Customer Reviews

The 13th Day

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In 1917, 3 uneducated children said said that the Mother of Jesus had appeared to them, and had told them God would work a great miracle on October 13th. On that day, 70,000 rain-soaked people saw the sun burst throught the clouds and start to spin, throwing a kaleidscope of colors over the ground. Then, to their wonder and terror, the sun appeared to jump and dance in the sky, and finally to fall towards the earth. After several minutes the downward spiral stopped, and the sun returned to its normal position and appearance. As the crowd recovered from this scare, they began to notice that their clothing was now bone dry. Skeptical journalists who had come to report on nothing more than the anger of disappointed wonder-seekers instead published accounts of a miracle that can still be found on microfilm in city libraries.

There have been several films made on the events of Fatima. One is a 1950s Hollywood spectacle done in the tradition of The Song of Bernadette. Not bad, but a tad too Hollywood, with a made up starring character to provide (I guess) comic relief. In 1992, a documentary-type re-enactment titled "Apparitions At Fatima" was produced in Europe. Very accurate, but lacking decent special effects, and, as Steve Greydnaus has said, not compelling as cinematic art.

The 13th Day leaves surpasses these earlier efforts. Directors Ian and Dominic Higgins were illustrators before the were film makers, and it shows. Evert shot of The13th Day could be framed and hang on a wall. Most of the movie is done in black and white--color only blooms across the screen during each apparition. The absence of color makes the more primal light and darkness jump out at the viewer. The miracle of the sun scenes match eyewitness descriptions more accurately than any other movie version. And here's a first: the vision of the "third secret"(that involved Pope John Paul II) is depicted on film for the first time.

Now, keep in mind this is NOT a documentary. To keep the film a manageable length, the Angel apparitions of 1916 were not dealt with, and only four of the six apparitions are depicted. In the scenes where an older (Sister) Lucia is writing her memoirs, the voiceover narration is not word for word quotes from her writing, but rather the script writer's way of introducing each set of events in the film. Another criticism: the character of Lucia as protrayed in the film is a more introverted, taciturn person than the Lucia of history. But The 13th day is overall very true to the events, the spirit, and above all the message of Fatima. And the film is a thing of beauty.

This is by far, the best movie ever made on the 1917 Fatima events. It had the feel of an old-time, classic black & white movie... but with sprinkles of dazzling colorized state-of-the-art special effects that made the supernatural depictions in the movie come to vivid life.

I really liked the way the story of the events was told in a straight-forward manner - based closely on the memoirs of the late Sr. Lucia - without being overly-dramatized as in the early Hollywood version of the Fatima story. My family and I watched the entire movie with wrapt interest as it progressed through a steady pace and all of us were deeply moved by certain scenes. Of course the climax of the movie was the great miracle that was foretold by the Blessed Virgin for October 13th, 1917... and the movie's superior special effects did it justice!

All in all, I highly recommend this DVD to all families, and especially to those individuals who have a special interest in Mariology and Marian apparitions. I think the spiritual message of Fatima could have been emphasized a bit more in the movie, but the Special Features in the DVD more than made up for any ommissions - it's definitely a movie worth having as part your family's DVD home collection.

First of all, my advice is to read up on the Fatima apparitions before hand. My all-time favourite book on Fatima and I have read a ton) is by Leo Madigan "The Children of Fatima" and I would recommend this book above all others.

Secondly, I advise that you don;t even read all these reviews - good or bad - don;t even read mine. Let the film speak for itself.

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In my opinion this film, contrary to certain harsh critics, is the most beautiful film made on the apparitions of Our Blessed Mother at Fatima. It is visually striking and has a vintage quality to it, appearing in color only when Our Lady comes which in itself beautiful. The special effects are awesome and the black and white scenes are effective in creating a somber atmosphere - an atmosphere in which the children lived.

The acting, at times is abit over dramatic, however the movie as a whole - all things considered - is wonderfully made. Those who like to point and critique this film harshly should like to make their own film version. It would be impossible to capture all that is Fatima in the form of a movie, and yet the directors, whose personal devotion inspired them to make this film, have given all they could to this project in honour of Out Lady.

I highly recommend watching this movie - but you should also read up on the apparitions to gain the whole story. In the end this film is remarkable and an effective tool in spreading the Message of Fatima.

This movie was wonderful. We showed it to our children - the youngest that saw it was six years old. They really enjoyed it too and saw how the shepherd children felt during the whole ordeal: the disbelief of some of their family members & friends as well as the persecution from the government.

It made me want to learn more about the Fatima message. The DVD has a special feature which is a series of interviews that provides background information on the Marian apparitions.

Ever since I saw the theatrical trailer of 'The 13th Day' about 6 months ago, I have been eagerly awiting the release of this DVD. I hoped it would be good, and praise God, I am not disappointed. This movie, in my opinion, is the most honest retelling of the apparitions of Fatima.This DVD comes with optional subtitles in Spanish and a segment by Father Andrew Apostoli on the message of Fatima, its meaning and relevance today.

The DVD comes with a 24 page colour booklet whick explains the film, the events at Fatima of 1917 (with a full paged black and white picture of Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta), a segment by Bishop Fulton Sheen, a message from the world apostolate of Fatima, a page on how to say the rosary, an interview with the recently deceased Father Robert Fox of the Fatima Family Apostolate, a 'Behind the Secenes' section, a written message by Fr. Apostoli, 3 prayers to O.L. of Fatima, one of which composed by Pope John Paul II and a few questions that act as a study guide.

The movie is mostly shot in black and white with certain parts in full colour. I will not go on to explain when and where as it will ruin the whole cinematic experience. Lucia's role is very strong and she is prominent as it is narrated through her perception of the events. Jacinta's and Francisco's roles are mostly silent but their presence is nevertheless beautifully captured. And I know one question on everybody's mind would be 'What about the Miracle of the Sun'? Well, I can tell you, it is dramatic, magnificient and beautiful.a very realistic portrayal.

A reviewer stated that he/she felt that the charachters were sketched in. I beg to differ. I think it was quite well done. The emotions are raw and one can actually feel the difficulties and suffering experienced by the children and their families. a second point made by the afore mentioned reviewer was that there were too mane 'close ups'. again, this in my humble point of view, only serves to enhance the drama and strength of the movie.

My only disappointment about 'The 13th Day' was that the Apparitions of the Angel of Peace was omitted. A great pity, as this would have further moved this film a notch higher than its present position (which in my opinion, is already quite high!) and surpassed all other films that have dealt with this subject.

This movie also captures certain little known events, that while one is watching it, would tend to write off as 'artistic licence'. However this is not the case , if you watch the segment by Fr. Apostoli.

All in all, 'The 13th Day' is a great movie in spreading the message of Fatima, a wonderful tool in evangelization and spreading the devotion of the Rosary. It is a wonderful investment and am sure it will be treasured by every family for many years to come.

I very much liked this movie. Yes, some of it is dark but it shows the truth about what happens to visionaries. It is an experience they would not trade but it is also not always easy and full of joy. The secular world and even believers can make life very difficult for these people. They had to deal with difficulty and suffering because of the apparitions and the movie portrays that.

I wish they would have included the aparitions of the angel (they happened before the Marian apparitions) which were left out completely. Also, I would have liked to know if the secrets had come true. I already knew but it would have been nice to sum up at the end. I ended up looking up some of the facts on the internet. The fact that Pope John Paul II was shot on May 13, 1981 is not a coincidence but a God incident! He regained consciousness momentarily and told the doctors not to remove his scapular. He said our Lady of Fatima was helping him survive.

A word of warning. I watched with my 11 year old boy who is a bit sensitive. There are a couple quick scenes of hell in the movie which would have greatly scared him a couple years ago. He did not like them now but seemed to weather them ok. I haven't heard any nightmare screems yet tonight.

My DVD came with a rosary, a leaflet describing how to say the rosary and a very informative companion booklet to the movie. Very nice!

This movie is worth the price. You will watch it more than once.

This was an appealing, artistic re-telling of the story of Fatima from the viewpoint of Lucia--the oldest of the 3 children who saw the apparitions of Mary. The film opens with Lucia, now an elderly cloistered nun, writing her memoirs as an act of obedience to her superiors.

Black and white filming captures both the historical context (the end of WWI and the rise of communism in Russia) and the dark political landscape when the Church was being persecuted in Portugal. It was also reminiscent of the old black and white photos of the event. The use of color film to highlight the apparitions was a bright contrast to the otherwise dour events swirling around the three seers at that time.

The movie also portrays the simple faith of the children against the background of jaundiced skepticism. The fact that only they can see the visions only stiffens the necks of the unbelievers. Finally, Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco are vindicated when over 70,000 people--both pilgrims and scoffers alike--witness the miracle of the sun on Oct. 13th, 1917.

Overall, The 13th Day was a great film: artistically rendered and well-acted. The only issue I had with it is that it presumed that the viewer would already be familiar with the story of Fatima. To the un-initiated, it might seem disjointed and confusing. In some ways, the 1952 Warner Bros. movie told a more cohesive story--in spite of its poetic license. For those unfamiliar with Fatima, it might be well to see the older movie first or do some reading on the subject before viewing The 13th Day. For the rest of us, it was a GREAT film.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

I bought this movie for my family as a Christmas gift and all of us were very impressed. I had heared about this movie while listening to my local Catholic radio station a few months ago and everyone was really excited about it.
The directors did a great job and I can't wait to watch other movies that they've filmed. They really captured the times and events surrounding this miricle of Our Blessed Mother. There is also a bonus feature were a Catholic Priest explains the full meaning of the miricle of Fatima.
I can't wait to see where Jesus sends His mother next!
You can go to ignatius press website and find similar movies.
God Bless and hope you enjoy this movie.

Being a child of the '50's I grew up hearing alot of the Miracle of Fatima and saw the movies that accompanied it.But this is an Absolute Victory in filmaking being able to bring this wonderful message in such a well acted and cinematically great way,This is a movie for everyone and I stress "everyone "! The children plaing the visionaries are brilliant and the October 13th miracle is fantastic
Thank you so much Iganatius Press for this masterpiece!

great movie!!!4 stars....we need more well made christian movies to inspire our youth...two big thumbs up!!!!!!!!