Paul, apôtre du Christ

I like movies of faith though I'm not religious. This is one of the better ones to come out recently. The acting, directing, and especially editing are far superior to Sampson, another recent movie of faith which was supposed to be a blockbuster and failed miserably in every imaginable way (including the box office.)

Paul, Apostle of Christ (2018) really does uplift. Whatever you believe, a story of someone willing to endure torture and still maintain his faith, while preaching that great evil can only be conquered by greater good, is someone to be admired. This film can bring tears to your eyes, make no mistake. It can also bolster your resolve to be a force for good.

This movie has Paul in prison for the second time, in a Roman pit of misery. He is often beaten, often wondering what God's plan is. Yet, he is convinced that he is where the Lord wants him to be. Paul's life reminds us that the early church suffered much for the sake of the Gospel. Why would these men and women risk their lives for "fake news"? They would not. It was because the Son of Man came, lived and died to be resurrected after 3 days and is now seated at the right hand of the Father that Paul, Luke and others risked their lives.. Paul's life was totally given over to proclaiming this Good News. "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1: 21. Wonderful movie, filled with GOOD NEWS!!!

This is definitely a religious movie but isn't overwhelmingly so. For example, it doesn't have the overbearing smugness of the protagonist Christians versus incredibly stupid or evil non-Christians. The characters have much more believable and complex motivations, with the Christians mostly (and properly) motivated by their beliefs. There's enough gray in the characters to make the movie interesting. The suffering of the Christians in Rome sometimes goes a bit over the top but not terribly so. The "miracle", which in many faith movies leads to the dramatic conversion of the antagonist, is well done in this movie and should appeal to a wider audience. The back-story, supporting scenes and resolution are quite believable. One pleasant aspect is that the "miracle" doesn't require divine intervention or stretching credibility but is due to believable skills and application of good Christian values, and is done with credible tension you'd expect from a first-class movie.

Would a non-Christian enjoy the movie? I think so. There's definitely a good story here and the movie is well done. Some reviews note that this may have lessened the religious story and/or focus on Paul, but it makes for a watchable movie without the cringe-worthiness of some more religiously focused movies. Judging from reactions in the audience it's clearly most immediately satisfying for the most faithful and will be well received by that group. For Christians who aren't the most faithful the movie has powerful messages to take away for further reflection.

It moved slowly at times or was it simply that we expect a higher body count and more explosions in our films? I thought it gained tremendous momentum towards the end and I left feeling very satisfied, uplifted, and quite entertained. This is a very unusual film in many respects. Its very downbeat, almost like film noir...really. Many scenes are quite dark and the lighting effects are really unusual and I found the pleasing. The acting was fine and the and the movie had a very original feel despite everyone knowing about the Apostle Paul and his unique life. I got to say that Christianity has strayed radically from the vision that Paul had!! It was interesting to me how closeups were used in so many scenes. There were some rough scenes including the final ones but that was reality back then and still is in many parts of the world. I recommend this film highly for anyone looking for something deeper that offers a unique perspective on many levels. Definitely worth your time whether you are into religion or not. Good one.

As a christian, I totally recommend this movie for people who read Paul's letter and know about his life with the early christians communities. The screenplay was well written and was faithful to the scripture, which makes the movie a great witness to the life of Paul who changed after the apparition of Christ to him when he was on the way to persecute believers in the middle east.