My Review of David (1997) · 3:23am Apr 8th, 2022
Rating Scale:
12/10—a complete masterpiece; flawless and outstanding
11/10—Excellent, near-perfect film
10/10—the standard rating; awesome film with a couple of flaws
9/10—a wonderful film with several flaws
8/10–a great film with numerous flaws but not enough to ruin it
7/10—a fun and entertaining movie; not great but still enjoyable
6/10—a slightly above average film; it is something I might watch again
5/10—mediocre movie; not awful but not great either
4/10—a below average film; it could have been much better
3/10—a bad film; poorly written and poorly executed
2/10—a very bad movie; the few good things in the movie overshadowed by the bad things
1/10—a terrible movie; a total waste of time
0/10—a worthless piece of abomination; should have never been made
Greetings, everyone! This is Mr. J back with another movie review for tonight! I will finally review one of my favorite Bible movies of all time: David from 1997. Just like with DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt, this movie managed to fully flesh out its characters with a deep-engaging storyline, plot, and characterization. This movie is based on the Biblical story of the titular character named David, a shepherd boy who tended his father’s flocks. One day, the prophet Samuel sent by God calls him and anoints him as the future king of Israel. Thereafter, he was able to slay the mighty Goliath, escape Saul’s wrath, battle many heathen armies, and become King of Israel. However, once he succumbs to temptation and adultery, he inevitably begins a series of unfortunate events that threaten his life and his kingly rule. Thus, David understands the full price of his sins and understands God’s will.
First off, David is one of my favorite characters in the Bible besides Moses and Paul the Apostle. What I love about this film was how it never hesitated to show us how brutal David was in his battle against his enemies. We see his courage, flaws, humbleness, charisma, and strengths. He went from a humble sheep-keeper to a well-renowned king of the Israelites. Nathaniel Parker was spectacular in his role as David.
I likewise enjoyed the performances of Jonathan Pryce as Saul, the late Maurice Roeves as Joab, Sheryl Lee as Bathsheba, and Franco Nero as the prophet Nathan.
This was the very film that introduced me to the late Leonard Nimoy. His role as Samuel was profound, amazing, and enjoyable to watch. He truly nailed his performance in this film. Although he is long gone, his excellent film roles will live on.
The thing that truly fascinates me the most ever since I first watched this movie when I was a lot younger is that no matter how much tribulation David went through during his life time, he still maintained his capacity to forgive his enemies especially those who sought for his life such as Saul and his own son Absalom. Additionally, I liked the sharp contrast between David and Saul throughout the movie. The latter was the first king who followed his own ways rebelliously and refused to repent of his evil ways whereas David acknowledged his crime the moment he was called out for it and accepted the consequences of his actions. Not to mention how meek and obedient he is to God’s commands. Thus, we see how David was the better ruler than Saul ever was. Man, this film is so well-written and deep.
The action scenes were well-directed, the story was so investing, the plot was amazing, and the characters were all well-portrayed.
Overall, this is one of the best live-action Bible movies ever and one of my favorite Bible movies in general since childhood. This is probably the most accurate adaptation of the story from 1 & 2 Samuel than the others I’ve watched before. With that said, I will give this an 11/10! Although it has minor errors in some areas, it is a near-perfect film for me.
Peace!
Thanks for doing a review on a Christian Movie, bro.
Never had heard of this movie but this is something that would have been very interesting to watch in religion class. As a Catholic, I find the Bible very interesting, whether it´s Ancient or New Testament.