I didn't really know what to expect from this direct-to-video release. I certainly expected the Christian basher reviewers to come on full force. They never can stand us to say anything about their stuff, but I'm sure they'll have words to say about ours. Anway, the previous two movies were passable, but nowhere near the quality of the books they were based on.
That's not the case with Left Behind: World at War.
At the helm this time is director Craig R. Baxley, whose previous work makes it no surprise that directing movies with suspense, apocalyptic themes, and action should come naturally to him. The movie is directed and edited much differently than the previous two. The movie relies very little on special effects. Baxley's used to letting set pieces and camera angles convey the mood and tell the story of a post-apocalyptic world.
It's a lot darker this time around. There's a more palpable feeling of despair and tension as Nicolae tightens his grip over the world and tries to stamp out Christianity and other opposing governments. The action is more grim and gritty, and the film is often graphically violent.
Somehow, almost all of the original cast have returned, with the notable exception of Clarence Gilyard (Bruce Barnes.) The trade-off is good though, with Arnold Pinnock taking over Bruce's character. Pinnock delivers the character more believably and was a welcome breath of fresh air. Unfortunately, the character of Bruce won't be able to return for the next film. Janaya Stephens has gotten better as Chloe, and even Kirk Cameron appears to have ratcheted up his game as he pours his heart and soul into his role. Chelsea Noble's back as Hattie. Gordon Currie returns as the embodiment of all evil, Nicolae Carpathia, though he gets very little screen time. I was most surprised to see film vet Brad Johnson return as he seems to be rather busy lately, but I'm glad he did, because no one else really could be Rayford Steele. New to the cast is Laura Catalano as Amanda White, Rayford's wife. Also joining the cast is Oscar winner Lou Gossett Jr as President Gerald Fitzhugh. He is a very welcome addition and brings credibility to the series.
If you were hoping that the movie would adhere strictly to the books, you'll be disappointed. That being said, there are definitely connections there, but the movie takes its own liberties. Fortunately, that's not always a bad thing. The movie explores a character, President Fitzhugh, that was glossed over in the books, and spends most of the time following his story. What happens is sort of like a side-trip within the books...something we didn't know about that could have happened in the continuity. Chloe and Bruce get sick off infected Bibles, which brings about the end of Pastor Barnes, which many of you will remember from the book series. The connection between Ray and Hattie is touched on once, but kind of glossed over. Part of the difficulty of fitting all these characters into a 90 minute movie is that a lot of character development gets left out, and some characters just sort of sit like window dressings. One gets the feeling that the movie would've been able to pull it off better if the run time was stretched out to 2 or 2.5 hours. However, the story we do get is interesting and relevant, and it ends up coming off a lot better than the fractured, pieced-together-so-as-to-not-diverge-too-much-from-the-book way of the first movie. And the story is treated as real and taken seriously.
The movie doesn't get too preachy either. It references the previous rapture maybe twice. And when the characters are having a conversation it isn't stilted in the manner of the first two movies (they're having a conversation, but you know it's a thinly veiled sermon pointed at the audience.) There's only one person to get saved in this movie, and it's at the end and doesn't feel as artificial as those in the previous two. This doesn't weaken the message though. It makes it more powerful, as the whole movie builds itself up to this point.
There are no super-cheesy special effects in this movie (think about the air raid at the beginning of the first) and they left out the cheesy CCM soundtrack this time (think "i know that i will not...be...left...behind..." *shudder.*) All in all, this movie's a thousand times more well done than the others and will appeal to more than just the target audience of Christians.
If you don't happen to believe in the rapture and the millennium (many Christians don't,) you can still learn a lot from this movie. There's a great deal spoken here about persecution of the church, and the images here could very well be images of the future prior to Christ's return if the religious atmosphere in this country continues on its current trend. Oppression of religion has been a factor in this world for a long time, and it's very eye-opening to see the portrayal of persecution on our own soil in this movie.
Now for the DVD extras. Kirk Cameron fans will be happy to know that there's a "Way of the Master" extra on this DVD that features Kirk and Ray Comfort. It includes a message from Kirk and a portion of their video seminar. Also included on the disc are a couple of music videos, deleted scenes, a technical "making of" featurette, a character featurette, bloopers and outtakes, and an audio commentary.
All in all, it's worth your watch.
That's not the case with Left Behind: World at War.
At the helm this time is director Craig R. Baxley, whose previous work makes it no surprise that directing movies with suspense, apocalyptic themes, and action should come naturally to him. The movie is directed and edited much differently than the previous two. The movie relies very little on special effects. Baxley's used to letting set pieces and camera angles convey the mood and tell the story of a post-apocalyptic world.
It's a lot darker this time around. There's a more palpable feeling of despair and tension as Nicolae tightens his grip over the world and tries to stamp out Christianity and other opposing governments. The action is more grim and gritty, and the film is often graphically violent.
Somehow, almost all of the original cast have returned, with the notable exception of Clarence Gilyard (Bruce Barnes.) The trade-off is good though, with Arnold Pinnock taking over Bruce's character. Pinnock delivers the character more believably and was a welcome breath of fresh air. Unfortunately, the character of Bruce won't be able to return for the next film. Janaya Stephens has gotten better as Chloe, and even Kirk Cameron appears to have ratcheted up his game as he pours his heart and soul into his role. Chelsea Noble's back as Hattie. Gordon Currie returns as the embodiment of all evil, Nicolae Carpathia, though he gets very little screen time. I was most surprised to see film vet Brad Johnson return as he seems to be rather busy lately, but I'm glad he did, because no one else really could be Rayford Steele. New to the cast is Laura Catalano as Amanda White, Rayford's wife. Also joining the cast is Oscar winner Lou Gossett Jr as President Gerald Fitzhugh. He is a very welcome addition and brings credibility to the series.
If you were hoping that the movie would adhere strictly to the books, you'll be disappointed. That being said, there are definitely connections there, but the movie takes its own liberties. Fortunately, that's not always a bad thing. The movie explores a character, President Fitzhugh, that was glossed over in the books, and spends most of the time following his story. What happens is sort of like a side-trip within the books...something we didn't know about that could have happened in the continuity. Chloe and Bruce get sick off infected Bibles, which brings about the end of Pastor Barnes, which many of you will remember from the book series. The connection between Ray and Hattie is touched on once, but kind of glossed over. Part of the difficulty of fitting all these characters into a 90 minute movie is that a lot of character development gets left out, and some characters just sort of sit like window dressings. One gets the feeling that the movie would've been able to pull it off better if the run time was stretched out to 2 or 2.5 hours. However, the story we do get is interesting and relevant, and it ends up coming off a lot better than the fractured, pieced-together-so-as-to-not-diverge-too-much-from-the-book way of the first movie. And the story is treated as real and taken seriously.
The movie doesn't get too preachy either. It references the previous rapture maybe twice. And when the characters are having a conversation it isn't stilted in the manner of the first two movies (they're having a conversation, but you know it's a thinly veiled sermon pointed at the audience.) There's only one person to get saved in this movie, and it's at the end and doesn't feel as artificial as those in the previous two. This doesn't weaken the message though. It makes it more powerful, as the whole movie builds itself up to this point.
There are no super-cheesy special effects in this movie (think about the air raid at the beginning of the first) and they left out the cheesy CCM soundtrack this time (think "i know that i will not...be...left...behind..." *shudder.*) All in all, this movie's a thousand times more well done than the others and will appeal to more than just the target audience of Christians.
If you don't happen to believe in the rapture and the millennium (many Christians don't,) you can still learn a lot from this movie. There's a great deal spoken here about persecution of the church, and the images here could very well be images of the future prior to Christ's return if the religious atmosphere in this country continues on its current trend. Oppression of religion has been a factor in this world for a long time, and it's very eye-opening to see the portrayal of persecution on our own soil in this movie.
Now for the DVD extras. Kirk Cameron fans will be happy to know that there's a "Way of the Master" extra on this DVD that features Kirk and Ray Comfort. It includes a message from Kirk and a portion of their video seminar. Also included on the disc are a couple of music videos, deleted scenes, a technical "making of" featurette, a character featurette, bloopers and outtakes, and an audio commentary.
All in all, it's worth your watch.