Noah Rides the Waves into Theaters

Review: Noah

Guest Review by Caleb Smith

One of the most famous Biblical stories, if not the most famous, has finally come to the big screens. When I heard Hollywood was making a Noah movie over a year and a half ago I was thrilled.  Then I heard that Russell Crowe and Emma Watson (two of may favorite actors and actresses) would be some of the stars in the film I was ecstatic.  For almost two years I waited for this movie knowing that it would be a big hit.  And finally at a pre-showing the day before the release I got to sit back and observe this Hollywood production.

Going into this movie I had already been warned of its twisted and altered version of the story in Genesis.  Glenn Beck stirred up some controversy earlier this week when he called the film a "Babylonian Chainsaw Massacre".  Personally after seeing "Noah" I think that it a bit of an exaggeration; however Beck did have a few points that I agree with in his review.  Being a Christian I of course had some doubts about "Noah" just as any Christian should when it comes to their religion, however I know that Hollywood is not made up of all Christians so changes are to be expected.  I think people should remember that "Noah" is a Biblical adaptation and therefore will be different than what it is in the Bible.  I wasn't going to let that stop me from enjoying the film though.  After watching the movie I immediately went back and read the story in Genesis to make sure I could correctly make comparisons between the two.  But let's dive right in to what I thought about it.

The movie started out how I expected with a brief overview of Genesis 1-5 which is everything up to the story of Noah.  It didn't go in depth but gave enough information that people unfamiliar with the Bible could follow easily enough.  The introduction of all the characters was suffcient except for the exclusion of two of Noah's son's wives, but they pronounced all the names correctly!  Which if you have ever read the Bible you know can be quite difficult.  The movie does an excellent job demonstrating the evil and corruption the world had fallen to and why the flood is needed.

A problem I have with the film which I knew I would most likely have is the way God speaks and what He says to Noah in the film.  I know this is a difficult concept for Hollywood to portray, nevertheless I do feel like they could have done a better job.  It isn't clear what God is exactly saying in the movie other than that man is corrupt and God will destroy the world with water.  If you read Genesis you see that God talks directly with Noah and gives him precise directions on what to do and what will happen, which is something Noah struggles with throughout the movie.

Moving on, the movie adds many extra scenes and plot lines to make a full Hollywood movie.  Director Darren Aronofsky even said in an interview that if he filmed directly on what happened in Genesis the movie would be only ten minutes long instead of its two hours and fifteen minutes.  This does make sense, and Aronofsky does an excellent job of doing this in the first half of the movie up until the actual flood.  The scenes added in the first half do no stray too far from the Bible, except for maybe the giant rock people (the Nephilim) that remind me of transformers.  And yes I did just refer to a part of this movie as transformer-ish.  But I'll let the readers watch and decide for themselves if they see a bit of Michael Bay in the film.

So the first half of the film I loved.  All the characters were developed, the plot was strong and progressing, and the "waters" were starting to rise.  It's the second half of the movie where I had the hardest time following.  Noah's personality changes and he becomes self-absorbed in which he thinks that only the animals are supposed to live after the flood and he and his family must die.  And this thought continues.  And continues.  And continues.  It drags on.  I wanted to jump into the movie and slap Russell Crowe and tell him to read Genesis and see the correct way Noah acted.

This was perhaps the greatest flaw in the movie.  Noah started off as a hero of his family and of all animals, as he would be the new start of civilization.  He then moved to have his doubts about living and never really came back or had redemption.  Audiences love seeing a hero character fall as long as they are able to come back and be redeemed, but this is something we don't really see in Noah.  Noah is a hero for all Christians even with his flaws, such as getting drunk and lying naked; however it is surprising that the second half chooses not to portray Noah this way.  This is where I think most people and Christians will have their problems with the film.  Noah is portrayed as a crazy person in the second half.

"Noah" in many ways is a beta test for Hollywood when it comes to Biblical movies.  A giant 130 million dollar Biblical movie has not been seen since "The Ten Commandments" in 1956.  And 2014 is a big year for religious movies.  Already two religious movies have come out; "Son of God" and "God's Not Dead".  Both of these movies however were made by Christians and largely for Christians.  "Noah" though is entirely different as it was not made by a religious studio or organization as it is targeting all audiences.  I am sure Hollywood is closely watching people's reactions to this film especially with the upcoming Ridley Scott film "Exodus: Gods and Kings" starring Christian Bale which is set to release this December.  Many more Biblical adaptations are in the talks for future movies as well.

So altogether I give "Noah" a mixed review.  The first half I give two thumbs up and four and a half stars.  It has the plot, amazing visual effects, action, romance, and a sense of purpose.  The second half is where I give it two out of five stars.  So I think audiences that do see it would be okay to get up and leave the theater after the flood happens and miss what happens on the Ark.  It would be better to go home and finish reading Genesis 7 and 8 to see how it should have properly ended.

The Final Word: Wait to rent it.