Filmmaker dismisses claims '180' was scripted

By Michael F. Haverluck

World-renowned author and evangelist Ray Comfort of the Living Waters ministry is unfazed by an attack on his pro-life documentary, "180 the movie," which has gone viral with more than 1.5 million views on YouTube over some six weeks.

A company known as Phantom Video Productions has claimed Comfort used cue cards and actors in his half-hour presentation of eight people who switched their stance from pro-abortion to pro-life just seconds after listening to the facts about the procedure.

PVP's attempt to discredit "180," however, appears to have done little to stifle the pro-life phenomenon, as Living Waters also has sold more than a quarter of a million of the DVDs and given away nearly 200,000 more.

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In an interview with WND, Comfort explained the allegations of cue cards being visible through a reflection in an interviewee's sunglasses are a result of people's "active imaginations."

The allegations by PVP are posted on YouTube. It claims that after one of Comfort's "actors" was prompted for a reply, a "revealing" reflection can be seen.

The suspected reflection was portrayed in the following image:

PVP suggested the woman being interviewed "pauses, and then looks around at the cameraman and reads her response directly from the cue card ‒ that is being held up by the person that can be clearly seen in the right-hand lens of her sunglasses…"

Comfort sees that's just conjecture and even though some people might convince themselves they see cue cards, it's simply not the case.

"Those people who can see the cameraman holding up a cue card remind me of those who can see a man with a gun in the shadows, during President Kennedy's assassination," Comfort told WND. "All you need to see him is an active imagination. It's the same with the cue card ‒ if you have a good imagination, you can see it."

Comfort posted online the extended video of the interview so people can see it:

"However, for those who would like to do more than imagine, we have released the entire interview with Alicia, so that they can be the judge," Comfort shared. "Something amazing happened behind the scenes. Her emotions are really stirred as she explains what this was."

"If she is acting, the clip should be sent to The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for an Academy Award nomination," Comfort jested.

The debate sparked by Phantom has caused mixed comments posted by viewers of the 14-minute critique, with some buying into its theory.

Others weren't persuaded.

"OK, Ray's got a mic in one hand and a small video camera in the other," another comment states. "If you watch the full interview with Alicia you can see BOTH of his hands and there are no cue cards just a MIC and VID Camera. After watching the full interview with Alicia this whole 'cue card' accusation just seems ridiculous. Check it out for yourselves."

The controversy raised by the Phantom review pales in comparison to the discussion "180" has generated on YouTube, where there are some 25,000 comments.

Comfort is elated that his 2011Telly Award-winning documentary has generated so much discussion and changed hearts.

"We are overwhelmed by the success of '180,'" Comfort said. "We are getting thousands of emails."

The New Zealand-born evangelist shared a couple of these emails with WND:

• "I'm a student at University of Michigan-Flint. I had a conversation with someone who I found out was a Christian and he asked me if I had seen '180' and I told him yes and I loved it. He said that '180' is taking MSU's campus by storm."
• "I shared '180' with my pro-abortion literature teacher, and she is now pro-life."

Comfort is just grateful to know that his pro-life message is getting out, that hearts are being changed and that lives are being saved.

The stunning, 33-minute video opens with individuals revealing their lack of knowledge about who Adolf Hitler was, and what he did. It points out those groups he attacked he portrayed as non-human. The story line then picks up the issue of abortion in America, and notes how those who are killed are described as not yet human.

The video is called "180" to signify the dramatic, immediate reversal in viewpoint by people who are confronted with certain truths about abortion.

Comfort, whose work includes the Living Waters ministry, said the project shows his discussions with various people and how they admitted they were changing their minds about endorsing abortion based on the information Comfort provided.

Actor Kirk Cameron called the project, which you can get for yourself from the WND Superstore, "a powerful piece of media that leaves a lasting mark on your heart and mind."

Comfort had been working on research for his next book, "Hitler, God and the Bible, coming in February from WND Books.

He was surprised to discover there are many who don't recognize Hitler and cannot say exactly what he did. Those conversations led then to a discussion of abortion.

Cameron's endorsement of the "180" project was joined by Mark Hall, lead singer of "Casting Crowns," who said the movie "totally rocked my world."

The DVD is also inspiring discussions across the nation on talk shows, chat rooms and on a new forum set up at WND.

Comfort has described it as a "nation-changing" project.

The video follows Comfort's winning formula of colorful, fast paced street interviews popular in the award-winning "Way of the Master" television series.

The series, in its fifth season, is co-hosted by Cameron and is viewed in 70 countries on 42 networks.