“Who was the last person I rescued?” That was one of the thoughts racing through my mind as I exited the theater after viewing Clint Eastwood’s latest directorial effort, Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie.

 

Of course, the central story, which takes place in 1920s Los Angeles and plays out in movie previews, is familiar with even those who haven’t seen the entire film. Jolie plays Christine Collins, mother of 9-year-old Walter who goes missing. The police, who at first turn a deaf ear to her plight, promptly return a 9-year-old boy to her. But it’s not her son. They insist he is and that he’s changed, but she knows it’s not him.

 

Christine is soon discarded to a mental ward, surrounded by other forgotten kinks in the political wheel. The story would end there if not for the Rev. Gustav Briegleb (John Malkovich), a provocative radio minister and pastor of St. Paul’s and Westlake Presbyterian churches, who takes her cause as his own.

 

You also can’t have a corrupt police drama without a shining knight and Lester Ybarra (Michael Kelly) is that crusader. The case is almost closed when he discovers a more sinister level and, against the orders of his superiors, continues the investigation until everything has been exposed to the light. Sure, it’s a little cliché, but at least since it’s based on a true story, which provokes a little more interest.

 

What struck me most about Rev. Gustav is how a man of the cloth could be such a fighter, not in the Robert Duvall/The Apostle fisticuffs sense, but in the fearless determination to champion the abused. He uses his radio programs to rail against the injustices of society rather than self-promotion or coddling, doing a job the press should be doing. To watch him in action was truly inspirational.

 

The film left me wondering—who would I put myself on the line for? Sure, I’d fight for my friends and my family, but what about a stranger? What about the least of these? The needs are great and overwhelming and many are already engaged in the battle. Whose champion could I be?