If you’ve read anything about Bill Maher’s upcoming film, Religulous, opening October 3, you know that the movie, directed by Larry Charles (Borat) and starring Maher, does not hold religious faith in very high esteem. Indeed, according to Los Angeles Times blogger Patrick Goldstein, the movie presents religion as “a big crock of spit,” “a destructive force,” and “a neurological disorder.” Maher doesn’t mince words either, which makes it all the more perplexing that the movie—a pseudo-documentary—contains interview footage and willing participation from a number of deeply pious people.
Goldstein offers a simple explanation for how Maher and Charles got these people to participate in the movie: “Subterfuge and trickery.”
Maher explains his tactics this way: “It was simple: We never, ever, used my name. We never told anybody it was me who was going to do the interviews. We even had a fake title for the film. We called it A Spiritual Journey. It didn’t work everywhere. We went to Salk Lake City, but no one would let us film there at all.”
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Maher was asked who would be most offended by the movie. His answer: “Any religious person. The point is to question what is usually made to be unquestionable in this country. Normally if you say the word ‘faith,’ the debate is over—no matter what incredibly nonsensical, destructive, ridiculous tenet comes out of your mouth. I could say, ‘My faith is the tooth fairy and Klingons are coming.’ But I’m not going to play by those rules.”
