Tuesday, March 1, 2011

"The Grace Card" Opens in Top 20

The Grace Card is a dramatic film that intends to illustrate the everyday opportunities that people have have to rebuild relationships and heal deep wounds by extending and receiving God’s grace. The film stars Louis Gossett, Jr. and Michael Joiner. It was released on February 25, 2011 to 363 theaters, grossing $1,010,299 on opening weekend - good enough to land in the 16th position.

"The Grace Card" was conceived by its first-time director, Dr. David Evans, a Memphis optometrist making the leap into filmmaking with the support of his congregation, the Calvary Church of the Nazarene in Cordova TN, the film's "sponsoring church."

The success of "Fireproof" with Kirk Cameron, a low-budget 2008 movie produced by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga., that earned $33 million at the box office, provided inspiration for Evans and his supporters.

A self-described "modern evangelical" and "20-year pro" in Hollywood who co-wrote Clint Eastwood's "Space Cowboys," among other films, screenwriter and producer Howie Klausner, rewrote Evans' original script and joined the production after deciding he wanted to help Christian films "grow up." He describes "The Grace Card" as a cop movie with a spiritual twist.

Academy Award winning actor Louis Gossett Jr., who earned a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1983 for his role as a tough Marine sergeant in "An Officer and a Gentleman," said he was attracted to "The Grace Card" because he's interested in "nourishing stories" that complement his faith in God and his work as the founder of The Eracism Foundation.