Two Early 'Evan Almighty' Reviews, Both So-So
Filed under: Comedy, New Releases, Family Films, Newsstand
And by "so-so," I mean on the higher end of things. I have to admit, I paid almost zero attention to the Bruce Almighty remake. Even with Steve Carrell, the thought of Evan Almighty did nothing to excite me. Then, I went out to see Knocked Up and saw the animal-frenzied trailer. I actually giggled and some parts seemed cute. Wonders never cease! Granted, I feared that all the cuteness was wrapped in a bow for the trailer, but maybe not. Over at AICN, a few readers have sent in their reviews of the film, and while they both recognize that this isn't some stunning, comedic achievement of family filmmaking, it seems to be smile-worthy fluff.The biggest complaint between both reviewers -- the words behind it -- "Bottom line, the plot is silly and stupid, with obvious comedy beats throughout," and "Pretty much everything in the movie is a stereotype of what you've seen before... The script is lazy." While one would imagine words like that would be the kiss of death for the flick, that's not the case. "It doesn't really deserve the shame and derision it seems destined to get." While there are stereotypical characters and tired plot, the actors seem to make the most of their roles: "No one in this thing is really stretching themselves, but everyone plays the thing sincerely and with plenty of bonhomie and good humor."
Topping that off, the special effects are supposed to be really decent, although I have a big beef with how much they show in the trailers. (Trailer powers that be -- stop being idiots and showing the whole flipping movie!) When it comes down to it, the movie seems to be what the trailer was -- something that isn't too great, but leaves you feeling a little happy. The Rev says: "Since I saw it, I can't shake the feeling that it made me a little happy... Maybe it's just the spirit of it... You can't deny that charm and you can't help but smile from time to time." The movie will come out on June 22, so we'll soon see if they're right.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-19-2007 @ 3:06PM
james said...
There's no denying that parts of Evan Almighty will be cute, but unfortunately for the hundreds of live exotic animals used in production, their situation as animal "actors" is anything but cute.
According to its Web site, Birds & Animals Unlimited supplied animals for Evan Almighty. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a number of official warnings to Birds & Animals, including its chronic failure to comply with veterinary care requirements, failing to provide shelter from heat and sunlight, and failure to maintain enclosures to prevent escape. A child actor filed a lawsuit against Birds & Animals when he was bitten in the face by a chimpanzee several years ago.
Additionaly, Sid Yost’s Amazing Animal Productions’ Web site states its chipmanzee Cody appeared in Evan Almighty. Yost recently surrendered his chimpanzees to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of the Endangered Species Act and California anti-cruelty statutes. A primatologist who worked for Yost for 14 months also reported that she witnessed routine beatings of the chimpanzees.
It's unfortunate that this film's production company decided to use real animals when humane alternatives such as CGI and anamatronics exist and work so well on the big screen. Such methods were employed exclusively with movies like Jurassic Park and the more recent King Kong remake, and those both looked amazing.
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6-23-2007 @ 1:14AM
Connie Mendoza said...
I completely enjoyed Evan Almighty!! I noticed whenever a movie doesn't have nudity, sexual content, or foul language, everyone is so quick to give it a negative review. And we wonder why young teens are so sexually active and messed up. Thanks you Steve Carrell for making a movie that means something good and positive!! I left the theater feeling good about what I saw not to mention my husband and our three young children were able to enjoy a movie TOGETHER!! All my three children (Age 8,5,and 4) loved this movie and laughed a lot. The minute it was over they asked to buy it!!!
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6-23-2007 @ 10:19PM
Nina Binkley said...
I had read several negative comments about the movie Evan Almighty. We decided to give it a chance anyway and I am so glad we did. It was funny and entertaining and clean. I've just about come to the realization that if the reviewers say a movie is not worth my time it is probably a movie that I would like. I will be telling everyone I see to go see Evan Almighty.
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7-30-2007 @ 8:11AM
k_woll said...
Evan almighty did not live up to its first movie in my opinion, i'll be honest it had a few good moments. the movie was not a bad idea,however i reckon that it was not thought through well enough, the ending to me was simply a joke, i had no "good feeling" at the end, all i felt was chafed. the ending, that all these exotic animals like the elephants,lions, and even giraffes would show up in the U.S when the flood was quite small and insignificant to the rest of the world. in addition this "great flood" as GOD or morgen freeman said in the movie could have so easily been done a different way than to build an ark, the director could at least have made the overall story more true to the actual Noah's story. and give it a world wide flood instead of a little flood that has no affect of the rest of the world and vanishes in matters of minutes. it seems that it does not even cover the whole of Washington DC. so why would such exotic animals travel so far when the flood would not even reach their natural habitat. that is was i find so exasperated about this movie.
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