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Religulous

  • 2008
  • R
  • 1h 41m
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
60K
YOUR RATING
Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
This is the theatrical trailer for Religulous, directed by Larry Charles and starring Bill Maher.
Play trailer2:13
1 Video
33 Photos
DocumentaryComedyWar

Bill Maher's take on the current state of world religion.Bill Maher's take on the current state of world religion.Bill Maher's take on the current state of world religion.

  • Director
    • Larry Charles
  • Writer
    • Bill Maher
  • Stars
    • Bill Maher
    • Tal Bachman
    • Jonathan Boulden
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.6/10
    60K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Larry Charles
    • Writer
      • Bill Maher
    • Stars
      • Bill Maher
      • Tal Bachman
      • Jonathan Boulden
    • 380User reviews
    • 193Critic reviews
    • 56Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Religulous: Theatrical Trailer
    Trailer 2:13
    Watch Religulous: Theatrical Trailer

    Photos33

    Bill Maher and Larry Charles in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Religulous (2008)
    Religulous (2008)
    Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)
    Bill Maher in Religulous (2008)

    Cast68

    Edit
    Bill Maher
    Bill Maher
    • Self
    Tal Bachman
    • Self
    Jonathan Boulden
    • Self
    Steven Burg
    • Self
    Francis Collins
    Francis Collins
    • Self - Director, National Institutes of Health
    • (as Dr. Francis Collins)
    George Coyne
    • Self
    • (as Father George Coyne PhD)
    Benjamin Creme
    • Self
    Jeremiah Cummings
    • Self
    Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda
    • Self
    Fatima Elatik
    • Self
    Yahuda Etzion
    • Self
    Reginald Foster
    • Self
    • (as Father Reginald Foster)
    Mohamed Junas Gaffar
    • Self
    Bill Gardiner
    • Self
    Ted Haggard
    Ted Haggard
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Rabbi Halperin
    • Self
    Ken Ham
    • Self
    Dean Hamer
    Dean Hamer
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Dean Hamer)
    • Director
      • Larry Charles
    • Writer
      • Bill Maher(uncredited)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The film used the fake working title "A Spiritual Journey" in order to obtain interviews with religious leaders. They were unaware that Bill Maher was involved in the film until he arrived for the interviews.
    • Goofs
      Bill Maher conflates al-Hajaru al-Aswad, "the Black Stone" with the Kaaba, which is the building in which it is housed. There are several devotional objects in the Kaaba and Muslim pilgrims face the building rather than the stone.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Bill Maher: The irony of religion is that because of its power to divert man to destructive courses, the world could actually come to an end. The plain fact is, religion must die for mankind to live. The hour is getting very late to be able to indulge in having in key decisions made by religious people. By irrationalists, by those who would steer the ship of state not by a compass, but by the equivalent of reading the entrails of a chicken. George Bush prayed a lot about Iraq, but he didn't learn a lot about it. Faith means making a virtue out of not thinking. It's nothing to brag about. And those who preach faith, and enable and elevate it are intellectual slaveholders, keeping mankind in a bondage to fantasy and nonsense that has spawned and justified so much lunacy and destruction. Religion is dangerous because it allows human beings who don't have all the answers to think that they do. Most people would think it's wonderful when someone says, "I'm willing, Lord! I'll do whatever you want me to do!" Except that since there are no gods actually talking to us, that void is filled in by people with their own corruptions and limitations and agendas. And anyone who tells you they know, they just know what happens when you die, I promise you, you don't. How can I be so sure? Because I don't know, and you do not possess mental powers that I do not. The only appropriate attitude for man to have about the big questions is not the arrogant certitude that is the hallmark of religion, but doubt. Doubt is humble, and that's what man needs to be, considering that human history is just a litany of getting shit dead wrong. This is why rational people, anti-religionists, must end their timidity and come out of the closet and assert themselves. And those who consider themselves only moderately religious really need to look in the mirror and realize that the solace and comfort that religion brings you actually comes at a terrible price. If you belonged to a political party or a social club that was tied to as much bigotry, misogyny, homophobia, violence, and sheer ignorance as religion is, you'd resign in protest. To do otherwise is to be an enabler, a mafia wife, for the true devils of extremism that draw their legitimacy from the billions of their fellow travelers. If the world does come to an end here, or wherever, or if it limps into the future, decimated by the effects of religion-inspired nuclear terrorism, let's remember what the real problem was that we learned how to precipitate mass death before we got past the neurological disorder of wishing for it. That's it. Grow up or die.

    • Crazy credits
      After the credits, there is one last clip of Bill Maher with his mother and sister. He tells them "I'll see you in heaven", and they laugh. His mother says "who knows," and there is a title card "In loving memory of Julie Maher, 1919-2007".
    • Connections
      Features Brigham Young (1940)
    • Soundtracks
      Crazy
      Written by Danger Mouse (as Brian Burton), CeeLo Green (as Ceelo Green) and Gianfranco Reverberi

      Published by Chrysalis Music (ASCAP) / Warner -Tamerline Pub Corp. (BMI) o/b/o Wanrer/ Chappell Music Ltd PRS/ Killer Tracks (BMI)

      Performed by Gnarls Barkley

      Courtesy of Downtown Records and Atlantic Recording Corp. by arrangement with Warner Music GRoup Film & TV Licensing

    User reviews380

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    Definitely worth seeing or demonstrating against!
    I watched Bill Maher's new movie, Religulous at it's world premiere at the Traverse City Film Festival. It was one of the first films to sell out at the festival, selling out in just the first couple days of sales.

    Okay... now for the movie review: for those of you who thought that Dawkin's "Root of all evil" or "Jesus Camp" were powerful statements, then you might want to wear diapers because you might just crap yourself. Religulous doesn't take prisoners. It addresses Christianity, Scientology, Mormonism,Islam, and other religions. Bill Maher travels around the word, visiting the Wailing Wall, USA Bible Belt, Salt Lake City, and other locations while interviewing a wide range of religious leaders and followers.

    Throughout the interviews, Bill throws out zingers and the joke timing is impeccable. Like the pro-creationist movie "Expelled", Religulous cuts to a variety of old film stock when making jokes. Although it fails at times, I would say the vast majority of the cuts connect and generates hearty laughs.

    The first third of the film deals with Christianity and several offshoots of it. Here, the movie shines. It is hilarious! Poking jab after jab into insane ideas by asking simple questions.

    Unfortunately, the move starts to slow down after he lampoons Scientology. Dressed as a vagrant, he appears in Hyde Park's Speaker's Corner and runs through Scientology's belief structure... appearing as a raving lunatic while accurately describing what that religion teaches.

    By the time it deals with Islam, a lot of inertia has been lost. Although it still delivers some funny bits, the movie is much more subdued. Granted, anytime you are dealing with a subject so inflammatory that people have been killed over it, you tread lightly, but I think Christians will criticize the movie for being softer on Islam than on Christianity. The sad thing is that it's true. Being the more dangerous religion, people seem to be treating Islam with kid gloves. I wonder how long before other religions start adopting that tactic as they become threatened by critics? The ending is a fiery call to action for freethinkers. Rousing music & inflammatory speech hammer the dangers of religion into the audience. Propaganda techniques? Yes. Pretty heavy-handed about it too. However, I think it's needed. The flow of the movie needed something to bring things together and although thick with images and rhetoric... it is a solid ending.

    Is it worth seeing? Hell yes! Will people be offended? Most definitely. Will there be protesters? There should be, this is far more blasphemous than "Dogma", "Passion of the Christ", or "The DeVinci Code".

    Comparing "Expelled" to "Religulous", it's pretty quickly apparent that Religulous is the better movie. Bill Maher, with his previous experience doing standup and conducting interviews shames Ben Stein. Nicely done Bill!
    helpful•299
    139
    • imrational
    • Sep 18, 2008

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    FAQ19

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 3, 2008 (Canada)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Hebrew
      • Arabic
      • Persian
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • Relidicule
    • Filming locations
      • Winter Park, Florida, USA
    • Production company
      • Thousand Words
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $2,500,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $13,011,160
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $3,409,643
      • Oct 5, 2008
    • Gross worldwide
      • $13,639,115
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 41 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

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