The Story of David

one of the first of the tv "bible" movies, the story of david is one of the finest of its genre.

the cast, along with the direction and story line, make it a must see.

subsequent movies like "king david" pale in comparison.

if movies of this kind suit your taste, then make this on part of your collection.

So said Anthony Quayle as King Saul as he tells the young shepherd boy David on whom the blessing of the Lord would be granted soon enough and in succession to Saul. The Story Of David is a two part mini-series in which we see first the young David played by Timothy Bottoms and then Keith Michell as the older David.

The Bible really doesn't make it clear just why God got dissatisfied with his first choice of Saul to be King Of Israel. Considering what He later put up with when David took over I'd say Saul got a bad rap. Certainly with what is shown here and in scriptures about his son Jonathan he might have been just the king Israel needed. I liked very much the scene where Anthony Quayle says there are many times he wished God left him a farmer.

David is certainly not reflective or misses being a shepherd. He enjoys being a king and all the perks it provides. Back in the day Keith Michell certainly gathered around him enough women whose palace intrigues gave him a lot of grief. But in that age of polygamy Michell is still looking around and finds what he really likes in his neighbor Uriah the Hittite's bathroom where the lovely Bathsheba gets spotted bathing. Bathsheba is played by Jane Seymour.

The series covers the whole expanse of King David's life from his early days as a singing shepherd boy who took down the trash talking Goliath right up to David on his deathbed. A lot of Israeli players got parts here and it was shot in Israel in the locations where the events occurred.

This is not a Cecil B. DeMille spectacle where everyone is sounding high falutin'. DeMille was fortunate indeed to find Victor Mature and Charlton Heston a pair of actors who made his dialog sound plausible coming from them. No this TV mini-series is a sobering look at the real problem of governance in ancient time. Some of those same problems are with us today. And Anthony Quayle as Saul and Timothy Bottoms/Keith Michell as the younger and older David are shown as all too human.

This TV movie about King David may seem long,but it really shows in a vivid way David's transition from a mere shepherd boy to a great political figure and biblical icon.I liked the way the cast mentioned there faith in Yahweh.Keith Michell's portrayal of King David seemed realistic,especially in the scene where he was condemning Joab's murder of Abner.If we compare this film with the 1997 TV film of David by Lux Vide, both have great depictions of David's life. Anthony Quayle did a impressive performance as Saul.Too bad this film is only available on VHS. Let's hope that soon it can be restored or available on DVD.My hat goes of to Alex Segal and Lowell Rich for there project.

Several aspects of the film startle you. Unlike usual Hollywood works on the Bible, this one indicates that population in the Holy Land was a lot less than today--only European director Pasolini's "Gospel According to St Mathew" came close to this fact. While the film is faithful to the text in most places (including art direction of David's first glimpse of Bathsheba), the film's veracity crumbles with the death of Absalom--whose death was linked to his long hair--shown in the film as merely being hit on the forehead by a low branch.

Continuity is s problem too. Joab's attempt to attack the Jebusite fort (later called Jerusalem) is depicted to gain David's favor. Soon we find he won David's favor, What happened in the interim is not shown.

Note: Michal and Abigail are played by two different actresses not one. A reader, Clayton Slaughter, of this review pointed out to me that the final film was the amalgamation of two films (one shot in Israel, the other in Spain) by two directors, which explains this oddity.

I prefer Bruce Beresford's "King David" with Richard Gere that has received more brickbats than bouquets. It had fine performances, good direction, and intelligent camera-work--although it took artistic license with the the story.

This is a very accurate portrayal of David from teen years to his death. I could follow along in the Bible with the movie. I like how they use God's name in Hebrew Yahweh throughout. It was filmed in Israel so the setting was real.