"Mom's Night Out" has been embraced by families across the nation as a funny, family, faith-friendly film about a group of moms who seek a night out together, leaving their husbands to watch the kids for a few hours. However, critics of the Patricia Heaton-starring film have not been so kind, condemning the movie for its "archaic notions of gender roles."
Christy Lemire of rogerebert.com said the film, which opened Mother's Day weekend, is "depressingly regressive and borderline dangerous." The Globe and Mail's Kate Taylor pondered why the central character, Allyson (portrayed by Sarah Drew), "doesn't just hire a nanny, find a job and get out of the house."
In response, Faith Driven Consumer is organizing a #MomsNightOut to "garner the support of the consumers who ultimately decide the film's fate in the entertainment market."
"If you read many of the reviews on Moms' Night Out, it's clear that critics don't understand the culture, much less the deeply held biblical worldview of Faith Driven Consumers. Some critics are outright hostile to our viewpoint and values. If you don't venture out of the echo-chamber of political correctness, you can't understand why audiences resonate with this genuinely fun, faith-friendly comedy," said Chris Stone, Certified Brand Strategist and Founder of Faith Driven Consumer. "We are calling on Faith Driven Consumers everywhere to do one thing: go buy a ticket and take a public stand for motherhood. Faith Driven Consumer is engaging hundreds of thousands of people over the next few days with this message, and we are going to the movies."
The film previously received a solid 3.5 stars from the FDC, with Chris Stone commending "Hollywood for making a faith-compatible comedy that reaches beyond the faith-driven niche to the broader culture."
According to the Internet Movie Database, the film has received 86% audience support and just 15% critic support on Rotten Tomatoes.
"If Hollywood does have a responsibility, it is to show a variety of parenting choices. Moms can work, stay-at-home, home-school, work part-time, etc. None of these choices are easy and people want to see themselves reflected in culture," Dr. Hilary Levey Friedman, a sociologist at Harvard University told Fox News.
Actress Stacey Dash, one of the first to bring attention to the media criticism of the film via Twitter, believe viewers are being unfair in their reviews.
"Rather, they are demeaning every woman who chooses to be a stay-at-home mom," Dash told FOX411. "It's absurd that these critics, many of whom are women, go out of their way to destroy one lifestyle choice while celebrating films that glorify rape, prostitution, exploitation and abuse of our gender.
"I thought art was allowed to be a reflection of all attributes of society."
