Our educational and viewing workbook can be used in any of your churches, classrooms (even online) and support groups.

Created by the Oriented to Love Community,
these discussion questions for THE HAMMER help open more minds and hearts and keep the conversation of change going.

Purchasing this workbook provides you with a YEAR LICENSE to show the movie in an educational setting to a group in person or by using the online platforms.

Use this form to request a downloadable workbook.

Discussion questions for THE HAMMER

How do see the theme of perseverance through difficulty played out in this film?

Discuss: George’s love for and loyalty to Crystal were more important to him than getting out of prison. What factors do you think contributed to George’s decision?

We witness the power of friendship between George and Doc, between George and Crystal, and among the other inmates. What effect does friendship have on the difficult circumstances of life in prison, and on other forms of hardship?

Which scenes were the most impactful to you, and why?

When George refuses to leave Crystal behind to go fight in the Olympics, the warden moves Crystal to another prison. What’s driving the warden’s actions here? Dig a little to consider what deeper motivations and factors might be at play here.

What do you make of Doc’s spiritual journey? Where did he start, and where was he by the end of the film? What factors do you think led this movement?

What themes/symbols of faith do you notice in the film?

1st preacher: What scriptural texts are being quoted? How are they being interpreted in the film in light of their original meaning? 

2nd preacher: What different themes are being communicated here?

What differences do you notice in the attendees between the two types of services offered? What do you think that reflects?

How do you respond to Crystal’s reference to David and Jonathan’s relationship as sexual?

Which characters did you most identify or sympathize with? Which characters were you most confused or repulsed by?

Which characters, if any, surprised you? Which characters did you find to be the most nuanced/complex, and why?

What do you think the filmmaker wants you to take away from this film? What ‘messages’, if any, do you feel drawn to? Which, if any, do you feel resistant to?

What gifts of friendship do you see Crystal offer to George? 

What aspects of Doc and Hammer’s relationship do you find inspiring? Discouraging? What other adjectives come to mind?

What differences/similarities do you observe between the inmates and the prison staff?

Discuss the various types of power that are depicted in the film, and the various ways that power is held/wielded. What issues/concerns do these portrayals of power raise for you?

When George’s fight with Tate seems to be lined up, what intersections of race and power are in evidence?

This film depicts a cage of oppression. What different types of oppression do you recognize here, and how does each intersect with the other?

What images of solidarity do you see in the film?

What is the impact of love in the film?

What can we learn from this story in light of our lived experiences and the lived experiences of those in the prison system today?

What does this story demonstrate about how oppression thrives and how it can be disrupted?

What different endings can you imagine for this story?

Thank you for pondering these questions discussion questions created by the Oriented to Love Community.

Listen to the HEART, BABY! PODCAST: the true story behind the film The Hammer

with writer director Angela Shelton and the real George and Doc from the film.