Between Icon and Idol: Augustine in Film and the Problem of the Christian Hero

In this paper, I critically analyze the only two films ever made about Saint Augustine—Agostino d’Ippona (1972) and Restless Heart (2012)—in light of what James K. A. Smith calls an Augustinian, “incarnational” account of film as part of a broader Christian aesthetic. With help from Smith, I first demonstrate how film can, despite Augustine’s critique of theater, move the minds and hearts of viewers to God. I then comparatively evaluate Restless Heart and Agostino d’Ippona with an eye toward this normative standard for “good” cinema. While I conclude that both films fail to reflect this Augustinian vision, their shortcomings reveal an inherent tension in any “biopic” featuring a Christian hero. By yielding to the cinematic temptation to glorify the protagonist as morally exceptional, these films risk idolizing their subjects, drawing the minds and hearts of viewers not toward God but toward the love of autonomous human achievement.