At the moment of opening “Keep praying” A naive and fun documentary about an ensemble of gospel music, the boy wields his viewers in an almost white church shining in the sunshine of North Carolina. There, Blanchetes both plays and records live albums. The smiling kid promises that the minutes are “likely to be a church” and that he may have friends inside.
This movie is not world history or anything like that. However, the group led by Lena Mae Perry (and sponsored by an instrumentalist called Guitarheels) is inspired both by swinging the rafters and evoking peace in the valley.
Perry, an 80’s singer and Branchettes guidelight, is a formidable and calm presence. A powerful alto, she founded a group in the early 1970s with two now-deceased companions, Ethel Elliot and Mary Ellen Bennett. The trio created a unique three-part harmony and eventually built up supporters in the state.
Perry grew up on a tobacco farm and proudly recalls her expertise in tying tobacco leaves. She claims that the job wasn’t difficult. That was exactly what her family did. She recalls the experience of racism with similar tranquility. Definitely the result of her religion. The belief in the gospel of love seems profound but not overly dogmatic.
Her group now covers several generations. Phil Cook, the leader of Wisconsin-born pianist Guitarheels, secretly admits that he first came into contact with music in the 1993 Whoopi Goldberg comedy “Sister Act 2: Back in Love”.
The film was directed by DL Anderson and Matthew Darning and produced under the banner of the Spiritual Helpline. The Spiritual Helpline is also the name of the record label that Cook started making his live album for Ranchets. As self-promotion ventures progress, this is an effort of honesty and goodwill, packed with a lot of energetic music that sells itself more or less.
Keep praying
Unrated. Execution time: 1 hour and 10 minutes. At the theater.
