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Reviews
Planet 51 (2009)
Being an alien ... on an alien planet - awesome setting, good execution
What I really like about this movie is the setting. A planet so very similar to ours in the 50's, but inhabited by smaller green guys with antennae, similar to how we imagine aliens. Then an alien invasion actually happens, when a human astronaut lands on their soil.
The movie mocks our fear of the unknown and does good job with that, even though some of the situations are a bit too far to the absurd side. The movie likes to use some stereotypes, mostly for the good. At least you can identify stuff easily without having to decipher it and if you watch it with children, they might understand most of it, too.
Of course, something is totally unrealistic or oversimplified, but it's a comedy, no need to take it too seriously. You wouldn't make a realistic movie about it anyway, as sentient extraterrestrial life might be very different from ours anyway, even if it shared our fears.
Revelation: The Bride, the Beast & Babylon (2013)
Good insight
I'm an adventist myself, so I might be less critical than someone else. I think most of what is said in the documentary movie are historical facts. However, Doug's conclusions might be biased, using a supportive argument as a proof, sometimes.
There is some harsh criticism of the papacy, as well as of the medieval clergy. A catholic believer might be offended, this is the perspective of protestant believers. Still, I think it's worth watching for anyone who's somehow involved with Christianity or at least Christian culture, so you can understand better why something is as it is.
I like the video illustrations, they are filmed well, I also like how it's illustrated with art (paintings, statues, ...) The speech is quite fast paced with short intervals for the speakers, some might like it, some might not.
Noah (2014)
Great scenes, diabolic story
The story of Noah in Genesis is quite a short one. Whoever wants to make a movie about it, (s)he has to be artistic, filling lot of blanks. The movie makers decided to go a bit further and changed the story noticeably. Those changes made it ridiculous for me and they can also make it offending for some. Their depiction of Noah's character differs greatly from mine, so I find it hard to swallow.
While disappointed by the bigger picture, I like many of the scenes in the movie. I identified some of them easily and I liked those. I disliked some others in the context of Noah, but I wouldn't really mind seeing them in some story unrelated to Noah. Anyway, Aronofsky did a lot of great work there.
My feelings are ambiguous. Being a Christian, it feels like half-truism to me, the truth being present to make swallowing the lie easier. The snake in the garden of Eden did just the same to be more persuasive. That's why I call it a diabolic story.
The Fourth Wise Man (1985)
Great story and acting
This is one great story, well played. It is obvious the budget wasn't huge, which is not surprising since it is a TV movie. But still, it's worth watching.
Unlike many Christian movies, there is no sugar added. This movie doesn't tell us we will be successful if we follow Jesus. The protagonist doesn't pray to win a baseball tournament, he doesn't pursue success. He just wants to see Jesus.
Set in ancient world, the story starts about a year before Jesus was born. A magus named Artaban sees a star that foretells the advent of the King of Kings. He sets on a long journey, helped by his slave Orontes. He takes precious gifts with him as well. But we all know only three magi made it to Bethelem the night Jesus was born, leaving Artaban struggling.