Genres

Visitors Review

toast-15 2012-05-24 05:55:03

a good all around family film

I know that all the critics are trashing this film but I found it funnyand with a good message. I wonder if the critics even know what afamily film is supposed to be? Do they know they are making themselvesirrelevant? I was watching a film review show on TV and as one of thecritics was listing the reasons he hated it, one of the reasons wasthat it had a Christian message or something to that effect. I wasflabbergasted. Are we supposed to hate films if they have a goodunderlying meaning or message? And the message isn't even specificallyChristian, I believe the story of Noah and the ark was in the oldtestament, a book that pretty much is embraced by a lot of differentreligions. This particular critic was definitely taken down a fewnotches in my view. Having a good message should never be a reason todislike and trash a film. This summer there seems to be nothing but badnews and tragic stories. A good, uplifting film was definitely worthseeing and my kid has already asked for the DVD when it comes out.

2012-05-23 16:54:18

A Movie With Profound Messages

Evan Almighty, the big blockbuster movie, is the sequel to Bruce Almighty. In Bruce Almighty, Jim Carrey gets to play god, however on the sequel, Evan played by Steve Carrell doesn't get to play god instead he gets to plays Noah. Returning to the movie is Morgan Freeman who gets to play god again, only this time he isn't going to lend his power to Evan, instead he has some work for him. Freeman orders Evan to build an ark for the upcoming flood.As mentioned before, Evan Almighty is considered a sequel to Bruce Almighty since Morgan Freeman plays the god part again, only this time he has bigger plans for Evan and isn't going to lend him powers like the last movie. However, the movie starts with Evan moving to Washington D.C. with his wife Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls) and three kids that really look like Carrell because he won a seat in congress. His campaign slogan "Change the World" is basically his main objective, he strives to make a difference and make the world better as a congressman. His job starts with the famous ignore the kid's policy and look like a work-a-holic until he comes to a bill about cutting forest trees that he must support, the bill is being lead by actor John Goodman who plays a typical fat congressman. During one of the many funny scenes, Morgan Freeman or God invades Evan's private life trying to get him to do some work for him. God wants Evan to build an ark, since an imminent flood is approaching. As he is building the famous ark, Evan begins to grow a beard which he can't lose, no matter how many times he shaves. Later on, as the ark building progresses, his long beard turns white, and he begins wearing a vintage tunic (similar to the one Jesus wore), as mentioned in the movie by Wanda Sykes, he looks like a member of the Bee Gees. Also, during the ark building, every single member of the animal kingdom appeared, of course in pairs.After the flood scene, the movie's conclusion part starts with Evan being in a hiking trip (an action he had promised his family members in doing at the very beginning of the movie) where he finds god, Freeman tells Baxter that if he really does want to change the world, the only way is through acts of random kindness (which coincidently spells ark). I felt completely satisfied from seeing the movie, the story telling, the acts of random kindness, and the funny scenes made the perfect combination of a comedy. When seeing the cover my expectations weren't that high, but I was really outburst by the movie since it really is a comedy of biblical proportions.Although you might find the ending a little cheesy, the movie itself is worth viewing due to its wonderful cast and well intended Christian theme. As many critics enjoyed its predecessor over the sequel, this movie is much more appealing to entire families instead of teenagers as was Bruce Almighty.

Sue Pierman 2012-05-14 06:17:26

There is a simple sweetness about this film when it sticks to the likable Carell, God and his family, but it's overcome by the deluge of effects that pay homage to Hollywood's sole focus of worship: the box office.

2012-05-13 13:11:11

Comic View of Noah's Ark

This movie is a story of how Noah's Ark might be depicted in current times. Children may enjoy this movie more than adults. However, we enjoyed the movie without the children. There is some slap-stick comedy.

James Berardinelli 2012-05-12 22:57:03

While I admit that Evan Almighty isn't as ineptly constructed and poorly realized as its predecessor, this still isn't a wise investment of anyone's entertainment dollar.

Oceans_13 2012-05-12 13:05:39

Good, Clean, Family Fun! (even with a Christian's point of view!)

Evan Baxter (Steve Carell) just won an election to be Congressman, andhe moves away to 'Prestige Hills' with his wife Joan (Lauren Graham)andhis three sons. Shortly after, a tool box mysteriously appears on hisporch. And the next day lumbar appears! Animals from all over start tofollow him around. God (Morgan Freeman) tells Evan that there is goingto be a flood, and he wants him to build an ark. His hair on his headand face start to grow so rapidly, that as soon as he shaves it off, itgrows right back! What is he to do? God soon tells him that there is adead line as well. September 22 mid-day. Will Evan be able to make theark before the deadline, trust God, and convince his family to helphim? As a Christian, we were not sure what it would be like. Take yourfamily, church, everyone to see this wonderful movie! This movie isgood, clean, family fun. (It's very funny too!)

Brian Webster 2012-05-07 15:22:32

Don't bother going down with the ark; skip this one.

Vince Koehler 2012-05-06 21:35:00

This was the best family film I have seen this year.

Michael A. Smith 2012-05-06 12:42:50

A comedy with it's heart in the right place

Ken Fox 2012-05-06 02:54:48

It's depressing to learn that God Himself speaks in bumper-sticker slogans. Equally sad is seeing the talented Sykes once again sidelined in another clunker: Rather than a star in her own right, she's become the Thelma Ritter of bad Hollywood comedies.

alekmead 2012-05-03 20:18:36

Forshame

As a preface allow me to say that I loved Bruce Almighty. It was veryfunny and a relatively original film. Those two reasons and the factthat I think Steve Carell is hilarious are why I went to see this flop.The acting is beyond poor from everyone involved (honestly, who castthose kids?) though I can't blame them too much, asking anyone toperform well with this laughable, mundane and horribly cliché scriptwould be asking to turn water into wine. The effects for a movie whichcost $175 million to produce were quite simply laughable. It is morethan obvious that every other scene is shot on a blue/green screen (andedited poorly might I add) and there is a horrible fuzz which invadesthe screen in the scenes involving animals. For a comedy it lacks anycomedic punch whatsoever, they tried to cover that up by randomly andannoying cutting to Wanda Sykes spitting out some pretty awfulone-liners.And all of that is beyond the fact that the directors and writers quiteobviously chose to pursue a far more religious offering this timearound rather than focusing on making their audience laugh. This movieis more akin to a (mildly) comedic companion piece to "The Passion ofthe Christ." Not that there is anything wrong with that, but I feltbombarded by Christian doctrine when all I really wanted was to laugh.In short; Steve Carell and John Goodman, you should be ashamed ofyourselves. You're both capable of much much better work.

2012-05-03 05:06:40

Lots of laughs, Great movie.

This review is from: Evan Almighty (Widescreen Edition) (DVD) We saw it at the theater and my children as well as myself enjoyed this movie very much. I highly recommend this DVD for families.

2012-04-26 23:30:26

God Wants Americans To Protect Our Remaining Wilderness From Destruction!

Definitely a movie with good taste!Very, very unlike the gritter, unclean, PG-13 rated counterpart "Bruce Almighty", where we have a scene where Jim Carrey getting beat up by thugs, a sexy, romantic scene with Jennifer Aniston, and the worst vulgar language you can imagine, even when Carrey's character was on the air doing the news in Niagra Falls, and countless other grittier scenes.In Evan Almighty, on the other hand, Steve Carell plays a family man in a tastefully done movie that you could take your childrent to see. There is no sex, no violence, no vulgar language. The only trouble is, compared to Bruce Almighty, there is also not very much humor. Good taste has had a long history of being murder to comedy. From the comedy of the Three Stooges to that of Rodney Dangerfield,.. and even after that, the best comedy has always been in bad taste. The comedy of Jim Carrey was by far no exception. He was not afraid to cross boundries if it meant getting a laugh. To add good taste to comedy is like adding ketchup to ice cream.Even Steve Carell's character, "Evan", was funnier on the first film. Evan Baxter was supposed to be an arrogant jerk who got the anchor job that Jim Carrey's character "Bruce" wanted and continually rubbed it in. When Bruce, with God's powers sabotaged the evening news and made Evan made a fool of himself on camera, Steve Carell was hilarious. In "Evan Almighty", Evan seems to have a totally different character altogether. He not only not an arrogant jerk but a wholesome family man. at the end of the movie, we see Evan and his family running up the hill for a picnic. Great for the whole family! .. Well, maybe not quite that great for comedy. Carell has very few, if any funny punch lines. He had no funny facial expressions. You wind up feeling sorry for him when he is being ridiculed by the media and by the other congressmen. Why? Well, since Evan is no longer arrogant, it is hard to laugh when he is embarrassed in front of a crowd. You feel sorry for him. On "Bruce Almighty" Evan is arrogant. As a result you feel he deserves what he gets. When he is embarrassed in front of a crowd in Bruce Almighty, he is funny.Jim Carrey had the facial expressions, the comic timing, the unbelievable funny punch lines. Although Steve Carell has always been a little more of a straight actor than Jim Carrey, Carell has the potential to do really good comedy. He just wasn't provided the best possible script.The funniest lines actually went to Wanda Sykes. What a mistake! Try to imagine a Jim Carrey movie where a peripheral character gets funnier lines than Carrey's character! "Heaven" help us! That's not to say this movie doesn't have its moments. It really does! There are excellent scenes where Carell is trying to build the arc and keeps injuring himself. The parts with the animals are very good. Carell does wonderful dancing. There is also the shaving scene where Carell's character tries to shave and the beard grows back instantly. Where have I seen that part before? I keep remembering that movie "The Santa Clause" when Tim Allen does exactly the same thing. He tries to shave and the beard grows back instantly. Well, ladies and gentlemen, there's no originality in THIS area.Somehow, I miss the arrogant Evan Baxter from "Bruce Almighty". He had bad taste and was far funnier! As Charlie Tuna from the TV commercial would say, I'm fond of tuna with "good taste", but I miss tuna that tastes good.

dr_bertie 2012-04-26 12:54:04

Oh how wrong they are

I have went to the trouble of registering with IMDb because I could notbelieve that this movie has managed an average of 5.8. That wouldsuggest it is watchable, its not: not funny, not well scripted, notwell acted and certainly not impressive when it comes to specialeffects.I enjoyed Bruce almighty to a degree, not the best comedy in the world,but it didn't struggle with its running time. There was no need for asequel of any sorts and certainly not one of these Hollywood spin-offmoneymakers. I do love Steve Carell, but even he comes across badly inthis film and why Morgan Freeman continues to stain his career withrolls like this is beyond me.Be advised, avoid this like a biblical plague of locusts!

Sean Means 2012-04-25 17:14:26

God gave us the brains to see through the sort of shallow sermonizing that Evan Almighty wants to pass off as true faith.

Matthew Turner 2012-04-25 07:44:07

Evan Almighty is saved by a strong supporting cast and a decent climax, though the rest of the film is underwritten and disappointing in places.

A56T 2012-04-22 04:10:25

The curse of the sequel strikes again

Evan Almighty yet again is an example of a sequel that just couldn'ttop or even match its predecessor. Years ago things like this wouldhave gone straight to DVD but sadly this was given a cinema release.With Jim Carrey and Jennifer Aniston both passing on this sequel toBruce Almighty it is up to Steve Carrell to man the ship (or ark inthis case). Although Carrell has talent and charm he is lumbered with aweak script so is left frantically trying to re-create the magic of thefirst film.Whereas the first film had a more adult feel Evan Almighty goes for afamily audience but misses the mark here as well. Morgan Freeman isgiven more of a role and Lauren Graham is believable as Evan's wifeJoan.Carrell alone cannot save this film nor help it recoup its massivebudget. Perhaps worth watching once but you won't be rushing to see itagain as it proves to be an almighty flop.

dianajay 2012-04-21 17:19:52

Wonderful Surprise!!! Loved it.... Better than the First "Bruce Almighty"

My husband and I almost didn't go to see this movie because of negativeremarks/comments that we had read on this site. However, the othermovie we wanted to see was sold out... so we decided to see this. I amso glad that we did! We liked it better than the first movie. This wasa fun warm hearted clean family movie... It has a good message and wasnot offensive at all! This movie had a little less comedy than it'spredecessor, but more of a story line. Morgan Freeman did another greatjob in the Role of God... Steve Carrol isn't someone who I always likeas some of his roles are over the top and somewhat offensive...However, he was excellent in this role! I would definitely recommendthis movie to everyone! If you are unsure, Go See It !!!

Connie Ogle 2012-04-21 04:45:15

Evan Almighty may not be enough to make you shout 'Hallelujah,' but it's not the cinematic equivalent of a plague, either.

lkl6411 2012-04-20 14:52:05

Hilarious with Meaning

I watched Evan Almighty with my husband and 3 of our kids last night. Ithought it was laugh-out-loud funny and also meaningful as a Christianbeliever.My husband and I thought the animals on screen were amazing (kudos tothe computer graphics folks) and although we thought the ark movingthrough the water scenes were a bit cheesy, we all really enjoyed thefilm.If you liked Bruce Almighty, you'll probably like Evan Almighty too!I'll be watching this one again soon! Some of the scenes with Evan andthe animals and his dealing with his appearance were hilarious!