Left Behind II: Tribulation Force

I'm amazed that someone would be so naive as to think that a movie trying to present the good news of the gospel to a world that is already saturated with the polluted wells of mass profanity, immorality and violence for violence's sake would criticize a film for NOT having these features in it.

In case the reviewer is interested, the Bible presents many accounts of people who sinned for our learning and instruction so that we wouldn't repeat the same errors without giving pornographic or explicit depictions that do more to encourage people to seek drinks from polluted wells of ignorance than direct them to the water of life, found only in Jesus Christ, who stated that once a person truly drank of the water of eternal life He gives will never thirst again.

I agree that not all the acting in these films is "A list Hollywood acting". Much of what is in Oscar winning movies these days is not "A list Hollywood acting" either.

People are entitled to their opinion that perhaps these filmmakers are relying too much on the message and not on the acting. I think many films rely too much on filthy language, big effects, and sensuality with much less plot and storyline than is shown in the "Left Behind" movies.

So if you want more raunchy supposedly 'realistic' language and sin depicted, there are plenty of other movies out there to choose from. There is less and less originality in film today and more and more depending on moving the emotions or visceral than on reaching the mind of someone.

I also wish the movies had stuck more to the original story. The same as I wished that the Lord of the Rings stuck more to the story and Oscar winners such as Chariots of Fire and Ghandi which also deviated from the stories. None of John Gresham's novels transferred to film stick to the story either. (Runaway Jury changed cigarette industry into the gun industry for example).

Show me a film that is entirely sticking to the story and I'll show you an author that wrote a screenplay and not a book. :-) They are two different mediums and very rarely is the screenplay also written by the book's author.

I rated this highly for what it attempted to do. I think the first part did not do very well in the first half and improved in the second half. This movie wasn't perfectly even either, but it did attempt to get a message that was in the book out in a way that was entertaining. Apparently even to those who thought it was funny.

For the one that found it funny: did you equally laugh and find funny Tom Hanks in "Castaway" for performing the longest known commercial for FedEx in it's history?

How about "Million Dollar Baby" for it's showing a 32 year old woman who can't box a lick and then supposedly becomes a one round wonder only to be taken out by a dirty boxer and left as a vegetable who no longer has an ounce of fight in her? She has the guts to tell her no good family to take a flying leap and then has no guts to live?

These were hit movies, perhaps with better acting, but equally funny because the message outshone any script or plot and many people came away with the impression of "That Fed Ex movie" or "that Right to Die" flick.

I guess these "Left Behind" films aren't alone in being funny or having script and other errors that for some can overwhelm the message, eh?

This movie fails on a number of levels. As it can be viewed on strictly religious terms or as an action thriller, I will address both.

First, let's just talk about it terms of an thriller film. It fails in this regard because it simply makes no sense. People don't act in any sort of real manner. It's simply not how people would act if this were a real situation of millions of people vanishing. You would think the Bible is some book that was only known to the people who vanished and no one else. Everyone else seems to be completely in the dark and don't even make the connection this might be the "Rapture," yet, millions of Christians vanish overnight as Christians have been saying they will. I don't know about you, but if that happens in real life, me and most of the planet would be rushing to Church the next morning. It seems implausible no one would. Also, everyone goes about their business as if some mugging happened in the neighborhood. The most ridiculous thing is that most people accept the disappearance as some sort of nuclear radiation when that is the most insane excuse that could be even offered. This film is incredibly outdated, a complete fabrication of how and what the U.N. is and how it works. Acting and dialogue are unintentionally hilarious, setting off streams and fits of laughter. In one Church scene, there is a bulletin board and six pictures of people on it with the caption, "OUR MISSING" A Church and there is only six missing people? How funny is that? What was it, The Church of Satan? There's no surprises and no tension, especially among the people who are not saved and whom you know will be calling out for Jesus by the end of the picture. There's a lot of talk about the "Wailing Wall," yet what is supposed to be the wailing wall, I guess, looks nothing like the real "wailing wall," as if producers have no clue about the "wailing wall" or don't think it's important enough to make a reasonable close simulation of it. The whole movie treats it's audience as simple-minded, uneducated couch potatoes.

Seeing this as a religious film, it is incredibly insulting. This lies the main offense. It's not powerful enough to convert anyone and not realistic enough to make anyone want to know more. It's most heinous crime, though, is how it uses the Jews. If the Jews made a big-budget multi-million dollar film and a huge media campaign about how the Pope came to his senses and announces to the world how he has come to the conclusion that Jesus Christ was not GOD after all and everyone should know that and see the truth, there would be an UPROAR in the Christian community. But they seem to have no problem committing that perfidious insult onto the Jews. Rabbi Ben Judah, the most learned and respected scholar in the world, announces to the planet that Jesus Christ is indeed God and he has been wrong and now knows the truth. This is terrible, terrible injustice to the Jewish faith. Besides the fact that it is simply ludicrous to think that a Rabbi could sit on a podium in Israel and the entire world of different religions is going to sit back and take his word for it just because he thinks so and these other religions be converted (What planet is this film on? Certainly not Earth), but to put words like that in the mouth of the head of another religion and have them say how wrong they were, well, it's just hateful and disrespectful, that's all. It's also disturbing that the whole conspiracy of trying to take over the world comes from INTERNATIONAL BANKERS, which has always been another word for Jews when it is in this context. It's just another example of the total disregard for the integrity of the Jews. It feigns respect for them while denigrating their beliefs. Coupled with a preposterous plot and representation, this film fails as both an action thriller and as a religious film.

I've never read the Left Behind series, nor knew there was a book out for this.

However, to me this movie, as was the first, was good. If you believe in the revelations, and believe that the anti-Christ will come and that those with faith in god, who accept Jesus Christ as our savior and that those who did would be whisked away to heaven, then I suggest watching this movie.

This is a movie for Christian and regilious followers, as well as some of the semi-believers or those that just want to sit down to a good movie.

This movie follows greatly to the ideals of the revelations, and in some cases, Christ followers manages to deter Nicholis (Satan).

I feel this was a great movie to watch. Good as the first.

After millions of people all over the earth mysteriously disappear, the world turns to a charismatic man to lead them, the new president of the U.N. (Gordon Currie). A small band of believers in Chicago recognize him as the Antichrist and work together as the "Tribulation Force" to save as many as they can. The group includes a renowned reporter (Kirk Cameron), a formidable pilot (Brad Johnson), his daughter (Janaya Stephens) and the pastor of their assembly (Clarence Gilyard Jr.).

Released in 2002, "Left Behind II: Tribulation Force" is the follow-up to "Left Behind" (2000) with the same cast, which was remade in 2014 with a bigger budget and truncated plot.

The story is based on prophetic accounts of end-time events from the Bible, e.g. the "Rapture" based on scriptures like 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and Luke 17:24,34-35. Of course the Left Behind series is a fictional story and you don't have to believe in the Bible whatsoever to enjoy the movie for what it is, a "What if the Rapture really happened" mystery/drama/thriller. I don't believe in powerful androids that time-travel from the future, but that doesn't prevent me from enjoying the Terminator flicks.

This sequel cost a little less than the 2000 film ($3.8 million) and is less busy story-wise. It has the confidence to take its time with convincing acting in challenging roles. I read the book and wondered how it could be made into a compelling movie because it's more dramatic than the first one; in other words, there's far less thrills until the last act, not to mention a considerable romantic subplot. The screenwriters did a great job of cutting out the fat and strategically adding some well-done evangelical bits, which aren't overdone. The apocalyptic ending of the book was obviously omitted because it would've added 20-30 minutes to the runtime and would've cost significantly more. The filmmakers did a good job of finding the right place to close.

Being shot in Toronto, I was wondering how they would pull off the Jerusalem sequences at the end, but they did a splendid job with the studio sets, particularly considering this is a low-budget flick.

The film runs 1 hour, 34 minutes. ADDITIONAL CAST includes Krista Bridges as the journalist's assistant and Chelsea Noble (Cameron's wife) as a flight attendant working for the Antichrist.

GRADE: B

The reason this movie does not meet many peoples' standards is simple...money. Movies that are so obviously Christian based will never bring in multi-millions of dollars. Because of this, people just interested in a monetary return would not be willing to risk their money. The people that do risk the money are generally those who feel so strongly about the message that they are willing to risk the money in order to voice the message to as many as possible. It is true, the goal of the producers, actors, etc, is to relay Jesus' own words. That He is the ONLY way to God. ANY other way is a dead end. The movie points out that each individual has a decision to make. We see that repeatedly throughout the film. We are also reminded that a 'not accept' is, by nature, a rejection. Although, the use of that word does seem rather unpalatable and final. It seems that if money is a concern, the movie makers have a choice...emphasize the message or the presentation of such.