Common Sense Media Review
By Brian Costello
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Faith-based comedy promotes abstinence, has some profanity.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
The Virgins
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Nick (Blake Webb) and Mary (Sonya Davis) are a newly married Christian couple who've remained abstinent but must now consummate their love on their wedding night because Nick is being deployed to Afghanistan. When they get to their honeymoon cabin and are on the verge of making love for the very first time, a Scottish man plays bagpipes outside their door -- a prank by Nick's brother -- which results in Nick and Mary being locked out of their cabin with nowhere else to go. As they try to find somewhere -- anywhere -- to have sex, Nick and Mary must come to terms with their relationships with their families and their in-laws as they begin to question their oft-repeated mantra, "God will provide." Soon it seems increasingly likely that consummation may not be in the cards.
Is It Any Good?
Although attempts at comedy counterbalance scenes involving prayer, the Bible, and abstinence, it's difficult to imagine secular audiences finding much to enjoy in this movie. In its own strange way, THE VIRGINS​ answers the question, "What if Judd Apatow and the folks who tend to be in his films were Christians who wanted to promote abstinence until marriage and the power of prayer by using the 'comedy of errors' formula?" It's difficult for a film to be a faith-based movie without being a pious faith-based movie -- hence jokes involving buckets of urine, for instance -- and although the acting, directing, and editing are much better than those of most faith-based movies out there, the bottom line is that the comedic situations aren't all that funny.
On the other hand, Christian families with teens who are looking for entertainment outside the standard faith-based fare might find The Virgins' open discussions of Christian sexuality, and the goodness inherent in saving yourself for marriage, valuable -- that is, if they can look beyond the silly comedic situations, such as the newly married couple trying to have sex under the pews of a church because they have nowhere else to go.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about sex and marriage. How are the two conveyed in this movie? How do most movies present these topics?
Do you think someone who doesn't strongly identify as being Christian could appreciate and enjoy this movie? Why, or why not?
How does this movie compare to other faith-based films you've seen?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : July 18, 2014
- Cast : Blake Webb , Sonya Davis , Conner Marx
- Director : Matthew Wilson
- Studio : Matthew Wilson Productions
- Genre : Comedy
- Run time : 86 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : September 15, 2022
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