Christian movies historically have been an easy target for film critics.

For starters, those critics often don't share the same worldview as the filmmakers. Additionally, some of the movies contain an element of “cheesiness” that can make you cringe. (This, by the way, is true of many mainstream movies, too).

The good news? Today’s Christian movies are light years ahead of the ones of yesteryear -- and in many cases on the same level as Hollywood hits. In 2015, a Christian movie (War Room) climbed to No. 1 at the box office for one weekend. In 2020, another one (Breakthrough) received an Oscar nomination.

A good Christian movie not only entertains but also inspires and convicts. It can even make you cry. 

The next few months have a lot to offer for fans of Christian movies, with seven excellent choices by some of the industry’s top filmmakers.

Jesus Revolution (Feb. 22) -- A California pastor named Chuck Smith welcomes hippies into his church, helping spark the Jesus Movement. The film is based on the true story of Lonnie Frisbee and Greg Laurie, two young men of the 1960s/70s who found spiritual freedom in Christ as the culture around them embraced deviancy. (Laurie released a 2018 book of the same name.) It stars Jonathan Roumie (The Chosen) as Frisbee, Kelsey Grammer as Smith and Joel Courtney as Laurie. Jon Erwin (I Can Only Imagine) and Brent McCorkle (Unconditional) co-directed it. “The message for today is that there's hope,” Erwin told Crosswalk. “All that we're going through right now -- we faced a similar time and a similar moment [years ago]. And God showed up in this nation.” Visit JesusRevolution.Movie.