Ragamuffin

This movie was recommended to me by a friend with whom I shared my feelings of spiritual "wandering" if you will; a believer with lots of questions and a feeling of emptiness that comes and goes. The acting was very good and the story honest. I am use to movies that lead to an obvious conclusion, however, this movie wasn't the typical countdown to an epiphanic moment. Rather, it was exactly what I needed in realizing I am not alone in my struggles for meaning. Wear comfortable clothes because this movie is a bit long. My rating of "8" out of 10 is relative to movies of this category. This film should not be compared to Hollywood blockbusters, and justifiably so; the film is a message to each viewer who wishes to receive. The feature was not, in my opinion, made to entertain but more importantly to potentially impact your life in a far greater way than even the most popular movies ever could. Enjoy.

I love this story. It breaks the stereotype of Christian movies, most of which start with a messed up person who then meets Jesus and gets their life cleaned up. And they all lived happily ever after. Rich Mullins was a mess. He was a mess before he met Jesus, he was a mess after he met Jesus. Maybe that was why he had such a keen understanding of grace. That's really what this movie is about. They wanted to tell the true story of Rich Mullins, as messy as it was, although I'm sure they had to clean it up some in order to get churches to show it. The in-concert monologues are mostly, if not all, taken verbatim from things Rich said during concerts. The music is well done and fitting with the story. The movie was made on a shoestring budget, and in many ways it shows. The sound recording and mixing during interior scenes were not good (although that may have been partially due to the church where we were viewing the movie). The acting was sub-par compared to big budget movies, even from Wolfgang Bodison, who has plenty of acting experience. The sets all felt cramped and poorly utilized. But for all its faults I think it's still worth seeing. Even if you have never heard of Rich Mullins, it's a compelling story. The movie, like Rich Mullins, can be full of faults and still have incredible redeeming value.

I have seen this film twice, and it was better the second time. Maybe because I had never heard a Rich Mullins song before the first viewing, and before the second quite a few of his songs have deeply touched me. I see my life reflected in his--not exactly, of course. Where he went to the Indian reservation I went to India, and where he wrote music I wrote poetry--but the alcohol was still the same. What I am saying is that this film shows the real side of Christianity, and should be seen by anyone confused by how many so-called Christians act and present themselves to the world. But if you really want to get into the study of Organized religion versus Real Christian Living, listen to Rich Mullins--maybe especially his song 'The Color Green'--and spend some time with his mentor Brennan Manning. Oh, and watch this film more than once. It's the antithesis of every other so-called Christian film you've ever seen--and if you've never seen one, all that much better. See this one, though.

Rich Mullins was a broken man. A man who felt rejected by his father, and by the God that the evangelical church had presented to him. He was also extremely gifted with the ability to express his struggle through words and music. He wrote just enough praise-happy songs to get Nashville to notice and lure him to record and sell his music. But, the real Rich remained tortured by his depression, addictions, and pain. He could sing about the love of God, but struggled to accept it himself. "Ragamuffin" is a term used by author Brennan Manning, who is also depicted in the film. The word describes one whose "deepest awareness ... is that he is deeply loved by Jesus Christ and has done nothing to earn it or deserve it." It becomes an aspiration of Mullins to grasp that reality in the midst of a Christian subculture that prides itself on it's own triumphalism. As an artist, and a person, Rich Mullins was too honest - and too broken - to claim such a victory. That is why the message of this movie contrasts so sharply with the latest "Christian" theatrical release, "God's Not Dead." There, Christianity is painted with bold strokes of black and white with little room for the gray smudges that watercolor the Ragamuffin's life. The two films could not be more different as well in their presentation of the Christian consumerism that has created Contemporary Christian Music. "God's Not Dead" blatantly uses the Newsboys as angelic messengers of the film's tag-line. They are not even represented as "artists" but function instead as "product placement." (Willie Robertson, of Duck Dynasty, cameos offering his "celebrity endorsement" for Jesus.) This was the "Christian World" that Rich Mullins hated, and worked all his career to avoid being conformed into. It was not his home. Many evangelical Christians will be surprised, perhaps shocked or offended, to witness just what a mess Mullins was. Like the scriptures, the movie doesn't blink in showing us his flaws. You'll see him smoking, drinking, and swearing -- all while also clearly witnessing to the truth of the gospel with both his words and deeds. For many of us, it will be too much to stomach. Mullins would not fit in among many of our church friends. But, if Jesus still welcomes the poor in spirit, the mourning, and those hungering for righteousness into his Kingdom -- then Rich should be right at home there.

I agree with a reviewer above that the movie did not project the whimsical Rich as seen in the delivery of his talks at concerts. Way too serious and broken. Rich had a way of being broken and still showed a child like love of Jesus in his words, but in the movie he was always angry. And one thing that bugged me is that his haircut seemed to change on a whim. A sequence with short hair was followed by a sequence with long hair and a beard and then back to short hair - over and over. May sound silly, but as far as movie production goes that should not happen. Overall, it is a good insight to a man struggling with his faith. And the Brennan Manning character was great.

I wanted to like this a lot. I heard it wasn't your typical "Christian" film. I grew up loving Rich Mullins and was lucky enough to get to see him in concert in my early teens. His music and life had a profound effect on me, leading me to finding Brennan Manning's book and well, just showing me that life isn't as simple as church often makes it. The problem with this movie is its just not very well done. The acting is mediocre at best, the writing is as well. Some things are set in the correct time period and others they just appear to shrug and say "oh well" and don't worry they aren't. The movie also does a pretty terrible job at flowing. We get a glimpse of Rich as a kid, it was rough, his dad was a hard man, and then, he's smoking, and then he's off at Bible college, and then he's in Zion. Stuff happens, and you sort of see how they're connected, but they don't flow into each other. I really wish this movie had been a real documentary instead of poorly made docu-drama. Rich Mullins is an inspirational figure who shared his genius and God's love with the world while battling extremely human flaws. He didn't hide from them, and fortunately the movie doesn't flinch from them, but neither does the movie do a proper service to the man and his work.

We were not able to watch the movie during the theatrical releases but recently watched it On Demand at home. I am (still) a fan of his music and own each release. When he was alive my friends and I never missed a concert and North Texas was a big concert market for him and he was in concert a lot here. I have to say that overall I was a bit disappointed in the movie. Overall the screenplay was slow and severely plodded along in other places. (I know there was a lot of ground to cover, but 2 plus hours was too long.) The background music did not help in the pacing of the movie either. There were several gaffes with props/clothes from the wrong decade being used. (My biggest annoyance was the 2000-era rolling suitcase used in the 1974 dorm move-in scene.) Some of the scenes in the group house were so poorly acted that we started fast forwarding through them. I agree with those who have said in their reviews/commentaries that the movie did not show his joyful, whimsical, humorous side but focused on the dark periods. I noticed in one particular concert scene he was portrayed as scared and uncomfortable and in the multitude of times I saw him in concert he never came across that way. He always appeared to be having fun and enjoying himself. And during the after concert bookstore appearances he was friendly and would stay and visit for hours. After the movie ended we started talking about questions that were raised – From the dirty hair (and disgustingly brown and greasy pillow case) are we to take away that Rich was unable to attend to basic hygiene? (Every time we saw him in concert or bookstore appearances he appeared to be clean and put together.) From the quick clip at Harry's Uptown Bar are we to take away that he picked up women in bars? One of the biggest questions we found ourselves asking from all the raging drunk scenes was if he was an alcoholic then why did nobody in his life intervene and get him in to rehab? Why were certain people in his life he talked a lot about and were close to him, not included in the story? Would he have been humiliated to have his greatest private struggles revealed? I think that anybody who followed him closely knew he struggled with many things in life. While he did not share details (as it was his personal life) he did share enough that the person who was really hearing him could read between the lines. You knew that God was still able to use him to share about His love and grace despite his shortcomings. I wish the movie had showed more of the people who were ministered to by his music and shared that with him after his concerts. Rich's music opened many folk's eyes/hearts to what God was able to do in their lives as He had done in Rich's life.

It's interesting to see that (especially for males) the higher ratings tend to be associated with the over 44 (I'm 65) group. Perhaps just living is the best revealer of our many hidden hang-ups. Because this film shows a Christian idol as a fallen human, many will hate it. But if you struggle with addictions or want to know how to be reconciled with a dead father, this film may be helpful. There are no easy answers here, but at least it honestly reveals to an image-conscious world how even fully convinced Christians are just as vulnerable as the rest of humanity, only they know they're forgiven. I hope most viewers come away from Ragamuffin wondering, "How could such a train wreck of a guy be so certain God not only loves him, but also likes him."

This is a very powerful and gripping movie about the life of Rich Mullins. It is not just another "life story" about a famous person. It not only shows Rich's life but it ministers to all who see it. It not only brought tears to my eyes throughout the movie, but to the people throughout the church at that showing. I would recommend everyone to see this movie because it brings you to the realization that God loves all of us, even though we are not perfect. It is definitely a must see, powerful,inspiring, enlightening, and ministering movie for Christians and non-Christians alike. If you only purchase one DVD this year, it should be Ragamuffin!

I am a big fan of Rich Mullins, I have all his albums, and have been to several of his concerts, so when I saw this movie I quickly bought it. I have to say for a man who wanted his legacy to be one of joy, this movie presented him in such a depressing way. I know he was a flawed man, a lot of his songs reflect his (and our) struggle with being like Christ and living for him, but the makers of this movie seemed to dwell so much on his flaws (was he an alcoholic?) that it took away from the joy he had in writing music, singing, ministering to children and teens and sharing the love of God with others. The continuity was terrible, one minute he had short hair, the next he had long ugly, unkempt hair and that was a big distraction in watching this movie. In all the interviews and pictures I have ever seen him in, he never seemed to look as disheveled as the movie depicts him. Yes some of his music was introspective and dark, but a lot of it was whimsical, joyful and hopeful like, Pictures in the Sky, and With the Wonder, and so many were truly inspiring like, If I Stand. I didn't know the man personally as did some of the contributors including his own brother, but from what I have read about him and seen of him in concerts and interviews, and just listening to his music, he deserved so much better than this sad depiction of his life.