''Children of God'' is a 2010 Bahamian

romantic drama film Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

by director and screenwriter

Kareem Mortimer Kareem Mortimer (born October 17, 1980, in Nassau, Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of ...

. It tells the story of two young Bahamian men who fall in love with each other, and it portrays the

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...

of the Bahamian society. The film also deals with themes of

bisexuality Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, ...

, as a

. It is one of the first feature narratives from the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

to address

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

. It was the opening night film of the

Bahamas International Film Festival The Bahamas International Film Festival (BIFF) is a non-profit film festival held in the Bahamas. Open to both locals and international visitors, the festival was founded by Leslie Vanderpool in 2004. BIFF also hosts a youth film workshop that ...

. The Bahamas had banned the film ''

Brokeback Mountain ''Brokeback Mountain'' is a 2005 American neo-Western romantic drama film directed by Ang Lee and produced by Diana Ossana and James Schamus. Adapted from Brokeback Mountain (short story), the 1997 short story by Annie Proulx, the screenplay ...

'' in 2006. The film made its International Premiere at the

Miami International Film Festival The Miami Film Festival, formerly Miami International Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Miami, Florida, each March. Since 2015 the festival also runs a smaller Fall Festival, known as the Miami Film Festival GEMS, which presents ...

and has premiered at over 100 film festivals around the world, winning 17 awards. ''Children of God'' was named one of the top ten films of 2010 on BET.com.

Plot

White Bahamian painting student Jonny ( Johnny Ferro), an awkward obsessive-compulsive, is faced with losing his scholarship at a Nassau university if he does not live up to the potential his professors believe he has. His instructor "banishes" him to the remote island of

Eleuthera Eleuthera () refers both to a single island in the archipelagic state of the The Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Bahamas and to its associated group of smaller islands. Eleuthera forms a part of the Great Bahama Bank. The island of Eleuthera incor ...

, to focus on his work and find his artistic voice. But first he finds Romeo (

Stephen Tyrone Williams Stephen Tyrone Williams (born 1982) is an American actor best known for such films and television series as ''The Knick'', ''Da Sweet Blood of Jesus'', ''Elementary'' and ''Phil Spector''. Williams is also a stage actor known for such plays as Ath ...

), a handsome, self-confident guy who shows Jonny the scenic spots, and a bit more. Romeo's got a girlfriend, however, as well as a blustery mother who willfully ignores any clue or hint he drops to set her straight. Lena Mackey (Margaret Laurena Kemp) is an extremely conservative forty-year-old, anti-gay activist who finds out that her pastor husband is not who he represents himself to be. She believes that the only way to fix problems in her life is to limit the rights of homosexuals. She heads to Eleuthera for to contemplate her future and to galvanize the community to oppose gay rights. Tired of her husband spouting high-and-mighty, anti-gay rhetoric at rallies while refusing to own up to the cruelty and contradictions in his private life, Lena has a decision to make. When Jonny arrives, his and Lena's paths cross, and together these two embark on a series of physical and emotional adventures that not only inspire Jonny to paint, but also give him a new zest for life. Here he decides to paint his 'masterpiece' and then gets killed by a closeted homosexual when Jonny was en route to meet Romeo. It could have had a happy ending. However, in this film, life does not have happy endings for many gays and lesbians. The phrase "Children of God" is the religious expression used by

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

to refer to human divinity as being all God's Children. Four Bahamian individuals set out on a journey from the frenetic energy of Nassau to the slower-paced and open Eleuthera. The year is 2004, when the Caribbean world is rocked by the emergence of

Rosie O'Donnell Roseann O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962) is an American talk show host, comedian, and actress. She began her comedy career as a teenager and received her breakthrough on the television series ''Star Search'' in 1984. After a series of television ...

's gay family

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

. Actual documentary footage details the mass hysteria that divides the Caribbean, as some fundamentalists lead widespread rallies.

Cast

* Johnny Ferro as Jonny Roberts * Margaret Laurena Kemp as Lena Mackey *

as Romeo Fernander * Van Brown as Reverend Clyde Ritchie *

Mark Richard Ford Mark may refer to: In the Bible * Mark the Evangelist (5–68), traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark * Gospel of Mark, one of the four canonical gospels and one of the three synoptic gospels Currencies * Mark (currency), a currenc ...

as Ralph Mackey * Craig Pinder as Mike Roberts * Sylvia Adams as Grammy Rose * Aijalon Coley as Omar Mackey * Jay Lance Gotlieb as Angry Driver * Jason Elwood Hanna as Purple * Christopher Herrod as Dr. Mark Wells * Juanita Kelly as Lonnette Adderley * Adela Osterloh as Romeo's Mother * Leslie Vanderpool as Rhoda Ritchie * Christine Wilson as Anna Ross * Conrad Knowles, Romeo's true friend

Release

''Children of God'' made its International Premiere at the

in March 2010. It had a limited theatrical release in May 2011 in New York and Miami. ''Children of God'' went on to premiere on the

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

television network on June 2, 2010, and the DVD was released on June 7 through

TLA Releasing TLA Releasing is a US film distribution and production company owned by TLA Entertainment Group. In March 2011, a new LLC was formed for the operation. Its primary output is LGBT-related films from all over the world under the "TLA Releasing" la ...

. Johnny Ferro won Best Actor at the

Out on Film Out On Film, Georgia's gay film festival in Atlanta, was established in 1987 and is one of the oldest and most acclaimed LGBTQIA+ film festivals in the United States devoted to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. The festival is ...

festival in Atlanta, Georgia, against runner-up

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has starred in numerous films, including Sam Raimi's Spider-Man (2002 film series), ''Spider-Man'' trilogy (2002–2007), ''Milk (2008 American film), Milk'' (200 ...

(for ''Howl'').

Reception

''New York Times'' critic Jeannette Catsoulis found the film mediocre, with the characters standing for overly simplistic representatives of the films' ideas. BET.com reviewer Clay Cane gave it a strongly positive review, praising the acting (especially Margaret Laurena Kemp as Lena) and the photography and technical excellence despite its low budget. ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' reviewer Boyd van Hoeij similarly praised its cinematography and the lead actors while also noting its "formulaic elements".van Hoeij, Boyd
"Children of God" (review)
''

'', May 10, 2010.

References

External links