This polarizing documentary features writer-comedian Ben Stein (“Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?”) as a narrator/court jester who interviews academics and scientists on both sides of evolutionary theory and basically asks, “It’s been 150 years since On the Origin of Species was published, we now know the human cell is way more complex than Darwin could’ve imagined, so can we revisit evolution and debate it?” Problem is, Stein & Co. don’t merely want to debate the reliability of evolution itself—they want to debate it using the theory of intelligent design. ID maintains that humanity didn’t happen via cosmic happenstance; scientists and academics pretty much universally define (and deride) ID as disguised creationism. “And you can’t pit science against creationism in a debate,” they say. “Creationism can’t be proven scientifically.” (Of course evolution hasn’t been proven scientifically, either—ergo that annoying “theory” in the title—despite legions who treat it as fact.) That’s the big flaw with Expelled. The movie spends a lot of celluloid footage asking for this debate, wondering what the pro-evolutionists are afraid of, and all the time the wrong question is being posed. Stein & Co. (and those on the side of ID) should leave behind their insistence that there’s a designer out there and instead focus on what’s wrong with evolution—then there can be some debates. In Expelled, pro-ID intellectuals insist there are a lot of flaws and unanswered questions in regard to evolution—so why not bring them to a debate and let the arguments stand on their own?

Expelled (as you no doubt know) has been marketed heavily in the evangelical community and on Christian college campuses. Most of the latter will draw inspiration from the movie—enough to insist on debates or informal exchanges of ideas. But don’t forget the sticking point: No hard-core evolutionist will ever turn sympathetic to intelligent design or see any benefit in debating the issue; they’ll never “make room at the table” for ID, as they see it as a non-scientific theory that belongs in Sunday school rather than a lecture hall. Therefore you and your students are better off either leaving ID behind while dismantling evolution or leaving evolution alone while championing ID—just don’t try to mix the two…otherwise it’s oil and water forever. In the meantime, some extra advice: 1) If you choose to try to knock evolution, do your research; memorize scientific theories, court cases, peer-reviewed studies, arguments, and counterarguments—it’s the only path toward intellectual respect. 2) Don’t attempt to out-argue your teachers or professors—they’re older, smarter, and way quicker on their feet than you are. 3) In the immortal words of Patrick Swayze in Road House: “Be nice.” That might be the most important piece of advice here, because while scientists and professors can be excruciatingly smug when their dearly held views are challenged, so can Christians. So for once, may the church not be the jerks in regard to this issue.