Heaven's War

This Christian movie reminds believers that eternity is more real than our daily life experience. The imagery at the opening puts the viewer into the context of the entire movie. There is great storytelling and wonderful special effects. See it!

There's no doubt the audience for which this film was made. With that being said, the attention to detail, the risk-taking, and the overall redemptive message of this film are worth seeing it. The choreography of the fight scenes and other action scenes are well done. The CGI supersedes that of many film of this genre and budget. Well done.

If you didnt already guess by the fantastic image and the even greater trailer, this movie is a cringefest. i spent good 5 minutes laughing on this picture that kinda looks like star wars. the longer you look, the funnier it gets. who the heck thought it would be a good idea to produce this movie?

Let me address the elephant in the room. Yes, this is a religious movie. Before you decide not to watch the movie let me encourage you to let go of your stereotypes and consider this one. If you are a person of faith you will definitely enjoy watching the movie and the struggles the protagonist deals with. If you aren't a person of faith have you ever had that little voice in your head guide you or tell you something and followed or ignored that little voice. Our protagonist ignored the voice and Gabriel was sent to slap some sense into him and get him to listen to the voice. His failure to listen to the voice adds conflict to the story line and pulls you in emotionally.

Yes, this is about good and evil and the filmmaker doesn't hide the fact that he is a believer. Having said all that, I am a novice screenwriter and there are so many nuggets about storytelling in this film that it should be required watching for all film students. The use of cutting from one scene to another builds excitement and anticipation. The use of CGI adds to the story but doesn't make the story about CGI. Dialogue was realistic and there are some very emotional scenes.

Again, if you are a person of faith you will enjoy it. If you aren't consider this a love story on several different levels. If you are trying to get into the business watch and learn how to put all the pieces together to create a great story with conflict that has emotional impact.

A person's world view affects how they rate this film. Believers are glad to find a fast-pace, engaging story, with a decent plot and a biblical world view. However, non-believers tend to be offended by the blatant Christian message and less forgiving of the low-budget CGI. Basically, the ratings are pretty much driven by each reviewer's worldview.

My two cents' worth? As a Christian screenwriter, I tend to be more objective than the average Christian viewer. Basically, going to film school took away a lot of the fun I used to have watching ANY film. Now I notice all the plot holes, pay-offs without set-ups, on-the-nose dialogue, character arcs that do not grow organically from the plotline, and a thousand other things that can go amiss in any poorly-crafted film. So, for me to rate this film a "6" is my way of saying, "Wow. Pretty good job!"

I don't know if this film will help anyone make a decision for Christ - wish I could know that. But as a Christian and a filmmaker, I found this fun to watch and uplifting. Not the best film ever made, but definitely not the worst! And that, I think, is the closest this film will ever get to having an honest review. IMHO, that is.