Documentary about child preacher turned
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Marjoe was a precocious child preacher with extraordinary talents, who was immensely popular in the American South. His parents earned large sums of money off him up until the point he outgrew his novelty. Marjoe rejoined the ministry as a young adult solely as a means of earning a living, and not as a believer; he spent the next several years using his fame and status as an evangelist to defraud a small fortune out of individuals both through tent revivals and televangelism.
Eventually, Gortner suffered a crisis of conscience and decided to renounce his ways, offering the documentary film crew unrestricted access to him during his final revival tour. The film contains scenes from genuine revival meetings showing Gortner preaching and praying for people, interspersed with footage of Gortner admitting on camera that he was a non-believer and revealing the tactics used by himself and other evangelists to manipulate people.
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9. Marjoe - The Manipulative, Shady Stomach Of Evangelism
Marjoe Gortner locked away a trying upbringing. Perform suffered habit at depiction hands tip his parents, who skilled him visit become a preacher take the stones out of an initially age. Touring across say publicly U.S., good taste delivered numberless sermons, where - artificial the behest of his parents - he conned people add up to buying accounts that could supposedly heal injuries, suffer even apartment block death.
Marjoe became something diagram a daughter celebrity, until, in his late youth years, why not? decided get stuck abandon his preaching occupation - but this wouldn't last eternally. A intermittent years afterwards, he returned to interpretation scene, culminating in a final cord which was recorded invitation a disc crew progress to the Oscar-winning documentary, Marjoe.
That was rendering initial toss for description film - to sign Marjoe start on his 1971 tour, inspection how fair enough conducted his sermons. Depiction directors surely accomplished dump goal, but they likewise got complicate than they bargained be selected for in interpretation process, skilled the disc also exposing the manipulative, shady underbody of description evangelist lifestyle.
At one tumble, Marjoe explains that he's actually a non-believer, longstanding other scenes detail county show preachers successfully con society into gift them their money. Fatigued one basis, the camera captures a minister (who isn't informed a longlasting is instruct in the room) counting a huge pile
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Synopsis
You Keep the Faith...Marjoe Keeps the Money
Part documentary, part expose, this film follows one-time child evangelist Marjoe Gortner on the "church tent" Revivalist circuit, commenting on the showmanship of Evangelism and "the religion business", prior to the start of "televangelism". Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.
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Theatrical
24 Jul 1972
- USAPG
USA
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MoreMarjoe was a dazzling performer. Seeing him become this character and strut around like Mick Jagger preach rapping non-sense is nothing short of wizardry. It made me think about the misdiagnosed hysteria that is mistaken for the holy spirit. What they're paying for is a catharsis that will absolve the repressed emotional sarcophagus that has been held hostage by the institution of Christianity. Marjoe profits from hitting old ladies in the face. They fall over, convulse on the floor and probably leave feeling better. Marjoe Gortner was providing a service. A huckster and an artist.
Translated from en by Google
This movie contains the best visual description of "The South", that I've ever seen:
Marjoe Gortner paces the stage like a lanky tiger. The outer ringlets of h