God's Army (2000)

Life as a Mormon missionary isn't what 19-year-old Brandon Allen expected: so many rules and so few successes. Los Angeles is as unrepentant as Sodom and Gomorrah. He's forced to share a ... See full summary »

Director:

Richard Dutcher

Writer:

Richard Dutcher

Stars:

Matthew A. Brown, Richard Dutcher, Jacque Gray

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matthew A. Brown	...	Elder Allen
Richard Dutcher	...	Elder Dalton
Jacque Gray	...	Sister Fronk
Jeffrey Scott Kelly	...	Elder Mangum
Desean Terry	...	Elder Banks
Michael Buster	...	Elder Kinegar
Luis Robledo	...	Elder Sandoval
John Pentecost	...	President Beecroft
Lynne Carr	...	Sister Beecroft
Kelli Coleman	...	Sister Monson
Anthony Anselmi	...	Elder Harmer
Peter Jackson	...	Elder Downey
Seamus Hurley	...	Elder Rex
Francine Riber	...	Connie
Fawn Perez	...	Laura

Storyline

Life as a Mormon missionary isn't what 19-year-old Brandon Allen expected: so many rules and so few successes. Los Angeles is as unrepentant as Sodom and Gomorrah. He's forced to share a small apartment with five young prank-loving missionaries and, to top it off, his first companion, 29-year-old Marcus Dalton, proves to be a harsh mentor. After only one day as a missionary, Allen is ready to hang up his necktie and go home. His point-of-view changes, however, as he begins to see the struggles and sacrifices that the other missionaries endure: Dalton, he soon learns, is fighting a losing battle with cancer. Banks, an African-American missionary, was disowned by his family when he joined the Mormon church. Kinegar, a fifth-generation Latter-Day Saint, finds himself doubting under the intellectual attacks of anti-Mormons. Working and living with these young men, Allen becomes a part of the drama occurring under the everyday surface of missionary life. After only a few intense days, ...

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Plot Keywords:

missionary | mormon | latter day saints | mormon missionary | baptism | 

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Taglines:

Saving the world one soul at a time

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Zion Films

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 2000 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$300,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$88,584 (USA) (10 March 2000)

Gross:

$2,628,829 (USA) (20 October 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Main Street Movie Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Elder Allen character background is loosely based on Richard Dutcher's own life.

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Goofs

Elder Sandoval is seen playing a guitar. Musical instruments are allowed on Mormon missions, though many forgo them, preferring to travel light.

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Quotes

Dalton: So, what did you think of the sisters?
Allen: Monson's nice, I don't know about the other one.
Dalton: Yeah, Sister Fronk.
Allen: Yeah, her.
Dalton: She's a very smart girl.
Allen: Well, she thinks so.

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Crazy Credits

Gwen Dutcher is credited as "Sexy Mormon Lady." This is not an actual character in the film, but Richard Dutcher's wife. She gets another "crazy credit" in his film Brigham City.

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Connections

Edited into Falling (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Look to the Heavens"
Written by Greg Simpson
Performed by Greg Simpson
Courtesy of Highway Records

User Reviews

Good Acting... Great Writing... Priceless Subject! An inspiring

I saw "God's Army" with my wife, who is not a member of the Mormon church. We both loved this movie, but for different reasons... That's the mark of good film-making.

This was truly an entertaining and informative movie. The movie accurately depicts the experience of an LDS mission. Having been on a mission myself, revelled in the chance to relive those choice moments that are now difficult to remember, and even more difficult to put into words. The acting was good, the writing great, and subject matter priceless! Throughout most of the movie, I forgot I was watching actors.

While I felt this was a movie about Mormons, for Mormons, it was so well done that it could have more broad appeal. My wife who is not Mormon, and knows little about my mission, really enjoyed the characters and their development.

I hope this movie does well, encouraging not just Richard Dutcher, but other filmmakers to make more movies of this kind. Big thanks to everyone who made this movie possible!