98 of 102 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
a feast for the eyes and food for the soul, July 12, 2004
This review is from: The Apocalypse (DVD)
Set in 90 AD, this film gives us insight into the lives of Christians who lived under the domination of Roman rule. Emperor Domitian (played with ample dementia by Bruce Payne) is in power, and his goal is to kill every living Christian who does not denounce God and give allegiance to Domitian alone, who has claimed himself god over all things.
The imagery in this film is fantastic; Giovanni Galasso's cinematography is full of rich color, and a feast for the eyes; there are portions that are like liquid works of art, and I never tire of watching them, in fact, several viewings are needed to fully appreciate the creative magic of the photography. The brilliance of the palette reminds me of the heyday of Technicolor, with its opulent reds, greens and blues.
The great Richard Harris is the apostle John, and it is one of his last appearances on film. Harris, who was so terrific starring in the cable television Bible Series production of "Abraham" in 1994, has less to do in this film, but with his weathered face and fabulous voice is wonderful. The attractive cast that surrounds him is excellent, with Vittoria Belvedere, Benjamin Sadler and Ian Duncan in the leads. Christian Kohlund is also impressive as Quintus Maximus.
The lavish sets and authentic looking costumes lend credibility to a film that is largely about John's visions, and are a good contrast to the "New heaven and new earth" of the beautiful, light-filled revelations given to the apostle.
Kudos to director Raffaele Mertes who directs with the eye of an artist (he was cinematographer for seven of the other Bible Series productions and director for "Esther"), and another great talent from the same series of films is the award-winning composer Monsignor Marco Frisina, who for this production was also Biblical Consultant, as well as giving us an atmospheric, lovely soundtrack.
Total running time is 96 minutes, for this marvelous telling of the apostle John's final days on the island of Patmos.
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64 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A excellent glimpse of what Christians faced back then, June 16, 2004
This review is from: The Apocalypse (DVD)
I really liked this movie because it shows what the believers who received the book of Revelation were going through when the messages and visions of Revelation were given to them. These believers try to maintain their faith in Christ when Emperor Domitian proclaims himself to be God and gives an ultimatum for Christians to worship him or die. The believers in Ephesus send one of their female members to seek out John (played by Richard Harris) at the island of Patmos to receive messages from God and to bring them back to the church. John receives several visions which comfort the believers. You will see truncated visions from the book of Revelation (the Lamb opening the scroll, the seven seals, the great multitude, the seven trumpet blasts, and the woman fleeing from the dragon), with a little bit of explanation thrown with it.
Don't expect a full-blown picture of the Apocalypse, but for what it is, a historical fictionalized account of what the believers were going through when Revelation is written to them, it is really good. Richard Harris does a great job of portraying the apostle John. If you like Richard Harris, you'll also enjoy his portrayal of Abraham in the Bible collection series (which this movie is a part of). It is comforting, thought-provoking, and faithful for the most part to the Bible.
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36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A MASTERPIECE, January 15, 2005
This review is from: The Apocalypse (DVD)
Words cannot describe my loss for words behind watching the late Richard Harris's portrayal of the Apostle John in the APocalypse. Considering that John is my favorite Disciple/Apostle and New Testament writer, and considering the fact that there are not many films out there that have attempted to portray life in 90 A.D. for Christians under the rule of the Emperor Domitian,during John's exile on Patmos and his writing of the Revelation(the only other such work is St. John in Exile, a live, one-man performance by Dean Martin), to visualize for the 1st time what I've only been able to read for years in the Bible and other historic accounts took my breath away. As far as the details are concerned, I'll only say ditto to the most recent online reviews and will go on to say that it's the 1st movie since the Passion to have me in tears from start to finish as Richard Harris, in my opinion, captured the Apostle's character, zeal, and passion for Christ. A masterpiece and a superb companion to the Passion of the Christ and/or the Gospel of John.
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