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skotoparavich
Reviews
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008)
Superb
I am very familiar of the issue of evolution and Darwinism and I have watched many debates involving many of the people interviewed, and read many books written by them. Of course, everybody knows who Richard Dawkins is. I expected an entertaining documentary and some light fun.
However, I never expected the legal and scientific depth displayed in this documentary. I was pleasantly shocked about the accuracy of the terms and definitions used in it. It asked the correct questions to the right people. And the conclusions are breath-taking.
This movie is superb regardless of what you believe as long as you can keep an open mind. I strongly recommend this movie to every person.
The Nativity Story (2006)
Far Deeper and far more realistic than previous renditions
When it comes to biblical movies, I always look for accurate biblical and theological rendering first and foremost. But accuracy is not necessarily enjoyable. You can easily tell if a movie is low-budget or not. You can easily tell if the acting is superficial or not.
This movie is different. It combines biblical accuracy with excellent acting. Each character was portrayed very correctly. I have studied the biblical characters immensely; and from what we have in the synoptic gospels, the actors brought to live those beloved characters of the bible.
This is a Christian movie filled with biblical themes and messages. If you are looking for different interpretation than the biblical one, you might not like it. But if you are looking for good acting or accurate biblical rendering, you will not be disappointed.
Treat yourself this Christmas to one of the most beautiful movies.
The Gospel (2005)
Nice start but improvements are needed
First of all, I want to thank Sony and all other companies involved in making this movie. Thanks to the team that worked on this movie.
I enjoyed the music very much. Some of the acting was well done. The intention of this movie behind the plot and behind the story is good. It is to be commended for that.
Let us be honest about it. This movie was targeting Christian audience primarily. And not any Christian, but devout, conservative church-goers. This is not a secular a movie but supposedly blatant Christian movie. And if this is the case, the movie must meet certain criteria to fit that genre. Let me explain this further, many churches use movies sometimes as part of their worship and as part of their meditation on God. So for secular readers, please take this into account while reading this review.
Unfortunately and sadly, this of movie did not appeal to most Christians and those who went to watch it left disappointed. Many people are trying to justify the low ratings at IMDb. But the truth is that IMDb rating does suggest the true rating of this movie. I have not heard of any church within my community which is willing to recommended it for its audience. Why is that? 1) Theologically and Spiritually, the movie is shallow and superficial. For example, the concentration was about "joining the church" and "Building a building", the concentration was not building relationship with God, or making life right with God. The church is not a building but it is those people who were sinners and became saved by the grace of God.
2) Theologically the movie missed the target. The gospel message was not clear at all. There is no discussion of sin, forgiveness, repentance, right and wrong... not even on the pulpit. The messages were religious generic words but not based on true scripture. It did not discuss the need to be saved and that Jesus death and resurrection was the way for that. Yes, there were lot of music about this theme, however, it was not the driving force or the motivation behind the actions of making things right with God.
3) The movie did not understand or respect how a church is supposed to be run scripturally. A church that is run correctly does not appoint a person to the board without repentance, it does not utilize secular musicians to get more money, it does not appoint young minister as a senior pastor of a church without being proved.
3) The attitude of this movie about dating and nudity is not appropriate to be shown in a church or to a youth group. Some of the dance sequences were inappropriate either.
4) There were so many sub-plots that did not fit at all and were unnecessary to this movie. Why mix bad church politics with the original and main plot of returning to God? They confused the movie and they were completely unnecessary.
I am not saying this is a horrible movie. It is not. But it is one of those movie you watch once, you like the music, you leave with so many reservations, and you completely forget about without recommending to anybody else. If there is a good message about the prodigal son, it was completely lost and watered down.
So what was needed to make this movie successful? What was needed was simply a Christian co-producer who was theologically trained, and culturally sensitive to the need of Christians.
I give this movie 4 points out of 10: 1 point for good intentions. 2 points for some of the music and 1 point to encourage them to make more of it.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
The One movie to see in theater
I usually do not take the time to write reviews for films. I have not liked one for long time. So I went to the theater with the following expectations: Yes the graphics will be great. However, I had low expectations for the acting and plot. I had no clue what will the directing, music, sound effects, and picture will be like. I believe my expectations were clearly justifiable since I have read the book, I have seen the BBC version, and we all know about the deficiencies of remakes. The following were my impressions after I have seen the movie: I loved the Movie. It exceeded all my expectations. The acting was excellent; then I realized that Aslan's voice was performed by Liam Neelsen. How can you go wrong with that? The children actors in the BBC version were very good. They raised the bar for any remake. But the actors in this movie were excellent, especially Lucy and Edmond. The Music is fabulous and the picture is one of the best. The battle scenes are beautiful and the graphics are wonderful. The supporting actors are all good. I was very surprised that the movie was very faithful to the book. The author plot and intention was the heart of the movie. I really thought that C.S. Lewis was actually the director. One more observation, the movie was so entertaining and every scene was so beautiful, I left that movie hoping for the second and the third part.
I watched lot of movies and if there is one I recommend you see in the theater for the last one year, it is this one. It is one movie which teens will love, children will adore, parents will adore, and Single Adults will want to watch again.