MovieChat Forums > The Genius Club (2006) Discussion > Lots of good buzz on this - God vs. Athe...

Lots of good buzz on this - God vs. Atheism debates, etc.

posted 16 years ago by michellefilmfan
19 replies | jump to latest

Glad Cloud Ten is distributing this. Everyone will finally see this movie nation-wide instead of the limited theatrical runs.

This film remarkably predicted the current state we're in with gas prices, inflation, the stock market, greed, etc. But what I truly love is the apologetics about proving God's existence. There's no other movie I can think of that so forcefully shows both sides like the fighters in Rocky - making cases and I won't go into who wins the final argument!

[–] doublehomeexit 16 years ago

I totally agree!

It's about time a film came out that addressed the apologetics of God's existence.

Kudos to everyone involved.

[–] chriswalker4578 15 years ago

It's one of the best films that proves God exists.

That's why the secular critics hate it so much.

It's really that simple.

[–] zeggman 15 years ago

There are no movies that prove God exists.

I don't think this movie is even attempting to prove God exists. To me, the message the movie was trying to convey was "be aware, and take responsibility, you can make the world a better place." Which is a noble sentiment, but the terrible writing, barely adequate acting, and poor production values (sound, editing, etc.) mean that very few people will waste their time on this little sermon.

Baldwin, the atheist, demonstrates that belief in God is not necessary for altruistic behavior. The people pushing this movie may have religious motives, but the movie itself is not so much a call to conversion as a call to awareness and action.

It's a shame, really, that it's such a godawful movie.

[–] mark-hansen11 11 years ago

The only thing this movie actually proves, is that people who think it proves God exists are ignorant fanatics.

Not that it had to be proven again. It's been done so many times.

I'd like to know how exactly you think it proves God exists. Unfortunately, that means having a discussion with you about it, and the result would be the same: You continue your wrong ways, and I continue to think you're crazy. So let's just skip that and I'll make sure not to return to this thread.

[–] billgoldbergmania 16 years ago

This movie is full of BS.

Half of what they say doesn't make sense (it might make sense at first, untill you start thinking about it).

Also anyone with half a brain was laughing when they started talking about god.

Take the black women who was talking "the odds of".

Some uninformed, joe avarage, might find that logical but it isn't at all.

[–] NewYorkDude 16 years ago

Oh and what are you? A genius who has studied these matters? I think not. (BTW I'm an atheist.) Do you even know what she was talking about? You're someone who spells "average" as "avarage".

The argument in the movie doesn't have a winner.

[–] stianhj 16 years ago

The black womans arguments at about the probabilities near the end of the movie were absoultely laughable. "The probability of proteins forming by chance.. are 10 to the 64th power by one." You know what, that's probably correct. Only problem is proteins don't form by chance. So her entire rant was pointless, and she proved nothing.

This movie was terrible. This scene, and the chess game in the beginning was the funniest moments in the movie.

[–] NewYorkDude 16 years ago

Yes, it wasn't a great movie, but it seems like they tried.

[–] stianhj 16 years ago

I agree, they tried and that's cool, but the missed the boat completely with this one. I would love to see more movies like this, but better ones. I mean just talking. Some good well thought out dialog/discussions, like "The Man from Earth." The premise is ludicrous but interesting, and the production quality is not fantastic, but the dialog, the discussions, the ideas and thought are absolutely great. If anyone knows of more movies like this, do post!

And I have to say, the chess game at the start of "The Genius Club" is so incredibly stupid. The writers clearly have never played chess, and it seems like they think that the fewer moves you need to beat your opponent, the higher your IQ is. One of the geniuses (Baldwin) plays a game against a three-time chess champion at MIT, and wins in 5 moves. The MIT guy goes: "HOW?!" Dude, the board is right in front of you. Anyone who loses a game of chess in 5 moves, have made some terribly stupid moves which would be painstakingly obvious to anyone with a decent understanding of chess, and certainly to the MIT chess champion. A chess champion at MIT would never _ever_ lose to anyone in 5 moves without making some very obvious and stupid mistakes.

This is four minutes into the movie, including a two minute intro. I immediately thought, this movie has to be good (so bad that it's good that is), and I was right.

[–] NewYorkDude 16 years ago

Thanks for recommending "The Man from Earth". It was great to watch and I too definitely suggest it to others who saw this movie - especially to freethinkers.

[–] FredPenner 16 years ago

comparing this movie to the man from earth....

is like comparing the dump I took this morning to Michelangelo's David...

The Man from Earth was clever, this was written by a sub-average moron.

[–] stianhj 16 years ago

Your dump must smell like roses.

Nobody is comparing the movies. But they had one thing in common. Both films try to really only rely on dialogue. The Genius Club tried, but was absolutely crap. The Man from Earth was excellent.

So if anyone knows of other movies that try to only rely on clever dialogue (and succeeds), please post them!

[–] chriswalker4578 15 years ago

I totally agree with New York Dude.

As mentioned earlier, I'm glad IMDB and Amazon have put in place the 'verification' and IP address checker.

Already, a lot of haters are crossing the line into libel and slander.

It's very easy for a court to issue an injunction to find out who the real identity of these people are and their motives.

[–] zeggman 15 years ago

You're obviously someone who doesn't know what an injunction is, or why a court would issue one.

You don't seem to know what libel and slander are either. Here's a clue: saying a movie is laughably bad is neither libel nor slander.

This movie is laughably bad.

[–] cliftonpana 15 years ago

The best part of the movie was when they start getting into the ontological arguments.

But the best reason, aside from the philosophical and scientific reasons, is a moral conscience. It's left many top atheists sleepless over that.

I'm with the others in that I believe in God because the chances of a molecular structure forming the difference between good and evil is almost infinite like the movie discusses.

But great comments by everyone with the exception of the usual immature posters who brutalize this film without laying any groundwork. Were we like this as teenagers? I can't remember.

[–] NewYorkDude 15 years ago

Dude, seriously, protein folding does not happen purely by chance. There is science to it - it's somewhat difficult to grasp but it's there alright. If you must believe in god, the least you can do is to do away with those silly rationalizations, and believe either by faith alone, or by invoking something like the dimensionless physical constants or some other 21st century excuse like that. At least that way you'll stand a chance of being respected, if only by those who don't know better.

One doesn't have to be religious or believe in god in order to have a moral compass. I am a living example, as are plenty of other atheists. The presence or absence of god should not dictate your ethics. If you require a god in order to be moral, I feel sorry for you.

[–] Davole45 8 years ago

I have no idea why theists think that atheists steal from the homeless and kick babies in the balls all day.

[–] livefastfilm 13 years ago

Don't listen to the attackers on this board.

If you notice carefully, it's coming from the same guy - he uses several alias names and always mentions the 'chess' match.

Here's my feeling about the attacker:

He's either:

1) an Atheist who hates Believers in Christ
2) he was fired from the crew
3) he's an actor who didn't make the 2nd round of auditions
4) he's an actor who didn't make the 1st round of auditons
5) he has a personal gripe against the filmmakers
6) he's the Devil

I know for a fact it's one of these six choices.

[–] mrcheminee 10 years ago

Since God is on Facebook, it's not too far-fetched that Satan himself could have a profile on IMDB...