Website: https://www.facebook.com/Noah
Purchase: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/movie/noah/id834786516
Last year, this was the huge movie in Christian circles. The anticipation was great, but the resulting reaction was one of huge disappointment. The movie was built up in secular and Christian circles alike, with big name actors, a big budget, and a cinematically exciting trailer. Surprisingly, the movie was backed by many popular Christian associations, including Focus on the Family.
In reality, secularly, this movie was a huge success. As a cinematic experience, this was a great movie. Strip away the Biblical background, the origin or source of this story, and the movie and plot was actually surprisingly good. However, the issue is that the movie is based on a Biblical story, and therefore it has to be a strong interpretation of the original material, which is wasn't. Especially for someone who knows the Biblical story of Noah, the differences in this movie were shockingly huge.
There are multiple twists in this version of the Noah story. First, the fallen angels. In this film they are depicted as being punished by God for helping humankind too much, being sentenced to rock bodies for eternity. These fallen angels are called Watchers. Now this is the movie's first un-Christian spin. There are no mention of Watchers in the Bible, and although there are mention of fallen angels, there is no mention of punishment for any specific reason in the actual story. Later on in the Bible, the fallen angels are mentioned as followers of Satan, which would offer a reasonable explanation as to why they were cast out of heaven. God would never punish someone for helping humankind.
The second interesting spin that dominates throughout the entire film is an interesting ritual where a snakeskin is wrapped around the forearm. This is by no means a Christian act. Instead, it is an ancient ritual, something called tefillin. It actually bears strong Satanism symbolism.
The character of Noah is also horribly twisted. The movie pictures him as violent, destructive, and no different then the men of the earth. This is possibly the farthest from the truth. The Bible states that Noah was a righteous man, one after God's own heart. He's the only one from the whole Earth who is worthy of being saved. He is peaceful, a caretaker, a nurturer.
Finally, perhaps the biggest mistake of the movie is the depiction of God. God is pictured as distant, cruel, violent, and definitely not like our Christian God. Throughout the movie He is never called by name, instead referred to as the Creator. He never talks to His people, staying silent and letting them suffer. He curses His angels and then never helps them. He loves violence, and enforces Noah killing everyone without mercy, including newborn babies. That is not the true God. Reading the Biblical story gives a completely different picture of God. God loves His people and does everything He can to save them, through Noah. He guides Noah's every step, protects him and his family, and even promises after the flood never to destroy the world through a global flood.
This movie does help to open the mind to a new perspective regarding the story of Noah. It helps the viewer to think about what Noah would have actually gone through, and the world at that time. Take our world and triple its wickedness. It's hard to imagine. The ark would have been magnificent as well, throughout the building and flood phase.
So while it is a "Christian" movie, it is not one Christians should support, even if it does introduce non-believers to the concept of God. It actually introduces them to the wrong concept of God, and warps everyone's preconceptions about our relationship with Him.
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| ChristianToday |
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