Customer Reviews

Testament: Elijah [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Within this series of Bible in Animation, this would have to be my favourite. The animation is good quality, the voices match the characters, great music and a great story. It follows the story in the Bible correctly for those who are interested in that aspect.
As a final approval, the video was tested on some kids and church and they all thought it was great!
In summary, an excellent story of a favourite Bible character.

Abridging the epic life of Elijah, one of the most intense--and intensely used--prophets of the Lord, into a short video is a difficult challenge. However, what this artistic team has done is commendable on every level. The characterization is authentic, and the intensity ably conveyed. It is also interesting on an artistic level; the rendering of the chariot of fire that swept Eijah into heaven and the fire at Mt. Carmel, as well as the fulfillment of the prophecy of Ahab's death are delightful. Another effective approach was, at a few key junctures, to have the characters "speak" by singing very short segments of Mendelssohn's "Elijah" oratorio. The scene with the resurrection of the son of the widow of Zerephath could have been better, and there are a few other minor quibbles, but overall this is a masterful effort.

There is also a DVD version of this episode available at Amazon.com, and that is the one I have. This is the biblical the story of Elijah the prophet of the Old Testament in the bible. It is a great version of this story, I can only think of two other animated versions and this is MUCH better. It is worth seeing just for the scene where God lights the alter on fire, much more impressive that I ever imagined reading the bible. This is not made for kids, but for all ages. The story is smart and intelligent. The animation is very high quality and stylized, and the story flows in such a way as to keep an adult very interested. There are some changes made to keep the story flowing, but nothing to offend. Just like a regular movie, they have to trim to keep the story moving. I try to enjoy these and other biblical films as inspiration, but read my bible for authenticity.
This episode has 2 very brief musical outburst from Elijah, they are actually from the Mendelssohn opera "Elijah" and help tell the story if you listen closely to the words. The other episodes do not have any characters sing.

The "Testament: Bible in Animation" series is really well done, and I have enjoyed all of the titles. Each is animated in a different style, with great respect for the biblical source. This episode is animated in traditional hand drawn 2D cel animation. They were produced over 10 years ago by Christmas films in Wales and Russia for the BBC, is not made for kids, but for all ages. I believe HBO family channel ran these for awhile a few years ago. There are other DVD's in the series that are stand alone title's, also about 30 minutes each. The series includes "Daniel", "David and Saul","Moses", "Jonah", "The Creation and Noah", "Elijah" (my favorite), "Ruth", "Joseph", and Abraham. The last 3 are in stop motion animation, (like the holiday TV specials).
But if you want a good deal, there is another set from the same company that has 4 of the 30 minute stories from this Testament series in a 2 DVD box set. "Testament: The Bible in Animation Collection" is the title to search for, and Amazon.com is where I bought it. The price is almost the same as buying one individual story. That set has Jonah, Abraham, Elijah, and the Creation/Noah story. I recommend any of the films from this series.

My son loves this story (10 yrs old,) and wanted a video on it. On the key action moments they break out in song instead of accurate depiction. Would not reccommend.

We got this after watching other videos from the series. My kids, ages 5 and 10, were a bit put off by what they viewed as random bursts of opera. They found it a distraction and not as kid friendly as the others. It's not awful, just not the best one.