As someone who has been in the middle of the intersection between religion and politics my entire life, I found everything except the judge deciding to set up his own extra-judicial court believable. I have seen shenanigans very similar to this movie being enacted in the real world. I even looked to see if this was a real case, which it wasn't. I was involved in fighting one of the early Defense of Marriage Act bills and saw a conservative governor trade killing the bill for passing another bill that provided financial value to one of his cronies.
However the movie was a melodrama and could have had a more subtle portrayal of the issues involved without losing its message. The acting was mediocre and the characters lacked subtlety. The denouement could have been revealed earlier in the film and made the defendants seem more committed to their cause. I would have liked to have seen them working together more. After all, they were a married couple. The lawyers seemed simultaneously impotent and omnipotent. There have been enough real world legal battles over this issue, that a bit of research could have created more tension than the movie had. Altogether, the movie was not a serious attempt to treat a serious subject seriously.
However the movie was a melodrama and could have had a more subtle portrayal of the issues involved without losing its message. The acting was mediocre and the characters lacked subtlety. The denouement could have been revealed earlier in the film and made the defendants seem more committed to their cause. I would have liked to have seen them working together more. After all, they were a married couple. The lawyers seemed simultaneously impotent and omnipotent. There have been enough real world legal battles over this issue, that a bit of research could have created more tension than the movie had. Altogether, the movie was not a serious attempt to treat a serious subject seriously.