Reel Spirituality | I Will Follow

This week in my film class, The Impact of Movies and Spiritual Growth, I will be teaching a film that I enjoyed quite a bit, Ava DuVernay’s dreamy drama, I Will Follow.

Released last year, the film tells the story of a day in the life of a grieving woman, Maye (Salli Richardson-Whitfield) and the twelve visitors who help her move forward. She is a successful artist who has taken leave from work to care for her ill aunt, Amanda (Beverly Todd). As the film begins, Maye is moving out of the home she once shared with Amanda after her death and contemplating her relationships, her career, her past and her future.

This thought-provoking story is told with emotional space that DuVernay uses to allow her story to breath and slowly evolve building to a wonderful cinematic boil. Displaying topics such as loss, fellowship, the Lord speaking through others, I Will Follow is a powerful testimony to trusting in Him, the higher power to pull us through to victory, comforting us along the way.

The Black Reel nominated film is a character study, proceeding at a leisurely pace and interspersed with family, friends and strangers, eventually they help Maye move on emotionally and physically. The film also stars Omari Hardwick, Michole White, Dijon Talton, Royale Watkins, Damone Roberts, Tracie Thoms and Blair Underwood.

This story is just another in a long line of films that have been offered in my class this semester. Designed to help students draw spiritual messages out of any film, other titles we have spotlighted this semester include A Lesson Before Dying, The Left Hand of God and Blue Like Jazz. The Impact of Movies and Spiritual Growth is a class that’s part of Celebration Church of Columbia’s (Maryland) WIN Institute  and class is every Tuesday from 7pm to 8:30pm. For more information, email FilmGordon@gmail.com.

I Will Follow Trailer