Revelations

What is it about David Seltzer that he can so touch the innermost bogeyman of Christian nightmares? The Omen, then Revelations! While Revelations is scary for anyone, of any religion or none at all, it is particularly so for Christians. Seltzer finds the most potent images of evil and gets one on a roller-coaster ride that is mystery, detective story, theological and he amazes, thrills, terrifies. Also there is hope in each of these two productions. Talented people doing good work, well worth watching.

The performance by Michael Massee is stunning, truly scarier, for this viewer, than that of the great Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Hannibal Lecter. Massee has to be seen as Isaiah Haden words are not descriptive enough to convey the malevolence of his characterization.

Seltzer creates an alternative Christian apocalypse however its plausibility is no less credible than the orthodox rendering. I do know that after viewing the Omen and Revelations I was on my best behavior for several weeks afterward.

Having actually seen the first installment, I can say I didn't miss the bloated 40 minutes of "American Idol" commercials mixed with 20 minutes of overwrought "you are safe, you are in the bottom 3" hyperbole in order to rid the field of wannabes of one more person.

Instead, I was mesmerized by the first one-hour installment of an intriguing story about people being brought together to consider a proliferation of unexplainable signs and events that might mark the end of the world.

Unless America is simply brain dead, this extremely well-produced limited series should rack up good numbers in the ratings.

Bill Pullman plays a Harvard professor who has recently seen the murderer of his teen-aged daughter captured and imprisoned. Not giving any credence to this man's claims that he can never be killed and will never bleed, he sees one of the man's fingers sliced off...and the non-bleeding hand is raised defiantly.

A nun who is part of a research foundation is an investigator checking out unexplained phenomena with religious connections. One is the appearance of a shadow on a mountainside. It appears to be the shadow of a cross upon which a man has been nailed. The shadow of the head moves as if the victim were alive. There were neither clouds,nor trees, nor anything else between the sun and the mountain that could have cast that shadow.

Another phenomenon is a girl, declared brain dead, after being struck by lightning. Now in a hospital bed, she speaks Biblical verses in Latin. And on one occasion, she was given a pencil and pad and began auto-writing, drawing a map....which linked, it was revealed, to Bill Pullman's daughter. These miraculous goings-on only happen during storms with lightning and thunder.

As hokey as I make it seem, it was beautifully done; the acting is first-rate. I am eager for part 2.

Revelations could just be the show that viewers will watch to escape from their everyday lives. I don't believe that we should over intellectualize movies, mini-series, or television programming. I like both main actors and I believe like most suspenseful/thriller shows that it will hook its audience but will need a strong conclusion. I am generally hooked by the strong opening but also easily disappointed by lame endings. Revelations needs to prove that it can answer the questions it asks in a creative manner. There has been plenty of movies about the end of the world and of mankind as we know it, but nothing new ever seems to be brought forth. I love shows like Revelations and I seek them out, I love that "genre". I love to be terrified and the idea of the end of our civilization mixed-in with religion is thoroughly entertaining and fascinating. I will be watching and I hope not to be disappointed!

We are very sorry to find out that the series will not be continued. The only thing we can think of as to why, is that maybe it wasn't advertised enough. I think most anyone would enjoy this mini-series. There is a fair amount of violence, and the wanton killing is difficult to take, but the overall series is well worth it. It is basically a tale of good versus evil. The characters, I believe, do an excellent job. Michael Massee, as the "bad guy", does an especially great job. No wooden performances here - an overall great job by everyone. It is refreshing that the two "good guy" leads are a professor and a nun, so there is no romantic interest possible; seems like about every time I see a movie, there must be sex involved. It's nice that they didn't stoop to that level in Revelations.

There seems to be a common dislike in the public for this miniseries, for any number of reasons. Therefore, the majority of people out there seem to be influenced by these opinions rather than their own. I watched every episode starting at the premiere, and I can say that while I was rather alarmed at the constant misquoting of scripture (which is really the only true negative I had regarding this show), overall it was an engaging show. This show seemed to be honestly striving to have a purpose on television, to tell people about what is inevitable, though likely not in the way it is being described in the show itself. This, in a world where religion is so controversial that the very mention of God can spark heated debates between opposing sides. There are always going to be people offended by the mention of religion (but why they bother watching the show in the case, I don't know). With subject matter like the Apocalypse, in which every side has a different idea of how it's going to come about, there will always be sides unhappy with the way it is presented. Instead of focusing in on all the little things that conflict with your own personal beliefs, watch the show for its entertainment value, which I found to be rather high compared to most of the stuff on television nowadays. I would highly suggest that people give it a fair shot, get rid of all your biases, and watch it for its purpose: to serve as entertainment for religious and secular audiences alike.