ABSTRACT
Screenwriters who want to make movies specifically to evangelize should know that they are creating propaganda instead of entertainment. The Prophecy is an interesting example of a "religious" film disguised as a horror movie. Kids' movies are particularly susceptible to preachiness. But at least the messages in those movies are usually couched in cute songs and light-hearted banter. The movie Babe, is quite effective pro-vegetarian propaganda made palatable by the adorable fretting of barnyard beasts during potential killing sprees by hungry farmers. Although big message making might work in movies ostensibly designed for kids if the delivery systems are cuddly and precious, the author can't think of a single movie star cuddly or precious enough to make big messages palatable to adults. At the end of Rat Race, lots of audience members who otherwise loved the movie were turned off by the heavy-handed message delivered when the racers turned all their money over to a world food organization.
