David

I took my family to see David tonight. We have a pretty good range of ages with my wife and I in our 40s and four children ranging from 9 to 15.

All of my children loved it and they can be pretty critical of animated movies. My wife and really enjoyed it as well.

The animation is fantastic. The artists were able to capture the Israel environment beautifully with a level of believable realism. Character animation was very well done. There movement of hair, clothing, fabrics and nature in the wind was impressive. At a minimum I would recommend this movie just to watch outstanding animation.

The storyline covers a long period of time, but does so with easy to follow transitions. You don't need to know the Biblical account of David to follow the story and there are enough cultural cues and visuals to pick up on the plot. David's historic role as a warrior is downplayed in the story which helps make this more of a family friendly film. That may be a problem for some critics but the theme of the movie was capturing a man after God's own heart and I didn't find this distracting or dismissive.

Some critics may say that this movie may be too religious. It never made me or my children uncomfortable, but we're a family that appreciates conversations about God. Part of the story makes a delineation between those who use God as a means for power and those who believe and wrestle with that belief. All useful in conversation afterwards.

I thought the musical score was really well done. Some of the songs are great and some are a little bland. My teenage girls really liked the last two songs and were singing them in the car afterwards which was a nice break from or normal teenage playlist. As a comparison, I would say the sings aren't as strong as in Prince of Egypt, but still enjoyable and great for younger children.

Overall this is definitely a movie to watch with the family. David is a story that amplifies light with positive messaging about family, taking care of the poor, helping others, trust, humility, and doing what is right in the midst of fear.

I thought they did a really good job with this movie, the animations, and the songs. The only downfall I feel was the last third or so. It wasn't bad, it was just a little bit hard to follow since so much was put in. Overall I thought it was a great movie and I'd watch it again. Considering how the story is written in the Bible, they definitely made it flow pretty well.

Great for 12 and under. Not a fan of the singing musical. Story was perfect for kids not to detailed in darkness, but the story had to be told. Light and sweet in parts. I would take my grand daughter to see it. Our church is taking the kids next week. The story of David needs to be shared with everyone.

I was hoping I would love the movie and I was so relieved that it lived up to expectations.

It walked a fine line by staying true to the Biblical account, but also remaining family-friendly and not too scary for little kids (I had a 6, 13, 15, and 17 year-old with me and they all loved it).

I appreciated the pacing and how they didn't draw out or agonize over just David and Goliath, but kept right on moving with other aspects of David's life. They covered a lot of ground and gave some nice small story arcs to smaller characters that fit in nicely overall. Jonathan's ending was beautiful and devastating (it reminded me of Finnick in the Hunger Games). I was choked up. Ditto for the ending. Such a beautiful message about fully yielding to God that was done very well.

It almost started to feel a little long in the last third, and just when I was starting to check the time, it picked up and had a fantastic climax, denouement, and ending.

Highly recommend.

I love everything about Angel Studios and David is no exception!

What I liked: The music was amazing! It was uplifting, inspiring, and checked all the boxes of a perfect accompaniment to a faith filled movie. My husband immediately found the soundtrack after the movie.

The animation was beautiful. I think it perfectly captured what I envision ancient Israel to look like. The facial expressions, depth of feeling in the eyes, and everything about the characters were animated very well.

What I loved: Capturing the story of David's ascent to becoming king of Israel is not an easy feat when it needs to be made for the whole family. At no point did I feel like I was sitting through a kid's movie and my children didn't feel like this movie was way over their heads. The writers brought out the gravity of the situation (Saul's descent into madness and his subsequent cruelty) without making it too severe for children to watch. Meanwhile, they showed the sincerity and depth of David's faith even under persecution without watering it down or making it unrelatable to adults. All four of us were in tears at the end and I even felt moved to tears afterwards.

I cannot say enough about David. It made me so proud to support a company like Angel Studios and it refreshed me to know that there is wholesome, faith filled entertainment left.