable lad whose wheelchair-bound father has more faith in him than he himself. With no soccer program in the school for David, who would rather play soccer, his father encourages him to join the football team as a kicker. David's reluctance stems from his belief that he is just too small. The ensuing battle with his insecurities continues throughout the film and we aren't sure what to expect at the climax when victory depends on David to make the winning kick.
Facing the Giants captures what is innate in all of us - the dream to want more out of life, and the perseverance to achieve it. It also reminds us of experiencing and relishing the journey instead of just gunning for the prize.
Yes, Facing the Giants is a feel-good movie. Yes, it is a homey good movie that parents will want to bring their children to watch. It might even have all the cliches that one finds just a bit too much. But with all that unfair comparison and biased judgment, what one brings back from a movie is sometimes key to unlocking the value of a film.
In this case it has been hope. In this case it has been a lesson in facing my own personal giants.
A lesson that is worth all the money and time in the world.
Benjamin Chew handles marketing communications in SKS Books Warehouse, a Christian bookstore in Singapore. He attends and serves in the youth and audio-visual ministries at Church of God (Evangelical). He enjoys reading about theology, philosophy and spirituality, loves writing, and watching historical, biographical and intellectually provocative films. Benjamin is happily married to April and they have a one-year-old son with another little one on the way.