Last summer, middle-aged right-wing religious dude Larry Tomczak offered fashion tips for the ladies, with an unsurprisingly large emphasis on modesty. Continuing in his claimed role of being a “cultural commentator with over 50 years in vocational ministry,” Tomczak has decided to try his hand at movie criticism. He explained in his Jan. 23 WorldNetDaily column:
I watched the “Mean Girls” movie.
Why’d I do it? Hopefully, to help you as a parent, grandparent or youth pastor continue to make a contribution to rescue this upcoming generation from Hollywood’s seductive influences harming our youth. This movie follows “Anyone But You,” a “romantic comedy” aimed at millennials centered on fornication, a lesbian “wedding,” nudity, a tsunami of profanity and mockery of whatever is left of the sanctity of marriage.
“Hey Mom/Dad, OK if I go see the hot new musical everyone’s seeing? My boyfriend asked me to go see ‘Mean Girls.’ It’s PG-13! Remember the first one from years ago? It’s a lotta’ fun with lessons to learn about bullying. Please! Pretty please!”Clueless and compliant Dad/Mom: “Sure, why not?
Not so fast! If you think this remake of the 2004 Lindsay Lohan cult classic that was spun off as a Broadway musical (produced by “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels) is simply harmless fun, you need to give a listen. I went to preview the film and it’s gone the same way SNL has gone – from creative comedy to perverse parody. Decency and morality have gotten the heave ho and been delivered to the dumpster!
Yep, he didn’t like it. The movie is a satire, but Tomczak wasn’t seeing that; instead, he compiled a list of 10 things he didn’t like about the film, one of which was that the cast included “sex seekers, homosexuals, lesbians, transgenders plus braggadocio gals proud of the sexual notches on their miniskirt and midriff belts.” He unsurprisingly concluded:
Here’s the deal: Is this the kind of moral formation and “entertainment” you want for your son/daughter and grandson/granddaughter? The Book of Proverbs was written to give practical direction for our youth and tells us, “He who walks with the wise will be wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm” (Prv.13:20). Young people don’t need to watch sinful conduct but rather be taught the consequences!
God tells us His design is not mean girls but clean girls who shine as lights in the darkness! “Our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace” (Ps. 144:12).
Of course. Tomzcak doesn’t seem to understand that nobody’s holding up the characters in this movie as role models — or that a movie like that doesn’t actually portray its characters as good (it’s right there in the title, after all) might have a message that reaches young people better than the Bible verses he wants to cram down their throats.