Can a Movie Change Your Life?

Can a movie change your life?

Chad Burns sure hopes so.

His new movie, Beyond the Mask, is a revolutionary new kind of Christian movie.  It’s an action-adventure, and it has more sword fights, explosions, and chase scenes than I’ve seen in popular mainstream movies in the same genre.  Beyond the Mask is jam-packed full of enough action to energize the most enthusiastic of teens but enough drama and straight-talking theology to please the pastors. It’s a mix I’ve never seen before, and I sure hope that the Burns’ have many more ideas, because we need more movies like this.

What’s it really about?  Check it out: 

The leading mercenary for the British East India Company, Will Reynolds has just been double-crossed and now is on the run in the American Colonies. Working to redeem his name and win back the affections of the woman with whom he’s never been fully truthful, Will now hides behind a new mask in hopes of thwarting his former employer. As his past life closes in on him, Will must somehow gain the trust and the help of his beloved Charlotte – as well as Ben Franklin – while he races against time to defuse a plot of historical proportions. Coming to theaters Spring, 2015, Beyond the Mask is a revolutionary new family film that brings history to life in a faith-filled adventure celebrating grace, liberty, and the true freedom that can only be found in Christ.

Beyond the Mask is all that and more.  Set against the beginnings of the American Revolution, it’s full of fascinating historical information.  No viewer will realize that he’s on the receiving end of a history lesson, though, because he’ll be too busy watching stuff blow up – and, who knew?  Benjamin Franklin not only identified electricity, but he knew how to harness it and create generators – and that pyrotechnical knowledge is put to good use in this movie.  You won’t find any educational video anywhere that will excite your students more.

And that’s not really the point – at least, not to educate us about history and science (although as a homeschooling mom, I’m happy to find those lessons wherever we can).  The basic tenets of the Christian faith are woven tightly into every element of this movie.  It’s not tacked onto the end of scenes or proclaimed in teary reunions, but instead it’s there and natural and basic. 

The action makes it edgy and the drama keeps the tensions high.  Unlike most of those other movies that you’ll find, though, it’s clean – completely clean.  There is no foul language or smutty scenes, which I would expect from a Christian movie, but the Burns’ went a step further.  They made an action-adventure movie that’s not scary or gory but will keep you on the edge of your seats from the first scene until the last.  The cinematography is amazing:  although you’re watching duels and death, there is very little blood.  The camera chases the action but leaves the consequences of the thrusts and punches to your imagination.  You see bruises and blood on fingers, filling up scratches, but no gratuitous violence.

That’s why you should see this movie.  The faith lessons are vital.  The educational ones are fascinating, and they’re all wrapped up in a suspenseful, exciting package that will entice even elementary viewers.

Unlike other movies, you can’t go to your local theater and purchase a ticket.  Beyond the Mask is being distributed via a different marketing model, and so the only way to see it is to click here and purchase a ticket online.

Want to know more?  Watch the trailer here.

The Burns’ have released a companion book called Secrets of the Past, and you can download the first chapter for free here.  This book shares the backstory of the movie and tells about the Colonial American history portrayed in Beyond the Mask.