Marjoe

"You Keep the Faith...Marjoe Keeps the Money"

1972 1h 28m EN

🙌

7.6

BANGER

★7.6TMDB · 35

Documentary

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Part documentary, part expose, this film follows one-time child evangelist Marjoe Gortner on the "church tent" Revivalist circuit, commenting on the showmanship of Evangelism and "the religion business", prior to the start of "televangelism". Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.

“You Keep the Faith...Marjoe Keeps the Money”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Marjoe Gortner
Self
Vernon Gortner
Self
Agnes Benjamin
Self
Sarah Kernochan
Self

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Howard Smith
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

88 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

54 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Howard Smith, shot by Kenneth Van Sickle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Lawrence Silk shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Marjoe Gortner and Vernon Gortner and Agnes Benjamin carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "You Keep the Faith...Marjoe Keeps the Money".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0068924 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Howard Smith directs. Kenneth Van Sickle behind the camera. Lawrence Silk cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

188 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
254 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Howard Smith, shot by Kenneth Van Sickle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Lawrence Silk shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Marjoe Gortner and Vernon Gortner and Agnes Benjamin carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "You Keep the Faith...Marjoe Keeps the Money".
8IMDB entry: tt0068924 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 35 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Kenneth Van Sickle
Editing: Lawrence Silk
Runtime: 88 min · 1h 28m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Marjoe (1972)

Awards

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Howard Smith

Gizmo!
1977 · ★ 6.6

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Chimpanzee2018-10-20
★ 5/10
It's a weird one. On the one hand it's an interesting insight into the shady world of evangelism and the mind of a man who doesn't believe what he's preaching. But the film doesn't really go anywhere or tell much of a story. It just seems like a lot of footage of Marjoe evangelising inter-cut with interviews, all of which ends rather abruptly without making any real point or coming to much of a conclusion.

Production companies