It would be easy to make Rachel Scott into a modern-day “evangelical saint” if filmmakers wanted to do so.

Thankfully, though, the writers and director behind the new movie I’m Not Ashamed (PG-13) did not do that – and it is far more powerful and believable for it. The movie hits theaters this weekend.

Scott was the first person killed during the Columbine High School mass shooting in 1999, and her Christian walk and testimony became the subject of several books, including the bestseller “Rachel’s Tears.”

In her final seconds on Earth Scott refused to deny Christ. When asked by one of the gunmen, “Do you still believe in God?” she reportedly responded, “You know I do” – before being shot. The morning of the shooting, she even drew a picture of two eyes shedding 13 tears – and later that day the gunmen killed 13 people. Lots of Christians consider it a prophetic drawing.

But the Rachel Scott (Masey McLain) depicted in I’m Not Ashamed is no, well, Mother Teresa. She struggles with a temptation to drink and smoke, and she desperately wants to date the cutest boy around – although he wants her for only one thing. (Don’t worry – the film remains family-friendly.) Continue reading →