Redwarmin This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Roman Sampson One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

TheEmulator23 This is interesting, but more than interesting it's pathetic & sad. This Pastor or "Director" (I use that term as loosely as possible) is completely an utterly useless. He is sincere as can be, but my god he is such a clueless person it's embarrassing. He doesn't seem to have any clue about how to deal w/people in general. I'm not even talking about his so-called directing, I'm talking about in general. His whole delusions of Grandeur is so absurd you can't believe this guy isn't in a mental institution. The way he is making his congregation pay for his movie doesn't seem like it should be legal. How anybody listens to this guy is beyond me. There are some parts that are so funny for all the wrong reasons it makes you feel embarrassed for those involved. I can't explain enough what a completely clueless individual this Pastor is. He also seems to try and get out of everything a rational person would understand needs to be done or paid for, by saying the most cliché' line that religious people use..."It's God's Will." Give me a break! They expect to just stay in this giant warehouse for free? The city shuts off the electricity for not paying rent & it's the Devil's fault? What a joke. If you enjoy watching people making fool's of themselves then surely you'll enjoy this. Him going around saying he has $200 million in funding from Germany is a GIANT LIE! Why would anybody give this guy that sort of money? Yeah they wouldn't. I bet there is almost zero usable film either & he should pay back all of the money he blew on this to the congregation.

Movie_Muse_Reviews You're in the audience and you're waiting. Perhaps you're waiting to see if this science- fiction/faith film will ever get made, if it will be a total failure. Maybe you're even wondering if the filmmaker can wait himself without going mad. Mostly, however, you find yourself waiting to have your suspicions confirmed that Richard Gazowksy is in fact crazy, manipulative and this is all a giant scam. But that answer never comes.Mike Jacobs, in his debut as a filmmaker, has created something that is so scarily objective when looked at on the whole, that you can't ever truly say that the whole film is a lie. His film, "Audience of One" follows a pentecostal preacher in San Francisco named Richard Gazowsky who for ten years has been following a divinely-inspired idea to start a film production company and create a multi-million dollar science-fiction film with biblical overtones so that he can reach an "audience of one."At first you are thrust into the film's production process. As much as any non-pentecostal would doubt the divine nature of the film at first, you almost fully believe that WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Productions is going to make this film. You see all kinds of equipment, professional costume design, sketches, everything to make you believe they are funded and they will do this. As the film progresses and the absurdity continues, Jacobs balances out by showing the true nature of the production team's faith and deep religious connection to this film. You want to laugh at it all, but there's a sincerity Jacobs is sure to capture to create an objective film.Of course there comes a point in the film where it seems impossible, that the hurdles are too high for them to make this happen, which is where the film shines. Jacobs captures just how serious they are, just how far faith will take these people through the most perilous and concerning of situations. They are so convinced that it is all part of God's plan that you as a viewer still empathize with their understanding of the situation.While certain aspects of the film feel untapped or not pursued further, it is all sacrificed to create this effect in which the viewer must admit there are truly two sides, two ways to see Gazowsky and his crew and his church. If you can let go of the aggressive documentarian impulse than this film is truly enjoyable. If your true nature is to probe and make bold assertions, you're best suited to watch a Michael Moore documentary.

A.J. LaFollette A pentecostal preacher sees his first movie at age 40. He receives a vision from God telling him to produce a science fiction epic. He convinces his family and parishioners to dedicate all their money and time to shooting this movie in Italy, on a 65 mm camera. The plan involves God providing a 200 million dollar budget after they start shooting. No, just in case you were wondering, this isn't going to end well.Director Mike Jacobs gives us a front-row seat as Pastor Richard Gazowsky and his Christian WYSIWYG production company fight a losing battle against reality. Thirty years after Jim Jones led a similar San Francisco congregation on a descent into madness, there's an element to this tale of history repeating itself as farce. Yet Gazowzky comes off more like a deranged version of the Music Man than a sinister cult leader. He's a charming and naive huckster who has conned the people around him, including himself, into indulging his fantasy. When he bravely led his wife and kids onto the stage at the Silverdocs Festival to answer audience questions, it was hard not to feel some grudging admiration for a man who is so unwilling to let others discourage him from pursuing his dreams.But "Audience of One" relentlessly chronicles his reckless abuse of other people's money and faith in pursuit of those dreams. At times, the terrible decision-making on display is stressful to watch. This is a fascinating character study, and a fair and honest treatment of a strain of religious faith that deserves to be seriously questioned.It is a rich irony that God's plan for Richard Gazowsky gave us an excellent film after all.

JustCuriosity This film screened at the SXSW film festival in Austin, TX where it was very well-received by audiences and received a Special Jury Award. Audience of One may be the first "Making Of" film for an unmade film.The film captured the incredibly bizarre story Reverend Richard Gazowsky's San Francisco-based Pentecostal Church and their efforts to create a film studio and film a great Christian epic film that would be a combination of "Star Wars" and the "Ten Commandments." Audience of One brilliantly captures the inevitable train wreck that ensues as they assemble a cast and crew of mostly incompetent amateurs and attempt to create a great film. Their mistakes are laughable and absurd to any film professional.Despite persistence and dedication, they spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and are never able to come anywhere close to creating a real film. Audience of One is really a study of the meaning of fundamentalist faith and asks us where we should draw the line between reason/rationality and faith in God. Rational Modernists could view their actions as insane and irrational and wonder whether these people would actually "drink the Kool-Aid" if asked. The film is also a study of the power of charismatic leadership to make people act in ways that seem irrational to outsiders. Still, while their pursuit may seem wasteful and a little foolish it is ultimately fairly harmless compared to, for example, the Rev. Fred Phelps "God Hates Fags" ministry as portrayed in the brilliant documentary "Fall from Grace" (which also screened this year at SXSW).Audience of One is a truly enjoyable film to watch. It is both humorous and sad at the same time. While Audience of One serves as a warning about the dangers of fundamentalism, it should also offer secular viewers people a useful window into the power of religious faith to inspire believers. Perhaps the real lesson is that faith is a powerful tool and if harnessed for the right means can actually inspire believers in many ways. Here the task that people are inspired to pursue is one that is beyond their means, but that should be contrasted with the vast amount of good deeds that is accomplished by religious believers on a daily basis. I hope that people don't take from this film only the message that faith is dangerous and destructive, but rather the message that faith needs to be balanced with rationality.