I Am... Gabriel

a religious film in Protestant style. not bad but it remains obvious lesson. or only forced propaganda. and it is fundamental error. a galloping script creates bizarre atmosphere. a not gentle manner to present delicate things. a movie about faith, miracles, hope and new beginning. but as salad or brutal demonstration. a boy. a town. a meeting. as seeds of a metamorphose. a good work in crisis time. but... so many strange things - Muslim pray mat, dialog with Down syndrome young man etc. but its heart is important. naive but important. in a profound way. it is like a child drawing. not perfect. but touching. just nice. precious as fruit of real good intentions. and that is only fact who matters.

I like a good Christian movie. I really do. I thoroughly enjoyed many that were panned as marginal like "The Encounter." When I checked the reviews on this one and saw they were so bad I was still quite hopeful that it was just the usual anti-Christian bias and that the movie would be enjoyable even though the rating on IMDb was under four.

Boy was I wrong. The movie was just as bad as the other reviewers said. The acting and story were painfully bad. The kid couldn't act his way out of a paper bag. Gavin Casalegno as Gabriel was just out of his league. He might be fine for bit parts and he might develop into something but now, he was obviously barely remembering his lines. Likewise, the husband (Carey Scott) was particular over his head.

The script also was too predictable and painful.

I hate doing anything that discourages Christian independent film makers. We need more of them. But a good Christian movie needs to also be a good movie.

First of all, the title alone gives the whole movie away if you've ever learned anything about Christianity. This movie is well-intentioned, sweet, and yet watching it feels like you've already seen it. For some reason though, I watched it until the end, even though I rolled my eyes upon seeing exactly what I expected to be the climax of the film.

For those out there who'll lament that its a Christian film and speaks of God...well just don't watch it and don't b*$#@h about it! I'm always amazed how people can be OK accepting concepts in Star Wars like "The Force", and "Use The Force," yet be totally not OK with the parallel concept of God and Prayer. Really...what's the difference? Anyway, I'm not here to rant or preach, I'm just saying that if you don't like stuff like this, don't watch it and then write a complaint about it. If you do like heartwarming Christian themes, this movie has them--it just has a far too predictable storyline to make it a really good movie. It's more of Christian fairy tale than anything else--but then a whole lot of us grew up loving fairy tales, didn't we? Watch it with the kiddies, the ultimate message is good whether you believe in the delivery or not.

Of course its a B movie most people don't react well to Blockbuster movies about Christianity. This like Joshua 2002, Left Behind, people scoffed and then they stopped making the LB movies, when HOPE and FAITH are what we need most in these trying times. Bravo to all participated in sharing this message. I truly appreciate movies that inspire us to be better than we are to trust and hold to what true. Sometimes the tech no blockbuster stuff takes away from the message so we need something simple and straightforward like I am Gabriel so that we can see more clearly

---BELIEVER IN Christ

it is easy to define it as awful, but this verdict is a mistake. I am ...Gabriel has all the virtues and all the errors of an Evangelical Christian film. first, it is a film about Christian values. and it has a precise target. and the only sin remains the rush to tell the story. to present the miracle. the acting is far to be great but this could not be a real surprise. because the good point in this case remains the presence of John Schneider and Dean Cain in symbolical roles. the atmosphere, the symbols, the change of things, the new birth of community are the pillars of a film who reminds teachings and duties. so, I am ...Gabriel is far to be a revelation. only a Christian film. same recipes, same message, same remind of the essence of a life style.