The Genesis Code

I think anyone reading IMDb reviews of this film should be aware that as of this posting, there are 3 reviews. Two of which think the film is awful and one thinks it's wonderful. It's important to note that "wonderful" review was made by someone involved with the film and it's public relations. The username given "markv22" is surely the same person who runs the Genesis Code facebook page with the same name and initial. I'm a Christian who has tried very hard to balance secular and scientific fact with my belief in the Bible and I thought this movie not only panders to the Christian crowd but also does it a great disservice. Anyone with the most rudimentary knowledge of cosmology or even someone with the ability to search wikipedia would know this film's "science" is about as real as episode of Lost in Space. Sure, it throws around names and jargon to make someone without a science background think "Oh, they just mentioned Einstein or Cosmic Background Radiation, this is smart stuff!" but so does any episode of Star Trek and it doesn't make the Federation any more real. Even still, a false premise can still be well-told or entertaining but unfortunately, The Genesis Code is neither. The story is disjointed and scattered and doesn't know if it wants to be an Afterschool Special, science lecture, or propaganda. The dialogue isn't natural at all and the characters are flat and/or stereotypes (the black guy, the Asian girl, and the Jewish kid all have their stereotypical lines or back stories) while the secular school dean is a borderline Nazi. Add to that a story in which the protagonist's mother is on death's bed but we must stop now and have a wacky romp through a museum for what feels like a full act of the film that only seems to try and showcase how much the writer knows and not move the story anywhere but to a stop. The editing and pace drag from one scene to another as if you were being shown a collection of keepsakes to which only the owner has any connection. The positives of this film are how rich it looks on what (I hope) was a small budget. It certainly feels large for this kind of film. The acting is pretty decent as well, considering the dialogue and I think the main cast does a good job with this material. I saw it in its limited release in Michigan and I unless it is further edited (I don't know if this film was in a somewhat test audience stage or what), I couldn't recommend it...to anyone.

In fact while I really admired what The Genesis Code tried to do, I had a somewhat mixed view on it. For me, while it is not a movie worth a perfect 10, it is nowhere near bad enough to warrant a 1. I thought the production values were quite good, looking almost real at times(with the exception of moments of monotonous photography), and while stereotypes I did find myself sympathising with the lead characters and the priest, particularly Blake. Logan Bartholomew and Kelsey Sanders are very likable in the lead roles with a sweet chemistry and Jerry Zandstra also acquitted himself nicely. There are however a number of things that let The Genesis Code down. The concept was good and really quite ballsy, but the execution of it seemed rather muddled. The script is rather talky and often doesn't seem to know what it's talking about which is likely to confuse people like it did me. Where The Genesis Code is going to cause polarisation(and I can see through the reviews and the useful votes that there is already some going on) is how people are going to find it thought-provoking and how many are going to find that it talks down to them. For me, I can see both sides, I thought there were some decent ideas that later were poorly explored or convoluted in execution. The story is also confused, eventually does get tedious- sadly a lot of the movie does drag on and on- and even manages to short-circuit the initially touching love story to falling flat. Blake's heartache with his mum was actually quite affecting though. Actors like Ernest Borgnine, Louise Fletcher, Lance Henrikssen et al. immediately show some kind of promise, but a number of them only have a couple of lines or have appearances that would class as a walk-on. They're fun to spot and do what they can with what they have, but they deserved much more. In conclusion, a good idea that came across as muddled yet well-intentioned, making it a movie I neither loved or hated. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Not only is this waste of film boring but also inaccurate. Aside from what I believe to be complete misunderstandings of science and evolution this movie does not offer anything meaningful, only a sappy, Christian story. I never had a "Worst movies list" until now, and this one tops it. To say that the acting in the movie is bad would be a gross understatement. The dialogue suffers in and of itself. The story itself is unoriginal and lacking in depth, a "quality" shared with the characters in the film. Unfortunately I cannot give this film a 0 out of 10, giving it a 1 is, in my opinion, being quite generous. This is not only an opinion of mine, my feelings are shared by many in the Christian community where the film was shot.

This movie was a pleasant surprise. Let's get one thing out of the way. It has both quality acting and a driving plot. So, from the aspect of watching an entertaining movie it hits the mark. But, it moves far beyond that. It is difficult to put on the big screen a challenging topic on an issue nearly all of use hold a strong position. This movie will allow you to open your mind to how science and religion are not necessarily in conflict. It is easy to see how many people will either hat or love the movie, because it forces people to think and step out of their comfort zone. As I said, it will allow you to open your mind. The question is how many people will approach with an open mind.

"If God didn't want us to think, He wouldn't have given us deductive reasoning." The one thing that this film does accomplish that no one can argue is that it makes the viewer think. Personally, I believe the movie is crafted in an extremely intelligent and engaging manner. It's a fine character piece almost interrupted by a scientific/theological presentation. You truly come to care for the characters. Then, everything leading to the debate is put forth in as clear a manner as possible. Unfortunately, the subject itself is not very easy to understand. So, I can see the average viewer tuning out or even their eyes glazing over by the presentation despite the best efforts of film makers to make it relatable and interesting. One really needs to pay attention to follow and if you're going to present this information, you might as well make it complete and near incontrovertible. I applaud the effort if not the actually execution. On a side note, one of my favorite parts of the film was the scenes with the academic adviser. It perfectly illustrates narrow-minded thinking and the often times liberal yet ignorant indoctrination present in too many institutions of "higher" learning. Wonderful presentation and writing in those scenes.

I'm Christian and I'm glad they included all points of view and rationally show positions some individuals do take. This is no "pie in the sky" movie. They legitimately discuss and reflect dissenting views and those that question the complete accuracy of the Bible. Going in to this film, I guess I would've put myself in the place of the lead character. Believing most information but having serious doubts about the factual validity of the book of Genesis. This film mostly changed that perception. One way or the other, it never was really crucial in my relationship with God but it's good to explore all aspects of Divinity and theology.

Paraphrasing another quote I remember from this film, "Those people that question how a person arrives at their personal relationship with God is either arrogant, (ignorant) or blasphemous." If this film adds anything to a person's belief system then more power to them. Why do non-believers and haters have a problem with that and when other people find peace? Could it be that something is lacking in their own life?