But Mormon characters in movies are still pretty rare — aside from all the LDS films that crop up in this market each year.

Another bad one is in the 10-year-old movie "Donnie Brasco," which is currently getting a push on DVD with a new special edition.

The film stars Johnny Depp as an undercover FBI agent who becomes pals with a lower-tier mobster, played by Al Pacino.

The LDS character shows up as Depp's FBI boss, a weaselly hypocrite who chides Depp for using foul language and then refers to Depp using the same word.

In contrast, Brasco's wife in the film is a faithful Catholic, and her young daughter's Holy Communion is treated as sacred.

While perusing reviews of "Georgia Rule" last week, I came across this comment by Washington Post film critic Stephen Hunter:

"The movie has an ugly strain of anti-Mormonism throughout it, which I hope doesn't become a Hollywood tradition if Mitt Romney gets the Republican presidential nomination."

The sentiment is appreciated, but I believe that ship has sailed.

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E-mail: hicks@desnews.com