3 Reasons You’ll Love the Faith-Based Thriller ‘Disciples in the Moonlight’
- Michael Foust Crosswalk Headlines Contributor
- Updated Jul 18, 2024
Nate is a loving husband and devoted Christian living in a nation where Christianity is, well, not what it once was.
That nation is a futuristic United States, where a popular new president has fulfilled his campaign promise to eliminate hatred and prevent bigotry from infringing on the freedoms of American citizens. He has done that, he says, by banning the “archaic” Holy Bible and launching a buyback program whereby individuals can turn in their copies of Scripture for cash.
Don’t worry, though: This new president has launched a “new and improved” version of the Good Book: the “Enlightened Truth Bible.” It has all the words about love and kindness, minus the stuff about sin and judgment.
Nate, though, is too steadfast in his faith to follow such nonsense.
“People need the Bible,” he tells his wife.
He’s even willing to place his safety on the line.
Thus, Nate joins a Bible-smuggling operation in the Midwest, leading a small group of faithful Christians determined to take copies of God’s Word to seven underground churches. Getting caught could land him in prison. It also could cost him his life.
It’s all part of the faith-based movie Disciples in the Moonlight, a new thriller that follows this faithful band of believers as they try to sneak across dangerous borders and elude Homeland Security.
Here are three reasons it’s worth a watch.
Photo Credit: ©Fathom
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1. It’s Gripping Fiction
Slide 1 of 3Disciples in the Moonlight belongs to a genre of speculative fiction that explores seemingly impossible scenarios to provoke thought and raise important questions. Prime Video’s The Man in the High Castle delved into this genre by imagining a world where Japan and Nazi Germany won World War II. The 2017 movie The Circle, another example, imagined a future world where a powerful tech company controls society through pervasive surveillance and technology.
In Disciples in the Moonlight, the president’s actions are applauded by adoring citizens and backed by sympathetic media. During one TV report in the film, we learn that five Midwest states—Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan—have taken drastic steps to implement the president’s plan, restricting border movement and employing high-tech equipment that searches smartphones for digital copies of Scripture.
Many churches have embraced the president’s plan and incorporated the Enlightened Truth Bible into their services. Others, though, have gone underground and stayed true to God’s Word—similar to what happens in the real world in China.
In the midst of this, a mysterious Christian leader known as “the Apostle” has eluded Homeland Security and is working to smuggle Bibles to believers in the region. The Apostle recruits Nate, who then pulls other Bible smugglers into his smuggling ring—a truck driver, a firefighter, and a graphic designer, among them.
Their mission is to take God’s Word to seven underground churches without being caught. It sounds easy, but with government agents spying on Nate’s house and with border security patrolling the roads, it’s nearly impossible.
Photo Credit: ©Fathom
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2. It’s Not What You Expect
Slide 2 of 3Disciples in the Moonlight opens with high-intensity action and ends with an unexpected twist. Along the way, it offers a journey rich with inspiration and intrigue. It’s one of the better under-the-radar movies you’ll ever watch.
It turns a seemingly impossible plot into a captivating story. One Bible smuggler considers quitting, fearful of death. Another one walks away from his unsupportive wife, determined to continue the mission. (He tells her he’s going fishing.)
Like the hit series 24, it places our heroes in impossible situations and lets us squirm as they face down the odds. One group of smugglers gets cornered in a train car. Another gets chased through a nursing home. Every border crossing is perilous.
Faith-based movies often struggle with intrigue, but this one excels.
The film stars several well-known actors, including Brett Varvel (American Underdog, Running the Bases) and Todd Terry (Vindication, Breaking Bad). The acting is impressive and convincing. Varvel directed it.
Photo Credit: ©Fathom
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3. It Offers Lessons for Today
Slide 3 of 3Critics will undoubtedly challenge the plot with a common objection: “The Bible could never be banned in America.”
Perhaps that’s true, but that’s also not the point. Disciples in the Moonlight envisions a world where Truth is openly rejected, God’s Word is readily scorned, Americans regularly twist the Bible to suit their own agendas, and Christians are pressured to compromise. All of that is already present in today’s world.
The film urges today’s believers to stand firmly on God’s Word. It reminds us that the words of Christ can be offensive -- to strangers and even to family members. It cautions against the perils of compromise.
“Right now, in this country, holding Christian ideals is not popular,” Vervel told Crosswalk. “... Are you going to respond with love and with confidence? Or are you going to just bury your head in the sand and do nothing?”
Varvel said he wants moviegoers to ask themselves: How would I react to such a situation?
“This is something that happens in other parts of the world,” he told Crosswalk, referencing the plot. “My desire is that this is a movie that encourages people to evaluate that question, put themselves in the film, and then maybe inspire them to pick up the Bible.”
Disciples in the Moonlight is unrated. It does not include coarse language or sexuality but does include a mild/moderate amount of violence. We see people shot. A child hears a gunshot and learns that his father died. The violence is in the PG-13 realm.
Entertainment rating: 4 out of 5 stars.
Family-friendly rating: 4 out of 5 stars.
Photo Credit: ©Fathom
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