Canaan Land
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''Canaan Land'' is a 2020 American
comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
film written and directed by
Richard Rossi Richard Rossi (born March 2, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, writer, talk radio host, musician, and former evangelical minister. Among Rossi's projects are the film '' Canaan Land'' which contained five songs by Rossi, '' Baseball's Last ...
and starring Richard Rossi as Brother Billy and
Rebecca Holden Rebecca Holden is an American actress, model, and singer. Early life and career While studying voice and piano in New York City, she became a model best known as "the Breck Girl". She went on to model on magazine covers and to film national ...
as Sister Sara Sunday. It is based on the novel of the same name by Rossi. Like the novel it was based on, the film generated controversy at the time of its release from evangelical religious groups, who took issue with Rossi exposing fraudulent faith-healing techniques of well-known
televangelists Televangelism (from ''televangelist'', a blend of ''television'' and ''evangelist'') and occasionally termed radio evangelism or teleministry, denotes the utilization of media platforms, notably radio and television, for the marketing of relig ...
.


Background

After playing the lead role in a 1998 Los Angeles play version of the novel ''
Elmer Gantry ''Elmer Gantry'' is a 1927 satirical novel written by Sinclair Lewis that presents aspects of the religious activity of the United States in fundamentalist and evangelistic circles and the attitudes of the 1920s public toward it. Reverend Dr. ...
'', Rossi was cast in the lead role of the con man preacher Elmer Gantry in a film remake of the 1960 Academy Award-winning film of the same name, slated to be directed by Amin Q. Chaudhri. Chaudhri sought investors for a $20 million budget. The remake was never made, but Rossi began writing his own story of an Elmer Gantryish evangelist in a contemporary setting. In March 2016, it was reported that Rossi was in
pre-production Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, video game, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the co ...
on his film ''Canaan Land''.
Rebecca Holden Rebecca Holden is an American actress, model, and singer. Early life and career While studying voice and piano in New York City, she became a model best known as "the Breck Girl". She went on to model on magazine covers and to film national ...
was cast to play Sister Sara Sunday.


Plot

Billy Gantry is an aging
gigolo A gigolo ( ) is a male escort, call boy or social companion who is supported by a person in a continuing relationship. The term ''gigolo'' usually implies a man who adopts a lifestyle consisting of a number of such relationships serially rat ...
living in
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
in the house of his girlfriend, Connie. He makes money giving telephone
psychic reading A psychic reading is a specific attempt to discern information through the use of heightened perceptive abilities, or natural extensions of the basic human senses of sight, sound, touch, taste and instinct. These natural extensions are claimed to ...
s. Connie catches him bedding his clients and kicks him out, leaving Billy homeless. He leaves with just his guitar and the clothes on his back. Billy heads to the
California Institute of Abnormalarts The California Institute of Abnormalarts - also written as the California Institute of Abnormal Arts and abbreviated as CIA - was a nightclub and sideshow museum located in North Hollywood, California. Owned and operated by actor-screenwriter Ca ...
, a
North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...
nightclub and
sideshow In North America, a sideshow is an extra, secondary production associated with a circus, traveling carnival, carnival, fair, or other such attraction. They historically featured human oddity exhibits (so-called “Freak show, freak shows”), pr ...
. Billy performs a song, singing and playing guitar with the
house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...
. The lyrics describe a street preacher, a persona Billy's therapist says is a manic side of Billy's personality, triggered by stress and loss. As Billy sings, clowns from the
freak show A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "Freak, freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual Human#Anatomy and physiology, humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, t ...
dance. Billy asks patrons of the nightclub to put him up for the night, but they refuse, knowing him to be a petty hustler. Finally, Billy spots Pary, a woman who he performed psychic readings for earlier, and she invites him back to her place. He talks her into lending him her red
Jeep Cherokee The Jeep Cherokee is a line of sport utility vehicles (SUV) manufactured and marketed by Jeep over five generations. Marketed initially as a variant of the Jeep Wagoneer (SJ), the Cherokee has evolved from a full-size SUV to one of the first ...
and clothes from her late husband. Billy, a former preacher, listens to the
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
sermons of Sister Sara Sunday, a sincere
evangelist Evangelist(s) may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a ...
with a small church. Billy charms his way into her life and ministry. Brother Billy and Sister Sara become tag-team preachers and romantic partners. When Sara has to temporarily leave the church to care for her aging spiritual mother and
mentor Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...
, ("Mother Grace"), Billy takes over. He builds the church with fake miracles, including a staged resurrection, and gold glitter he claims is from the golden streets of
Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...
. He is aided by his friends Rocco (a seedy private eye), Laz (a
Compton, California Compton is a city located in the Gateway Cities region of southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county, and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth ci ...
street kid), and Laz's father. Billy's broadcasts on radio and TV include cameos by Hollywood stars. Billy preaches at the
Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre and Urban park, public park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018 and was listed on ...
. At the peak of his popularity, Billy is investigated by student reporters from a
skepticism Skepticism ( US) or scepticism ( UK) is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the p ...
magazine. They collaborate with a group of
Me Too movement #MeToo is a social movement and Consciousness raising, awareness campaign against sexual abuse, sexual harassment and rape culture, in which women publicize their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment. The phrase "Me Too" was init ...
women who reveal how Billy conned them in the past to get sex and money. Their videotaped testimonies are organized by Billy's Beverly Hills ex-girlfriend Connie and Psychic Insight (his former boss at the psychic network). The scandal devastates Sara. She throws Billy out of the church and breaks up with him. After the breakup, Sara focuses on her ministry, preaching, singing at large Christian gatherings, and riding down
Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It runs through the Hollywood, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Thai Town, and Los Feliz districts. Its western terminus is at Sunset Plaza Drive in the Hollyw ...
as the queen of the
Hollywood Christmas Parade The Hollywood Christmas Parade (formerly the Hollywood Santa Parade and Santa Claus Lane Parade) is an annual parade held on the Sunday after Thanksgiving (United States), Thanksgiving in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. It follows a 3.5-mi ...
. Billy is homeless once again, and more depressed. He jaywalks in a tunnel with
semi-trailer truck A semi-trailer truck (also known by a wide variety of other terms – see below) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer attaches to the tractor with a type of hitch called ...
s and stretches out his hands in a death wish, imitating Christ on the cross. He visits a chapel and confesses he doesn't believe in God because a pastor abused him when he was a boy. Billy picks up a young
prostitute Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...
named Angel who turns out to be his daughter whom he abandoned years ago. She asks him to give faith one last chance. Billy asks for a
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
miracle to restore his faith. He sincerely changes and wants to demonstrate his
repentance Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past or present wrongdoings, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better. In modern times, it is generally seen ...
by his actions. He gives money back to the poor he conned into giving him "love offerings," assisted by Laz. He returns Pary's red Jeep and gives her money to pay for driving her Jeep so long. He visits an orphanage and prays for a little girl in a wheelchair but makes sure all cellphone cameras are off. The girl experiences a miraculous recovery but Billy refuses to exploit it. Billy dresses in white as a sign of purity and repentance and joins others from Sara's church at the Santa Monica beach. Sara recognizes Billy is changing and forgives him, but is unwilling to reunite with him romantically. She gives him her
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
and encourages him to stay on the right path. Sara tearfully watches him walk away at the
Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier is a large pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California, United States. It contains a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing. The pier is part of the greater Santa Monic ...
and prays for Billy.


Cast


Release

The film was released in drive-in screenings rather than traditional theaters due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
to qualify for the Academy Awards, and on VOD (
Video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...
) on January 5, 2021.


Reception

Alan Ng of ''
Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. ...
'' gave the film a 6 out of 10. Its West Coast theatrical premiere was a screening at the
Marina Del Rey Marina del Rey ( Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The eponymous harbor is a major boating and water recreation destination of the Greater Los Angeles ar ...
Film Festival, where
Rebecca Holden Rebecca Holden is an American actress, model, and singer. Early life and career While studying voice and piano in New York City, she became a model best known as "the Breck Girl". She went on to model on magazine covers and to film national ...
won the Best Supporting Actress award. Its East Coast theatrical premiere was at the Great Lakes Christian Film Festival in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
, where ''Canaan Land'' won an award for the "Most Creative Feature Film," and Richard Rossi was nominated for Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film.


References


External links

* * {{IMDb title, 5585836 2020 films 2020 independent films Films directed by Richard Rossi American independent films 2020s English-language films Films based on American novels Films about evangelicalism Films shot in Los Angeles Christianity-related controversies in film Religious drama films Films about con artists 2020 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films Films shot in California Films with atheism-related themes American rock music films English-language comedy-drama films English-language independent films