Out-in-the-woods comedy offers ‘simple truth’ answer to some of the ‘hot topics’ that challenge marriages

The makers of Marriage Retreat (Pure Flix Entertainment, 8-93261-00189-9, $19.99) have ventured into largely unexplored territory for Christian filmmakers—not so much with the subject, as their approach.

They play for laughs as three couples head off for a weekend marriage-enrichment course, hoping that the comedy will sweeten the lessons about love and relationships.

But movie humor is “a tricky thing to deliver” to a faith audience, noted David A.R. White, one of the male leads who also helps run the production company that made the movie, Pure Flix Entertainment. 

“Some people get offended really easily by comedy, so a lot of people in our marketplace really have stayed away from  it, for the most part,” he said.

“We wanted to approach it head-on. We think it’s important to laugh at ourselves. Humor can lower people’s defenses; their walls come down and it allows the message to penetrate.”

White plays an architect whose marriage is strained—his wife wants a baby while he is reluctant to become a parent because of scars from an abusive father. The pair is joined on the weekend retreat by one couple dealing with control issues and another struggling with the husband’s gambling addiction.

“We take these hot topics and explore the relationships in a comedic way but ultimately pointing to the cross,” White said. “Ultimately, God is the answer to all of our problems. That can sound really cliched, but it is also such a simple truth that without the Lord in the center of our marriage, we can’t succeed.”

The 85-minute feature sees White play opposite his real-life wife, Andrea Logan White. What the pair and their friends think is going to be a cozy conference center turns out to be a rustic retreat run by a quirky couple, Jeff Fahey (Lost, Machete) and Victoria Jackson (Saturday Night Live, Baby Boom).

For more information or to order Marriage Retreat, go to www.pureflix.com.

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