Movie & Video reviews

Travis Lavan

1/11/2007 - The Apostle

Many an unhappy person came to be that way because once they were happy, and assumed this to mean they were doing the right things with their lives. Many people allow themselves to get so wrapped up in their own delights that they fail to realize how much they neglect the things and people closest to them.

  So it was for Euliss “Sonny” Dewey (Robert Duvall), a small-town preacher from North Texas who lives to spread the Gospel and can quote the Bible in his sleep. Sonny—as he is called by his congregation—has devoted his life to God and couldn’t be happier about it. Sonny’s every thought and act is inspired by his faith and he has taught his family to do the same.

  Sonny had devoted his life to the ministry he’s built for his community and is a well loved and indispensable part of the town’s fabric. His two adorable children are polished churchgoing youth, steeped through and through in their father’s zeal.

  Yes, all would seem to be well in Sonny’s world, save for the dissatisfaction obvious in the face of his lovely wife Jessie (Farrah Fawcett) from the first time she appears on screen. You see, when Sonny is not preaching to his congregation in church or preaching to his family at home, he is on the road. He literally spends every waking moment in pursuit of converts, traveling the countryside with his elderly mother (June Carter Cash) or one of his faithful flock.

  Jessie feels marginalized by Sonny’s lifestyle and it doesn’t help that Sonny indulges his wandering eye in his travels. Little surprise then that Jessie comes to find her own comfort in the arms of another man. Fed up with their marriage, Jessie asks for a divorce and has Sonny voted out as pastor of their church.

  This is where Sonny’s code of living begins to break down for him. It becomes clear to some people in his life, that Sonny is not living by God’s law so much as he is his own. He makes few if any apologies for his own shortcomings and rationalizes his failings by pointing to the good things he does.

  Most likely it is this sense of self-righteous entitlement that compels Sonny to hunt down Jessie’s lover and joyfully beat him down with a baseball bat, putting the man into a coma. Wanted by the law, his family and livelihood stripped from him, Sonny goes on the run.

  He soon finds himself wandering the Louisiana marsh looking for a helping hand and accepts the hospitality of a kindly old man who quickly identifies Sonny as a preacher. The old man directs Sonny to his brother, a reverend named Blackwell who lives nearby.

  Feeling called by God, Sonny renounces his former life and undertakes a mission to meet the reverend Blackwell and restore his dream of a neighborhood ministry. He changes his name to “Apostle E.F.” and once in town, Sonny’s boundless energy and charisma earn him his own radio show promoting the Gospel. His efforts soon have the small town rebuilding its long abandoned local church, giving Sonny the audience he so dearly craves.

  What’s fascinating about the character Duvall creates is that for all his efforts to convert others to his faith and save them from themselves, Sonny never takes the time to tend to his own demons.

  Fully aware that it is a matter of time before the police track him down, Sonny’s efforts to rebuild the town ministry are of great benefit to hundreds of others but one gets the idea that Sonny is also compensating for his own failures. It seems possible that while Sonny’s devotion to God has always been real, his devotion to serving God took a back seat to his desire to compel others to do so.

  Sonny weeps for his mother, misses his children and pines for his wife but spends little time fretting over the pain he’s caused them or the life of the man he attacked. Even when his past inevitably catches up to him, Sonny tries to have it both ways, acknowledging culpability for his actions but hardly taking ownership of them.

  The Bible itself warns the faithful not to confuse good deeds with God’s mercy and I’m certain a man like Sonny would be more than aware of this. His efforts to rebuild one sleepy Louisiana town are admirable but are hardly sufficient to cleanse Sonny of what he’s done in life.

  Rather, it seems that Sonny considers his own travails to be part of a Divine plan to place him where he is needed most in the world. The trouble is that the people who really needed him the most—his family—are left out of the equation.

  Sonny is just running to the aid of others, he’s just running and he always has been. The good works he performs are just an excuse not to look back.

  The Apostle is a remarkable achievement in that it seamlessly blends artful direction and undeniable entertainment value with the riveting performance of a top notch cast of experienced actors. It is a modest but unforgettable movie that is entirely the brainchild of Robert Duvall’s determination to create something immediate yet enduring.

  As thought provoking as it is entertaining and as intimidating as it is enlightening, The Apostle leaves you wondering if anyone outside of the small town of Bayou Boutee ever did find peace, or redemption. You can’t help but hope that Sonny and his family did find what they’re looking for.