Customer Reviews

Evan Almighty

5 star:		(83)
4 star:		(50)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

The review I read in the USA Today suggested that this movie was a stinker. But I think the critics dropped the ball. This was a fun movie, and a great choice for the whole family. Evan Baxter is the former Buffalo news anchor who has just been elected to Congress with the lofty campaign slogan "Change the World."

This inspires God (played by Morgan Freeman) to speak to Evan about building an ark. God is angry that the beautiful Appalachian mountain vistas he has created are being destroyed by those desiring to create huge residential areas. He is upset with those who want to destroy the natural beauty of the world.

Animals start following Baxter around two by two, and (like in the Tim Allen flick "The Santa Clause") he begins to look like his predecesor (Noah).

Evan becomes alienated from his congressional colleagues and from his family, but by this point in the film, he is convinced that he is doing the work of the Lord.

As the plot unfolded, I started wondering, "Were the animals really necessary to the storyline, since the judgment of God was only falling on one region of the world rather than the entire planet?" But my wife told me that having the animals come to Evan from around the world demonstrated to the people that Evan wasn't crazy, and that this truly was a move of God.

Secondly, having the animals come to Evan ties this in neatly with the Noah story from Genesis 6.

The movie is not what I would call laugh out loud funny, but there are plenty of cute and heartwarming moments. The message of the film seems to be that we can change the world with one random act of kindness at a time. Both the message and the movie are winners in my book. Recommended.

Evan Almighty was not nearly as bad as reviews and earlier comments from some made it out to be, but also no where near as great as Bruce Almighty was. Both borrowed from the Oh God! series, which borrowed from earlier stories, etc. Though I gave the movie 4 stars in my rating, it's probably more like a 3.5 star movie (out of 5). Catch it in the right spirit (no pun intended here) and you may consider it a 4 star film. Go in with overly high expectations and you'll probably be thinking that 3 stars was generous.

Evan Almighty was more formulaic, but still offered up a cute story that is entertaining enough if you go in with reasonable expectations. If you are expecting greatness, then yes, you'll be disappointed, but if you can accept a touching story that gets (if you'll pardon the pun) flooded over with special effects, then you could enjoy this movie.

Much more family friendly than was Bruce Almighty, though Bruce Almighty worked better as a comedy because of that while Evan Almighty works better for family entertainment.

This movie looked pretty good on HD DVD. Combo disc format so you can play the movie on standard DVD if necessary (flipper disc, DVD on one side, HD DVD on the other).

I started out thinking the movie was probably best as a rental, but enjoyed it enough to go back and reconsider purchasing. If you can find this one on sale (under $20) it is probably worth adding to your collection. If you are seeing higher prices, wait for a sale perhaps, or try finding a nice used copy from one of the associated sellers.

As parents of five children, we rarely take our children to see a movie before we've screened it. However, we felt that with the ads, the PG rating, and from seeing the messege from Bruce Almighty, we did. WE LOVED IT!!! We all laughed throughout the whole movie and even our 10 year old son (our oldest) got choked up in certain parts. It was very clean and the writing was sweet. We have always loved Steve Carell and we were not disappointed. It's not perfect, but we feel that so many missed out on the real point of this movie.

But FINALLY I can watch a movie with my mother! I'm in my mid twenties and our tastes just tend to run so opposite on everything. I saw this and then saw the rating (which suprised me considering Bruce Almighty) and we agreed on it. And it was very entertaining.

I actually enjoyed the fact that cussing was kept to a minimum (if at all) and so was vulgarity. I loved Morgan Freeman's portrayal of God and the fact that they kept the sense of humor.

Steve Carell WAS very restrained in this movie, as compared to his other roles, but I thought he did an excellent job. I've seen more than 1 review stating that it wasn't as good as 40 Y.O. Virgin, but it's a completely different kind of comedy and his character is very different.

I also didn't really find it sacrilegious or making fun of religion. Some people love that type of humor. I find it tiresome. So for me that was a plus.

In conclusion: yes, it can be a family film, but it can also be watched and enjoyed by two adults. If you're looking for another Bruce Almighty with that exact humor, you might be happier just watching Bruce.

(I will admit though- I was kinda confused about the animal bit, but I think that was just to convince Evan to build the dang thing.)

This is a GREAT movie inspite of the reviews given to it by certain critics. (especially critics who happened to compete with it's opening debute). This movie is NOT about a man building an ark, although that appears to be on the surface. It is about a man who is forced into circumstances which seem to be unalterable, taking him further away from his own personal aims in life only to find himself again. He must surrender his own life's plans for plans that appear completely incongruent to his own by Divine interference. He is pushed to the edge of his sanity while his stable and well grounded wife watches him hopelessly slip away. Ultimately, when his own strategies fail, he surrenders to his divine mission and plunges into his project whole heartedly at the cost of his job, family, and his reputation. Steve Carell plays the role so beautifully, full of laughs and humor, drama and tears. And Morgan Freeman, who plays God, is so wonderfully warm and true, he touches the hearts of all. And how many times in our real lives are we seemingly pulled off course, away from our goals, only to arrive at the point where we wanted to be - made stronger, wiser, and more experienced than if we made a straight line towards our target? (Are the critics so dumb that they cannot see beyond the superficial appearance of this movie? What planet are they from?)
The movie doesn't preach so much as to teach us the importance of our courage, commitment, faith, and love. The movie reveals a core of values and give courage to notice our opportunities to make some difference in life while having the faith to do it when nothing around seems to support us. People who think this movie is about the remake of Noah's ark missed the premise entirely. This movie has a full gamut of emotions and is tenderly linked to the tangibility that makes up our humaness. It is a movie for the whole family to enjoy.
Also, practicing what it teaches, this movie was the first "green" movie ever made. It cost $175 million dollars to make and every scrap of construction materials that were used in the movie (even to make a life size ark) was recycled and given to an earth-conscious charities. It has more heart, soul, and substance than anything out there right now and is the perfect movie for the entire family. Five stars and thumbs up!

Bruce Almighty (Widescreen Edition) took great pains to revamp the typical comedy film into a new and exciting story. Who knew a movie could take the delicate and often touchy subjects God and religion, and find the humor in it? Unfortunately, Evan Almighty doesn't accomplish nearly as much as it's far better predecessor.

Evan Almighty picks up the story of Evan Baxter (yes, the same news anchor who was a bane to the existence Bruce in the first film) as he and his family move to a new town after Evan becomes a newly elected Congressman. Evan is the perfect picture of consumerism, vanity, and a man desperate for the attention and approval of his peers (while mostly disregarding the opinions of his family). Unfortunately for Evan, God has other plans for him. After instructing Evan to build an Ark and save his family plus two of every kind of animal from the imminent flood, Evan begins to struggle with his desire to continue in his own life plan, or trust in the wisdom of God.

At a PG rating, this movie is fairly appropriate for kids and families. Some of the aspects of the story will tug a little at the heartstrings, but overall it was a little tired and boring. The best thing this movie had going for it was the spot-on entertaining portrayal of God by Morgan Freeman. Steve Carrell has gained a lot of comic success with his hit show The Office - Season Three and his hilarious turn in The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated Widescreen Edition), but I'm sad to say that while he was great as a supporting character in the previous Almighty film, he didn't do so well as the primary character.

Bottom line, while God's warmth and sense of humor is a veritable breath of fresh air in this movie, everything else is a bit contrived and predictable to a fault. It probably would have been nice if the movie had left a little to the imagination, such as keeping the audience in suspense of whether or not the flood was really coming -- but for anyone who has seen any of the previews for the movie, that question is already answered. Bummer.

we really love this movie; the kids laugh the entire time, especially with the animals; the only moment they got frightened was the flood; I loved the funny parts but was surprised by a really awesome scence with the mom and God talking about how to make a strong family; knocked me over with the profoundness of it, which made me love the movie even more; has a great ending as well; fine acting by all involved

I enjoyed this one more than Bruce Almighty. No dirty humor. It's a fun time with a message, as always, Steve Carell is hilarious and Morgan Freeman is great.

The idea of God appearing on Earth and beginning to give direct orders to a congressman (or any other politician) is just too much to resist, but "Evan Almighty" takes a different tact than one might expect for a comedy. Instead of it being a conniving little weasel who abruptly finds himself getting marching orders from above, it's an honest and well-meaning congressmen, freshly elected and eager to make a difference, and glad for the helping hand even when everybody around him thinks he's gone nuts. Steve Carrel does a great job as Congressman Evan Baxter; it's John Goodman who skillfully steps into the 'shady, conniving weasel' (no offence to the four-legged variety of weasels) as a Washington career politician who provides the foil for Evan; and Morgan Freeman is simply brilliant as the Big Guy Himself.

It's the way the role of God is handled that more than anything distinguishes the movie. Certainly not a cranky fire-and-brimstone deity here, God is portrayed by Freeman as witty and playful, with a quiet but powerful drive underneath. His faith in the people of Earth is evidenced by his reliance on Evan to steadfastly build an Ark as ordered despite continued (and usually highly humorous) setbacks; the fact that He'd still be so bright-eyed optimistic about humanity in spite of the current state of the world is an unexpected and interesting angle to take.

There are a few times when "Evan Almighty" misses opportunities for more comedic value (it's funny but generally not hilarious), but that's all made up for by all the right notes it hits. Boasting a great array of creatures (to file up and board the ark of course) to give the movie extra punch for us animal lovers, this is an all-round winner, and a unique entry in moviedom. Four-and-a-half stars.

I was worried that I would hate this movie. I loved Bruce Almighty and I love Steve Carell. I was nervous that this would be a poor sequel and I would be disappointed. I'm happy to say that this is a great movie. I think I even like it better than Bruce Almighty. It is a lot different than Bruce Almighty and I was glad to see that. Anyway, this is basically a movie about change. The concept of change is everywhere in this movie and the character Evan goes through a lot of changes. Sure, it is a funny movie, not the funniest, but the movie has a good feeling to it that works really well. It has a good message. Steve Carell does a great job as being someone who gives in to something that he doesn't understand, but he uses faith and trust to guide him. He is loyal in his task, and his focus is incredible. He really does a great job of showing that single focus for something he believes in... but the movie is great because it shows him evolve into that. I really enjoyed this movie, so did my 5 year old girl and my girlfriend. I gave it 4 stars because I thought some of the other actors weren't that great. John Goodman is sort of wasted in a role anyone could have played, and the wife was just going through the motions. But there are other great characters, especially the young aide... that guy was a riot! Great movie. Check it out.