The sex lives of Bible scholars!

Variety‘s Russell Edwards reviews Paul Cox’s Salvation — a movie that is apparently so new it isn’t on his IMDb page yet:

A disillusioned biblical scholar finds that getting up close and personal provides real answers to life’s questions in “Salvation,” a deliberately paced meller from veteran arthouse helmer Paul Cox. Fans of the Dutch-born, Oz-based director will embrace this wholeheartedly, but pic is unlikely to convert any new acolytes. Local release date is currently unconfirmed but, even though Cox has surprised before, commercial prospects look iffy.

HD-shot film premiered on Betacam at the Vladivostok fest, in a nod to the city that appears in flashbacks of a pivotal Russian character. Cox’s company plans a transfer to 35mm, in hopes of unspooling the pic at a higher-profile fest.

Barry (Bruce Myles), an aging, well-to-do Bible scholar and frustrated artist, is emotionally stifled by his sexless marriage to well-known Aussie televangelist Gloria (Wendy Hughes), who peddles a commercial brand of Christianity that rakes in big bucks via self-help merchandising.

To relieve his physical and intellectual frustrations, Barry begins visiting heart-of-gold hooker Irina (Natalia Novakova), a Russian emigree. Hoping to finance a return trip to see her 5-year-old daughter in Vladivostok, Irina is reliant on an aggressive Russian pimp, Anton (Alex Menglet), but comes to appreciate Barry’s mild-mannered support.

Slow-moving narrative freely detours and stalls, giving characters free rein to discuss philosophical issues. Helmer stirs in YouTube samples of President Bush’s public-speaking gaffes in an effort to lighten the mood, as well as to boost the pic’s satire of religious conservatism. . . .

I’m not very familiar with Paul Cox’s films, but I gather this is not the first one to deal with religion in some way. I don’t know if any of the others dealt with “Bible scholars”, though. And now, for some reason, I am reminded of the Canadian film When Night Is Falling (1995), which was directed by Patricia Rozema, a graduate of Calvin College (which is also Paul Schrader‘s alma mater).