Review of Paul, Apostle of Christ (2018) by Giovanni D — 07 Apr 2018

This film will be helpful for a young person to hold in their heart and help guide them through the challenges of adolescence and beyond. This film helps get at what it truly is to be Christian. I would have benefited much as a young person -- and indeed will as an adult -- from seeing the stories of the Bible played in the rich context of reality; Paul, the Apostle of Christ provides an historical and moving account of some events the faithful have long been trying to imagine and makes sense of.

Writer and director Andrew Hyatt provides families a thoughtful and meaningful window into the experiences of the young and fragile Christian community in Nero's Rome. There is particular focus on Paul's reflections in his final days, Luke's accounting of Paul's acts as dictated from Paul's prison cell, and the difficult decisions faced by the community in Rome.

There is a good deal of violence. However, the violence is portrayed in ways that are important for the viewer to understand the experiences of Paul and the other disciples in Rome. Indeed, Paul's life was a very violent one, both by him and toward him. This film powerfully exudes truth and challenges the viewer.

The film serves well to provide viewers, young and old, an opportunity to reflect on what it means to be a Christian and whether one is living in a way that speaks to Christ's example and words. One is provided a helpful view into how early Christians in Rome likely navigate the hopes and fears they understandably experienced, especially under Nero. While life in Western societies need not bring about the same fear of physical threat, we ought to reexamine whether we would stand by our faith in a climate of evil and death.