REEL CRITICS:Training young extremists at ‘Jesus Camp’

One of the most controversial and disturbing films you might see this year is not a Hollywood production. No real movie stars or major names are involved. It’s a documentary that some will cheer and others will find more frightening than any R-rated horror flick. It’s “Jesus Camp” — a realistic look at the teachings and tactics employed by fundamentalist preachers at a Christian boot camp for kids.

This camp is held outside a small North Dakota town, which, oddly, is named Devil’s Lake. The primary preacher is an obese woman who claims the moral authority to teach children about “sins of the flesh” while making no mention of the extra 100 pounds she has packed onto her own body. She and her fellow pastors have no problem reducing children 7 to 12 years old to tears by telling them what terrible sinners they are for listening to Britney Spears music or associating with their non-Christian school mates. “Science proves nothing” and “there’s no such thing as global warming” are part of the spiritual teachings enforced by their parents.

The hardest thing to watch is the intense force-feeding of specific doctrines shoved down the throats of young children far too young to understand what is being done to them.

A 9-year-old girl is driven to a bowling alley where she is encouraged to walk up to complete strangers and tell them they are going to burn in hell unless they believe the doctrines she is being taught. Another very young girl tells us that Christian congregations that don’t accept her doctrines are “dead churches” of no value to God.

Whatever your personal beliefs, you cannot miss how these alarming teaching methods are reminiscent of religious brainwashing techniques employed by the Taliban and other Islamic extremists. The fact that these homegrown extremists are cloaked in Christian imagery should be no comfort to any of us.

It’s a rerun of “An Officer and a Gentleman” and “Top Gun,” but it does pay respectful tribute to the Coast Guard.

Its saving grace is Kevin Costner, who plays — what else? — a legendary rescue swimmer named Ben Randall. He’s an icon at the Kodiak, Alaska, base, but his wife, Helen (played by Sela Ward), is tired of competing for his time and moves out.

After a major tragedy, Ben is assigned to the A school, a tough training camp for rescue divers.

Ashton Kutcher gets the Tom Cruise/Richard Gere role of the smirking but secretly scared new recruit Jake Fischer. It’s a given that Randall and Fischer will bond at some point, but not before we see a lot of push-ups by the pool, a pretty girl, and the inevitable tears that lead to Jake’s becoming a true member of the A team.

You’d think that Costner would avoid the water after such duds as “Waterworld” and “Message in a Bottle.” But under the direction of Andrew Davis (“The Fugitive”), his laconic style and weathered deadpan serve the story well.

Kutcher stays in the shallow end as far as acting, but he tears up nicely. Singer Bonnie Bramlett is a gem as Maggie, Ben’s seen-it-all friend.

The rescue sequences are gripping in their realism and intensity. You learn how tough these men are and stand in awe that anybody would want to jump from a helicopter into a churning sea.

The last scene between Ben and his wife is genuinely touching and brought a few tears. It was a fitting, bittersweet finale.

But like a guest who doesn’t know when to leave, we get several more endings, each one upping the corn quotient until the last silly grasp at our heartstrings.

Ben’s motto may be “never let go,” but this is ridiculous.

‘Guardian’ good except for soggy endingI was quite prepared to dislike “The Guardian” but was surprised to find it enjoyable in spite of nearly drowning in a sea of cliches.