Evan Almighty UK DVD Release

Film © 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Evan Almighty gets its UK DVD release on Monday, in what seems to be a slightly different version of the disc from that which was released last month in the US and elsewhere. I say that because my friend Peter Chattaway had his name included on the North American DVD for attending the promotional "junket" earlier in the year. This DVD doesn't have that feature at least.

It does, however, have a very generous number of extra features, including several mini-documentaries. Indeed given the film's poor performance at the box office, and the wealth of extras already supplied in this release, it's hard to imagine a special edition of this film coming out any time soon. The full list of features is as follows:

Deleted Scenes
Outtakes
The Ark-itects of Noah's Ark
Becoming Noah
Steve Carrell Unscripted
Animals on Set Two by Two
The Almighty Green Set
It's Easy Being Green
Acts of Random Kindness
A Flood of Visual Effects
Casting Call Serengeti

Film © 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

For me, the best extras are always those that lead you to appreciate the film more, and there are at least 3 features here that tick that box, (although from a technical point of view more than anything). "The Ark-itects of Noah's ark" talks about the feat of reproducing Noah's ark for real, which is one of the film's most impressive feats alongside the use of animals. Evan used more animals than any other film in movie history, and so it's hardly surprising that it gets its own feature entitled "Animals on set two by two".

The other more technical features discuss issues around Carell's make-up ("Becoming Noah"), and the CGI effects ("A flood of visual Effects"). I always find CGI docs interesting, but feel geeky afterwards for enjoying them as if they're some kind of guilty pleasure.

The other features fall into two categories, those tied into the film's messages, and those that are just cast / crew enjoying themselves. This was certainly a "message movie", which aimed to challenge its audience to live more sustainably, and to engage in Acts of Random Kindness. There are two features on the first issue ("The Almighty Green Set", "It's Easy Being Green"), and one on the second ("Acts of Random Kindness"), which sometimes feels a little preachy and other times seems a bit token. For example, will the world really be saved by putting a quarter in a parking meter if someone's car has run out of credit?Film © 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

In-jokes by cast and crew rarely make good extras, and this DVD is no exception. Whilst "Casting Call Serengeti" raises the occasional smile, "Steve Carrell Unscripted" is poor. In fact generally these extras supply ample evidence that Carrell is far more amusing when scripted than not.

In terms of the movie itself (my review is here), the quality seems pretty good - although I'm no expert. The above image is the bitmap from my screen grab software so you can see for yourselves (click on it to see the full size image). Overall it's a decent release of this film, and, as there is unlikely to be a special edition in the near future, those planning to buy the DVD should probably go right ahead rather than wait for another, even more extensive version.

====
Anyone interested in this DVD might also want to know that Peter Chattaway has also recorded an unofficial, downloadable, audio commentary for the film as well. There's also a new trailer available.

Evan Almighty DVD Release. Plus! Additional Commentary

In the US, Evan Almighty has been out on DVD for a week now, but according to amazon.co.uk it's not due for release over here until November the 26th. I guess this mirrors the film's staggered theatrical release, but it's still kind of strange.

Anyway, it seems that this release is fairly extras-lite, no doubt preparing the way for a special edition some time next year, but those of you who can't wait might want to check out Peter Chattaway's audio commentary which is available to download for free.

Evan Almighty Review

It wasn't until the unexpected success of The Passion of the Christ in 2004 that Hollywood really started to sit up and take notice of the market for religious themed films. Tom Shadyac, however, was way ahead of them. Shadyac was the producer and director of 2003's Bruce Almighty, a film that opted for the unlikely combination of comedy and theodicy. Given that studios now seem to be giving the green light to seemingly any religious film project that comes its way, it's not too much of a surprise to find Shadyac given another bite of the cherry.

Four years can be a long time in Hollywood, and in the period since Bruce Almighty, the star of that film, Jim Carrey, seems to have started to fade, whereas his sidekick, Steve Carrell, is very much on the ascent. Whilst his work on Anchorman, The 40 Year Old Virgin and the US version of The Office hasn't been to everyone's liking, Carrell has become a star in his own right. The producers of this film can't have been too disappointed, then, when Carrell agreed to take the lead role in Carrey's absence.

Carrell reprises his role as Evan Baxter, (the newscasting nemesis of the original film's Bruce), who is promoted in the film's opening scenes to the post of senator. It's an awkward start that begs the question as to why such a change was required. Was the script originally conceived without Carrell? Were the senatorial scenes considered too humorous or too critical to allow Baxter to remain a newscaster?

In any case, the film quickly leaves any trace of Baxter's previous life behind him and submerges itself in its new narrative. The Baxter's move into their huge new home, Evan starts his cushy new job, and one by one we're introduced to a whole new cast, including his wife Joan (...of ark, geddit?) and his three sons (who are not called Shem Ham and Japheth in case you were wondering).

Life as a senator starts off very positively. Even before Evan's first day he is given a swanky office courtesy of leading senator Congressman Long, who wants Baxter's support for his controversial bill. God however as other ideas, and, once again takes the form of Morgan Freeman to get Evan's attention.

God's plan is to get Baxter to build an ark, which leaves him a huge variety of ways to announce his message. So there are personal appearances, frequent recurrences of Gen 6:14 ("Make thee an ark of gopher wood"), pairs of animals tracking him to work, and facial hair that won't go away.

Anyone familiar with Tim Allen's The Santa Clause franchise will no doubt spot the similarity. Indeed there is a significant amount of "borrowing" in this film, which, strangely, doesn't seem to reference the original works all that often. Take for example the scene where a flock of birds all simultaneously swoop into the office of a terrified Evan and then proceed to attack him.
It's straight out of Hitchcock's The Birds, yet there's nothing that could be considered an actual tribute to the original. None of Hitchcock's memorable shots is reproduced, nor is there any other kind of reference - visual or otherwise.

There are numerous places where this film draws on others. For example, perhaps the major theme of the film is about following the supernatural revelation given to you, the difficulties of convincing those you love that it's validity, and carrying on in with your calling in spite of the jeers of your neighbours. It's actually very well executed, and surprisingly touching for a slapstick comedy. But I couldn't help wondering whether the main reason that I loved these scenes was because of the powerful effect Field of Dreams has on me.

Even though Bruce Almighty was, in many ways, an updated version of Goerge Burns's Oh God, it felt fresh and original. Whilst it's not one of the all time great films, it's still pretty good, and combining comedy with more serious spiritual issues made it relatively novel. In contrast Evan Almighty either falls back on re-treading those same ideas, or those from other films. Whilst it's certainly a long way from a bad film, at its best it's merely entertaining.

That's not to say there aren't some standout moments. This is apparently the most expensive comedy ever made and it boasts some pretty impressive visuals. The scenes of the animals approaching the ark far surpass anything produced by previous films about Noah, particularly the scenes with the animals. Similarly impressive are the climatic final scenes.

But what kind of God does Evan encounter? Both this film, and the original portray a God who is down to earth, laid back, likeable, has a good sense of humour, and who is powerful, but chooses to involve his people. Here, as with the first film, God is brought into the film by a human request. Evan may not get the answer to prayer he was expecting, but, as God points out, he was the one who wanted to change the world.

Interestingly Freeman's God is far more the God we see revealed in Jesus than the God of the original flood story. When Evan questions his motives he replies "let's just say that whatever I do I do it because I love you". It seems to contrast with his prediction of a flood, but ultimately he's shown to be true to his word. Perhaps the most significant aspect of the God of the Almighty franchise is that he's a God who prefers to work through his people. While he may laugh at their plans, and use their prayers as an opportunity for growth, he longs to make the world a better place primarily by relying on "one act of random kindness at a time".

Despite such a positive portrayal of the one, true, Almighty the way much of the Christian media has clamoured to promote this film, regardless of its quality, is rather disappointing. Overall, it's a great film for Christian families to take their kids to, an interesting enough film for adults of faith, and just about entertaining enough to be worth the entry fee. It seems unlikely, however, that a run-of-the-mill comedy such as this would inspire anyone to a new, or more profound, faith.

Ron Reed on The Big Fisherman, Barabbas and Ben Hur

My friend Ron Reed has just posted reviews of three biblical epics - The Big Fisherman, Barabbas and Ben Hur. Ron has a great way with words and has the benefit of having seen The Big Fisherman which I've never had the chance to see. It would have to be good to be an improvement on Barabbas. Ben Hur may have a larger number of Oscars, but Barabbas is the superior film in my opinion.

Speaking of reviews by friends of mine, Peter Chattaway has also had his third article on Evan Almighty published.

Noah's Ark (1959)

I'm seeing Evan Almighty on Wednesday so I figured it was about time I made some more entries in my Films About Noah series.

Noah's Ark is the 2nd of Disney's three takes on this story (the others being Father Noah's Ark (1933) and the "Pomp and Circumstance" sequence from Fantasia 2000 (1999), and with a running time of around 20 minutes it's the most extensive of the three. In contrast to the other two films it's made with stop motion animation using every objects such as pipe cleaners, corks and thimbles as well as the fabrics that predominate.

It has a number of things in common with one or both of those other films. Firstly, there is a great deal of humour in all three films. Here we see the usual slapstick escapades from Noah and his sons as they construct the ark. There are also jokes based on the distinctive characteristics of the various animals again. Here we have a penguin wearing a morning coat, and minks dressed in mink.

Another similarity is that film is also largely accompanied by music, the music here is perhaps the most "kidsy", with simple harmonies and a modernish feel. Some of the music here is used to provide entertainment whilst on board the ark. In this version of the film, unfortunately, this sequence goes off on tangent getting overly concerned with the marital strife between Mr and Mrs Hippo.


Another way that this short resembles the others is with the way it handles the biblical material. None of the three films really deal with this story as the outworking of God's judgement. The people who are left behind to drown never enter the picture, and whilst all three films delight in the animals who survive the flood there's no mention of those that didn't make it.

Finally, Shem Ham and Japheth are again present and, as with the first film whilst they all have different coloured hair, they share their colouring with their spouses.

There are lots of novelties in this film as well, however. For a start the animation itself is resourceful and creative. The use of everyday objects gives it an endearing quality, which draws attention to the medium as well as the story.


There are a couple of very interesting shots in this film as well. The film starts and ends with God-shots. The first is a fairly conventional movie God shot – an overhead view of the land in which Noah lives – near enough for it to be clear what it is, but far enough away so that it couldn't be the point of view of any other character. This shot is confirmed as being God's point of view when it is reproduced immediately after God has finished giving Noah his mission. The closing God shot is entirely different. It's a view of the whole globe.

The use of these shots indicate God's presence in this film which is perhaps more prevalent here than in the other two – particularly as we hear God give Noah his mission. There's also a few interesting dissolves, notably during the montage in which the ark is built.

One of the other strengths of this film are the various backgrounds it uses. These nicely complement the action whilst also emphasising the different locations. The area where Noah lives is mainly shot against a plain blue background, and several of the shots (including the opening ones are shot with blue filters). But once Noah and his sons go out to gather the animals the background become much more diverse and interesting.

Chattaway on Noah Films

I've been meaning to post this all week, but I've been a bit pushed for time, and now most people have probably seen this already. Nevertheless, for those of you who haven't yet had the pleasure, then BC Christian News has published a brief article by Peter Chattaway on film portrayals of Noah. It's part of BCN's look at Evan Almighty.

Peter discusses the following films:

Noah's Ark (1928)
Father Noah's Ark (1933)
Green Pastures (1936)
Noah's Ark (1959)
The Bible: In the Beginning (1966)
In Search of Noah's Ark (1976)
Genesis: Creation and the Flood (1994)
Noah's Ark (1999)
Fantasia 2000 (1999)

I've seen all of these except In Search of Noah's Ark (1976), which, to be honest doesn't tempt me much. I'll be writing about the ones I've not yet covered on this site (i.e. those not linked to above) soon, although I have reflected on the penultimate two films (plus one or two others) in my article on Genesis films.

There are two films that Peter didn't discuss. One is from the Testament: The Bible in Animation series. It's the only one of that series I've yet to see, but as I recently bought a copy on DVD I'll be blogging it shortly. The other is from the 1970s Greatest Heroes of the Bible series called The Story of Noah. That's one I've not seen, although judging by the others in the series it's unlikely to be either well produced or particularly insightful.

Peter's also had his article on Evan Almighty director Tom Shadyac published in the same issue of BCN.

Opening Reviews for Evan Almighty

Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to review Evan Almighty until nearer the 3rd August (when it comes out in the UK, I believe). A couple of Christian periodicals over here have started to crank up their hype machines in preparation for the film's release. However, perhaps significantly, Rich Cline's excellent film column for Idea magazine doesn't happen to mention it.

I won't quote all the leading reviewers on this film as I figure most people know how to visit Rotten Tomatoes to find out exactly why the tomatometer is right down at 20%. And in case you're wondering what the Christian Press has to say about a movie squarely aimed at them then you need go no further than Jeffrey Overstreet's Film Forum (at his Looking Closer blog) where the various reviewers quoted seem slightly happier with the film than their secular colleagues.

Finally, for those wanting to read more about the film, Christianity Today, who give the film 3.5 stars out of a possible 4, have interviews with director Tom Shadyac, and the cast as well as Peter Chattaway's piece on A.r.k. Almighty - a tie in with the film promoting acts of random kindness.

Father Noah's Ark (1933)

Evan Almighty is being released at the end of this month in the US (22nd June), although not until the 3rd August here in the UK. Just in case some people have heard about this film yet, it's the sequel to Bruce Almighty, and, according to the trailer at least, Bruce's nemesis from the first film, Evan Baxter, is commissioned by God to build an ark.

It's obvious from the trailer that this will very much be a modern re-telling of the Noah story, with a few ideas borrowed from other films including the original and The Santa Clause. Given the official website is also encouragin people to give money to plant trees, I suppose I may be able to add An Inconvenient Truth to that list. We will have to see whether the flood is divine or human in origin.

As a result, I thought it would be a good idea to run a series of posts looking at films featuring Noah. I have previously written an article on films based on Genesis, but I plan here to touch on some films I didn't cover in that article, and to re-visit some of the others in more detail. I've been aided in my quest by a friend who has very kindly passed me a couple of films about Noah that I'd not had the chance to see previously, one of which I'm going to talk about in the remainder of this post.

==========

Father Noah's Ark is an 8 minute animated short by Disney using human characters to play Noah and his family. The only dialogue occurs in a couple of brief choruses so the narrative relies heavily on the visuals. That said, those who are unfamiliar with the story would struggle to really understand what is going. When this was released almost 75 years ago, the film-makers perhaps thought they could rely on the audience's biblical literacy to fill in the gaps. I can't help but wonder what proportion of people would watch this today without really grasping what was going on.

I found it interesting that Noah's sons Shem, Ham and Japheth had blond, dark and red hair respectively. I do recall some tradition about Japheth having red hair, but I haven't found any reference to it on the internet so far. Japheth is, however, often referred to as being the father of Europeans. Noah's daughters-in-law also had the same colour hair as their husbands. I suppose it would make it easy to keep tabs on the grandchildren!

I also noticed how Noah's red coat, jolly disposition, size and big white beard made him look fairly similar to Father Christmas (FWIW the story that Santa Claus' red suit came about because of a Coke ad campaign is an urban myth). This would, no doubt, make the cartoon more appealing to children, and throws up a couple of interesting associations.

The film itself is very enjoyable. There are a host of visual jokes, especially in the way that traits of various animals are used in building the ark. So a hippopotamus bites holes in wood, a trail of hedgehogs form a conveyor belt etc. did feel sorry for some of the animals who seemed to be happily giving their labour blissfully unaware that only two of their kind would actually make it onto the ark.

Overall this is an enjoyable telling of the story. and particularly suitable for children. By relying so heavily on the visuals and omitting to show humans who are not part of Noah's family, the story is particularly child friendly, although I would have thought that all ages will enjoy the film's inventive humour.