Weightier matters are burdensome problems and the movie’s lead character, Steven Cordell, has plenty of them—most of which he brought on himself. He is one of three judges on a televised singer/songwriter contest called Quick Draw Star. He is the Simon Cowell of the judges and often insults the contestants in his critiques of their performances. As a result, he is disliked by them and his fellow judges. His personal life is even more of a mess. After losing his wife, Rachel, to illness, Steven seduces the show’s secretary, Lily Fankhauser, and coerces her into marrying him even though she is engaged to another man. Steven’s problems snowball when he begins paying women to sleep with him while married to Lily. His destructive lifestyle is out of control and he knows it.

The drama centers on how one man’s hurtful behavior affects not only himself but those around him. It also focuses on one of the contest finalists, Ashley LaPage, who writes and performs songs about her personal struggles, like getting pregnant from an abusive boyfriend and contemplating giving up her baby for adoption. There are other secondary characters, like Lily and Princess Amlyn (one of the judges),who also struggle with feels of being rejected and unloved.

The movie includes adult themes throughout with characters involved in infidelity, implied pre-marital sex, domestic abuse, and use of alcohol to drown out problems. Characters also display selfish and deceptive behavior. Fortunately, some of these negative traits are resolved near the end of the film as some characters eventually find resolution.There are also several faith elements in the movie where characters minister to and pray for others. Grace, a pastor’s daughter, shares Ephesians 5:25 with Steven and encourages him to love his wife more than himself. Steven later reads Luke 19 and prays for Jesus to help him see his way out. Linda, one of the contestants, shares Scripture with Ashley to help her with her struggles.

Weightier Matters is a story about turning destructive problems into healthy solutions. There are some life lessons to take away from the film. Though the film does contain adult themes and sexual material, we are awarding our Dove Seal at 12+ for the film’s faith elements.

The Dove Take:

This film unfolds the reality of struggling with deep, real-life sins, but these sins are too gritty for young children.