Blog From The Bench

It's the number one movie in the country but is it really worth it? Only if you have minimal expectations...

I hadn't actually planned on seeing Evan Almighty. I'd simply taken a summer job at my local movie theater (in concession no less, I find the oil burns to be quite pleasant) and was on a break with some time to kill. I heard some laughing and decided to walk in to a theater. What I saw I liked. It was Steve Carell showing off his ability to make silly funny - much preferred to the rabid convulsions of one Jim Carrey. The jokes are also more family-oriented, so much so that I wasn't surprised to so many kids in the audience. Of course, all of this is reflected in the shiny new PG rating.

That's not to say that the rating is entirely a blessing (get it? Okay I'll stop now). It also means the plot and characterization have been thinned to the point of transparency. The best example of the latter being Wanda Sykes who has about two lines that aren't (mostly bad) one-liners. Evan's wife Joan of Arc (yes, that is really her name) suffers a similar fate - partially because Lauren Graham plays her so straight that when her jokes come, the laughs don't. The unfortunate addition to this category is John Goodman as a corrupt politician, in a performance that almost makes you forget how good he is at comedy.

On the plot side, it begins just as you might expect it to. God/Morgan contacts Evan and tells him to build an ark with Evan doubting him. God proceeds to follow the 11th commandment 'Thou shalt be stalked until thy believe me' until Evan relents. Here's where we officially cross into Jesus territory, and where the heavy-handed message-giving begins. The story beats you over the head with it's don't harm the environment and family message. Topped off with a forced and awkward transition from Evan to Noah and the plot won't be getting points for subtlety. I mean when Evan tells a man to repent you can actually hear the audience doing a double-take.

Now as for the positives - it's got heart. If you can ignore the flaws, which are slightly overshadowed by the humor anyway, you should enjoy the film. The intent here was clearly to make a sweet family film that most would enjoy and I certainly did. Most of the flaws are slightly overshadowed by the humor so as those low expectations won't be unsatisfied. However if you don't have some kids to take with you you're much better off renting it, it isn't that good.

In short it's light-hearted fun for the family, treat it as such and you won't be disappointed. And hey, it's beating that gnarled fetus sequel in revenue so it can't be that bad right?

Blog news: I won't be making promises since I can't seem to keep them but I plan on doing an entry called the Bi-Weekly Bomb, and something for the number 2's in the box office that I haven't come up with a name for yet (like 1408) along with the Postview (names will change if I get better suggestions) plus any other movie news I can muster. The summer means more free time to (hopefully) review more movies. I'm fully aware that people are willing to read my crap blog so I will definitely be putting some more effort into it. This is also a little experiment to see exactly what I might try for the upcoming Cinema Verdict so feedback is appreciated. Thanks.