Review of Noah (2014) by Marc W — 15 Oct 2014

Religious movies are always difficult to review because of the topic. It's a sensitive subject and people have very strong opinions. While Noah is not historically accurate (as far as we know), it does deliver the message the Bible intends. And for this I give it kudos.

This portrayal dives a bit into the sci-fi realm with angels trapped in rock monsters and animals never seen. This is where most of the audience will reject the film. "It's got like creatures in it!" they would say. But who is to say what kind of animals trotted in two by two might have got lost in the shuffle and became extinct. That's not even counting the animals that might have gone extinct before today. It's not hard to imagine.

A report by National Geographic stated that we have only discovered 14% of all know living creatures here on Earth. That leaves a whopping 86% we have never even seen. Perhaps there might be a heard of rock creatures like the ones in the film somewhere here on Earth. You may think that's funny, but the fact is we are only 14% certain that is true.

And if something as preposterous as an ark with two of every animal survived the biggest flood ever, who in the hell knows what else happened back then. We can believe in Noah and the ark flood story, yet we can't believe a "creature" or different looking animal is in the movie.

But like I said, that's why religious movies are so tough to review. So it's best to look at what we do have here in the movie and not let our religious fever get involved, which is hard to do. One, we have terrific acting by Russell Crowe as Noah and Jennifer Connelly as Naameh, Noah's wife. The two have great chemistry throughout the film.

Two, we have awesome water stunts and a super real man crafted wooden arc that spares no cubic. The sets were elaborate, inside and out. Three flights of wood, ladders and ramps. The arc looks like a huge square lots of shipping containers. I like this design more than the happy huge ship and bow with cute animals looking out. It's more realistic.

Three, the most important part, the movie carries a message loud and clear just like the one in the bible. Mankind as sunk to its lowest of lows and God destroys them all with fire and then the flood. Should mankind be saved? Are they worthy enough for a second chance? These are the thoughts that run through Noah's mind, and ultimately, the choice comes down to him.

It reminds us of God's immense power and that this world on earth is temporary for the time being. It also reminds us never to steep so low again, although I fear we are nearly getting there. And finally it teaches and reminds us of forgiveness. That if you believe in Jesus Christ, and ask for forgiveness, a spot will be reserved for you in heaven. It is a great movie for these three reasons. The set of the ark alone and the water stunts and minimal CGI are reason enough to give it a look see.