Robert Koehler of Variety reviews Midnight Clear, the latest movie to be produced by Left Behind co-author Jerry B. Jenkins:
Until it reveals its actual Christian purpose in the final minutes, “Midnight Clear” will easily fool many viewers into thinking they’re watching a modest Coen brothers-style comedy-thriller. This conventional but sensitively observed tale, drawing together disparate and mostly lonely lives on Christmas Eve, is a religiously motivated pic (and winner of the debut film prize at Cinequest) that could play with crowds put off by much contempo cinema, pointing to unlikely theatrical sale but fair vid and cable biz.
It may also draw those curious about what Stephen Baldwin has been up to since becoming a strong Christian advocate. Unlike, say, Val Kilmer (who has yet to do a Christian Science-themed movie), Baldwin has evidently put his career where his beliefs are, giving one of his better perfs as a sad-sack loser and divorcee at the end of his rope who experiences a touch of kindness. . . .
A certain Pollyannaish aura descends over “Midnight Clear” just when it seems to be turning into a movie about the real lives of Americans barely holding on emotionally and economically. The third act’s blunt message — that a few selfless acts of kindness are enough to transform lives, capped by a visit to church — is the kind of optimism that’s unearned, based on the difficulties several characters have been enduring. . . .
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