God's Not Dead

God's Not Dead tapped into a real anxiety many Christian students feel — stepping onto a secular campus where your faith might be challenged or dismissed. Shane Harper carries the lead well, playing a kid who's nervous but convicted. Kevin Sorbo is clearly having fun as the antagonistic professor, though the character is written a bit one-dimensionally. The courtroom-style debate scenes in the classroom are actually the strongest parts of the film. They present real philosophical arguments (cosmological, moral) in an accessible way without dumbing things down too much. Where it stumbles is in the subplots — there are too many of them, and some feel like after-school specials grafted onto the main story. The ending wraps up a little too neatly for a film dealing with such complex questions. Still, it sparked genuine conversations in churches and campuses across the country, which is more than most films accomplish. The Newsboys concert finale is either the perfect capstone or a bit cheesy, depending on your tolerance.