''The Gospel'' is a 2005 American

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

directed and written by

Rob Hardy Robert Hardy, Jr. is a film director, film producer, screenwriter, and television director. With partner Will Packer, he founded the production company Rainforest Films in 1994. Hardy's film credits include ''The Gospel'', ''Trois'', and '' ...

. It was released in the United States by

Screen Gems Screen Gems is an American brand name used by Sony Pictures' Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, a subsidiary of Japanese multinational conglomerate, Sony Group Corporation. It has served several different purposes for its parent ...

on October 7, 2005. The film retells the

Parable of the Prodigal Son The Parable of the Prodigal Son (also known as the parable of the Two Brothers, Lost Son, Loving Father, or of the Forgiving Father) is one of the parables of Jesus Christ in the Bible, appearing in Luke 15:11–32. Jesus shares the parable wit ...

in a modern context.

Plot

David, a showbiz artist, performing in nightclubs in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, learns that his father who is pastor of an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

church in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

is sick, and decides to go home. He learns that Frank has become the second of his father, and that he is married to Charlene. Fred announces to his son that he has a

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that su ...

. David gradually abandons his old life and begins to occupy an important position in the church, which will attract Frank's jealousy.

Cast

Boris Kodjoe Boris Frederic Cecil Tay-Natey Ofuatey-Kodjoe (; born March 8, 1973) is a German actor, producer, and former model best known for his roles as Kelby in the 2002 film ''Brown Sugar'', the sports-courier agent Damon Carter on the Showtime drama se ...

as David "DT" Taylor *

Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor.

as Reverend Charles Frank *

Clifton Powell Clifton Powell (born March 16, 1956) is an American actor who primarily plays supporting roles in films, such as in ''Ray'' (2004), for which he received an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture nomination. Care ...

as Bishop Fred Taylor *

Nona Gaye Nona Aisha Gaye (born September 4, 1974) is an American singer, former fashion model, and retired actress. The daughter of singer Marvin Gaye and maternal granddaughter of jazz musician Slim Gaillard, Gaye began her career as a vocalist in the ea ...

as Charlene Taylor-Frank * Omar Gooding as Wesley *

Tamyra Gray Tamyra Monica Gray (born July 26, 1979) is an American actress, singer and songwriter, who finished fourth place on the first season of the musical reality competition ''American Idol'' in 2002. Post ''American Idol'', Gray has begun acting on B ...

as Rain *

China Anne McClain China Anne McClain (born August 25, 1998) is an American actress and singer. McClain's career began when she was seven years old, portraying Alexis in the film ''The Gospel'' (2005), and then China James in '' Daddy's Little Girls'' (2007). Sh ...

as Alexis *

Donnie McClurkin Donald Andrew "Donnie" McClurkin, Jr. (born November 9, 1959) is an American gospel singer and minister. He has won three Grammy Awards, ten Stellar Awards, two BET Awards, two Soul Train Awards, one Dove Award and one NAACP Image Awards. ...

as Minister Terrence Hunter *

Aloma Wright Aloma Wright (born March 10, 1950) is an American actress, widely known for her roles as Laverne Roberts on the NBC/ABC comedy series '' Scrubs'' (2001–2009), Maxine Landis on the NBC daytime drama series ''Days of Our Lives'' (2008– ...

as Ernesteine * Keshia Knight Pulliam as Maya Walker * Sierra Aylina McClain as Sue *Lauryn Alisa McClain as Anne * Hezekiah Walker as Brother Gordon * Michael J. Pagan as Young David

Cameo Appearances

Yolanda Adams Yolanda Yvette Adams (born August 27, 1961) is an American gospel singer, actress, and host of her own nationally syndicated morning gospel show. She is one of the best-selling gospel artists of all time, having sold over 10 million albums ...

as herself *

Martha Munizzi Martha Denise Munizzi (born February 26, 1968) is an American Christian music singer, songwriter, author, and pastor. Early years A native of central Florida, Martha Munizzi was born into a Christian musical family. The daughter of evangelists ...

as herself *

Fred Hammond Frederick William Hammond (born December 27, 1960) is an American gospel singer, bass guitar player, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most popular figures in contemporary gospel music. He is known for using a variety of differe ...

as himself *

Kirk Franklin Kirk Dewayne Franklin (born January 26, 1970) is an American songwriter, choir director, gospel singer, and rapper. He is best known for leading urban contemporary gospel ensembles such as The Family, God's Property, and One Nation Crew (1NC) ...

as himself

Soundtrack

The soundtrack features the following songs: #He Reigns (

feat.

Papa San Tyrone Thompson, (born July 1, 1967)
better known as Papa San, is a Jamaic ...

) #Victory (

) #Glorious (

) #You Are Good (Greg Kirkland) #Still Alive (Kirk Franklin singers) # A Change Is Gonna Come (

Deitrick Haddon Deitrick Vaughn Haddon (born May 17, 1973) is an American gospel singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, record producer, pastor, and actor. He is best known for progressive gospel, and contemporary styles of music. He is also one of the cast memb ...

) # Ooh Child (Urban Mix) (

feat.

) # The Closer I Get to You (

Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American soul singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and arranger whom ''Rolling Stone'' described as a "soul legend". His most popular songs include " The Ghetto", "This Christmas ...

and

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles " The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", " Killing Me Softly with His Song", " Feel Like Makin' Love", " W ...

) #When I Pray (Interlude) ( Joann Rosario) #All Things Are Working (

) #I Need You to Survive ( Hezekiah Walker & the Love Fellowship Choir) #Now Behold the Lamb (

, feat. Idris Elba Serman & Clifton Powell Parable) # Put Your Hands Together (Fred Hammond and Natalie Wilson)

Reception

Box office

Produced on a budget of US$4 million, ''The Gospel'' grossed $15.8 million at the North American box office, including $7.5 million from 969 theaters in its opening weekend.

Critical reception

According to the critic review aggregator site

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, ''The Gospel'' has an approval rating of 32% based on 37 reviews by film critics. The website's critics consensus reads, "While it features outstanding musical numbers, The Gospel reduces a series of worthy themes -- faith, family, forgiveness -- to soapy, banal clichés."

Accolades

The film received three nominations in the Black Reel Awards of 2006: Idris Elba was nominated for Best Actor, Nona Gaye was nominated for Best Actress, and Rob Hardy was nominated for Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted.

References

External links

* * * ;Reviews
Music redeems confused 'Gospel'
''The Boston Globe'', Ty Burr, October 7, 2005.

''New York Times'', Laura Kern, October 7, 2005.
Heavenly voices raise ''The Gospels spirit
''San Francisco Chronicle'', Walter Addiego, October 10, 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gospel, The 2005 films 2005 drama films African-American drama films Films about evangelicalism Films produced by Will Packer Gospel music media Screen Gems films Rainforest Films films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films