Yes, I’ve already posted about the movie “Providence”. No, it is not Movie Review Monday. Yes, “Providence” hit theaters yesterday and not today. No, it is not Valentines Day yet, (I have a different post about romance for that day).
Here it is, my official review for Providence. My first review wasn’t very review-like, and was the first movie review I ever posted. Since then, my reviews have morphed from technical and quality, to worldview and message. Being that “Providence” made its theater debut yesterday, and my brother stars in the film, I felt it prudent to give you a better review of this new Christian film.
STORY
This story was, in a word, magnificent. I love a good love story; and when I say “good”, I mean really good. This love story was biblical, it was realistic, and it was moving. I say biblical: the mastery of this tale of love was in its exemplification of 1 Corinthians 13.
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth…
—1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
The character of Mitchell showed true charity, true love, in that he believed: when belief failed, he hoped, when hope failed, he endured, holding onto God and trusting that Love, God’s love would never fail. In terms of the story and how it portrayed perfect love, even in fallible humans, this movie was excellent!
Story= 9 of 10 stars!
MESSAGE
The message of this movie was difficult to pin, as there were so many good messages central to the story. One of the key messages was: love never gives up on you. But, ultimately it wasn’t just the love of this man for this woman, but God’s love for both of them. God brought them together in the end; and though we knew it was coming since the beginning, it was still emotional and very surprising. It does not play out the way you imagine it to, yet it shows God strong in the lives of human beings.
The message was good, but I felt like they could’ve tapped into it so much more if they weren’t so focused on the love story. Love alone isn’t a great reason to make a movie, but God’s love and the miracle of redemption is. Again, I would’ve liked for them to dive into the aspect of redemption more than they did, but it was still a great message.
Message= 7 of 10 stars
WORLDVIEW
This is the key, the focal point of all of my movie reviews. In what way does this film make you view the world? Every film imposes a certain perspective upon its audience, so what is “Providence” propogating?
Being that the theme of the movie stems from a biblical definition of love, and many of its key elements are scripture based, we can safely say that this film is coming from a biblical starting point. However, if that was all it took to determine worldview, things like “Exodus: God’s and Kings” and “Noah”, would be considered to have a biblical worldview, but clearly they do not.
What determines a worldview?
Good and bad: what are they? Are they represented correctly? Does good or bad win out in the end? Are there clearly defined lines of morality, right and wrong? Does the film acknowledge God to be who He is or represent Him in an accurate way? All of these factor into worldview, and far more than these simple principles have to be considered when analyzing the worldview of a film.
In terms of good and bad, where the characters stood, and the theme, (redemption), this film was true to itself, the Bible, and gave a strong encouragement and challenge to believers to trust God with their hearts.
Worldview= 8 of 10 stars
TECHNICAL
I was at the premiere for “Providence” and met many of the cast and crew. I always hate to take things to technicalities when reviewing a film in which my friends and family acted and helped create… But, the biggest thing for me was the music. The music in a silent film needs to drive the story foreward as much if not more than the acting and videography. In “Providence”, the music selections were good, but I felt they could’ve been better, more selective and precise to the passing of years and the times and seasons.
Also, several of the audio transitions were abrupt to the point of being downright choppy. I get that this can be used as a method of drawing attention back to what’s on screen, and also quickly change the mood of the film. But, in a way, it was more of a distraction than a creative use of a transition.
Technical= 7 of 10 stars
OVERALL
I appreciated how the story went in an unexpected direction, and how it was God, not the will of either to seek love, that brought the two together in the end.
For the beauty with which this love story was portrayed, for the excellence of the acting, and for the heart and passion behind everyone who was a part of this film, I would highly recommend you go and see it in theaters and definitely purchase this film when it becomes available on DVD.
Overall= 8 of 10 stars
As always, thanks for reading.
—the anonymous novelist
the anonymous novelist 