Editorial: Evan Almighty
The title of “Evan Almighty” has been a bit off-putting to some people because of previous attempts by Hollywood to depict various forms of faith on the silver screen. Adding the element of humor to such an often socially taboo topic probably added to the hesitation of many movie goers, making “Evan Almighty” unfortunately one of the biggest flops of the summer. I found the original movie, “Bruce Almighty,” to be entertaining and not in the least bit sacreligious, so I was anxious to see the new Almighty.
 The movie starts off with newly elected senator Evan moving his family to a beautiful home in an upscale neighborhood, still in the middle of development. Soon, Evan starts receiving all kinds of interesting packages, and having odd encounters with a man who claims to be God, played by Morgan Freeman. As a Christian, seeing the measures that “God” had to go through to get Evan to believe in Him was not only entertaining, it also pulled at my heart strings as I thought about all my unsaved friends and family. I have no doubt that the real God goes through the same amount of effort to make Himself known to them. God was literally EVERYWHERE in this film. Not only did Morgan Freeman’s character take on many faces, but the message of faith was plain to see. In fact, I viewed the movie with several of my friends from church, and there was more than one occasion when we shouted “Amen!” right there in the movie theatre.
We learn so much from the story of Noah as we read it in the Word, but often it’s hard for us to relate to such ancient characters. Their lives were so different, that it often feels more like a fairly tale than a history lesson. This film brought history to life by transforming Noah into someone that we all know, or possibly even relate to. I felt myself making constant comparisons between myself and the characters on the screen, and asking questions like, “How would I react if God asked me to do that?” In the story of Noah and the Ark, it is not recorded that God appeared to Noah, and in this movie he is very visible. I thought the decision to make God a real presence and not just a big booming voice was a good one. We are so visually stimulated this day in time, that I don’t think it would have had the same impact on me if it had been a “Wizard of Oz,” man behind the curtain kind of thing. In fact it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if God himself has had to make more “appearances” in recent years. We’ve been taught to not believe everything we hear, but if we see it with our own eyes we then know it’s as good as gold.
After Evan admits that he believes in God, the story really gets interesting as he is asked to make that belief known to the world by building an ark. There are few very humorous but poignant moments in the process. One in which Evan is talking to God about his plans, and God just laughs, as if to say “My ways are higher than yours!” Then another when Evan is standing on the Ark begging God for rain, which reminded me of so many times when I have done what God asked me to do, and I got so frustrated just waiting on Him to show up, but then He does in a really BIG way. This movie depicts the kind of God I serve. A God that is faithful and true, and one that honors His word and never leaves me or forsakes me. In the background of this faith building story, is the heart warming picture of a family coming together for a cause and truly becoming “a family” for the first time.
I thought this was a great family film, and one that CHRISTIAN families should especially enjoy. There weren’t any sexual innuendos or inappropriate jokes made, to my recollection. I felt inspired by the end of the movie, and those who think its sacreligious may not be able to see the forest for the trees. Despite the movie being out of theatres now, don’t miss your chance to see this movie when it releases to stores later this year. You don’t want to miss out on your chance to receive a blessing from Hollywood - a rare moment to be sure.
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