Customer Reviews

Veggie Tales: Abe & the Amazing Promise

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

 

 

What do a zany inventor named Jacques on a mission to bring back the boo-boo birds to Boo-Boo-Ville and heroes of the faith Abraham and Sarah have in common? Other than making appearances on the latest VeggieTales DVD, Abe and the Amazing Promise, all three characters have important lessons to learn in patience and perseverance.

Hey - Abraham and Sarah aren't characters; they are real people. Yes they certainly are. However, any viewer familiar with the VeggieTales series will recognize that when Bible people are rendered into the biblically based VeggieTales they become fictional characters. There is no doubt about it.

It shouldn't be a surprise when show hosts Bob the Tomato and Jr. Asparagus transport themselves into the Old Testament via the power of imagination to interview Abraham (or Abe for short), that they find the details of his life abbreviated, and altered from those we're familiar with. Ur is a retirement community everyone loves, Ishmael, Hagar and other politically incorrect family members are conveniently absent. The storyline is simple, brief and punctuated with a frenetic nurse, cranky French peas suffering in the desert sun, and Jr. having a hard time waiting for his mom's chocolate chip cookies. Children will grasp the high points: Abe and Sarah left Ur, they waited for a baby, for a long time, the baby finally arrived, God keeps His promises, be patient - but won't hold onto much else.

Moving along on the disc we come to a new Silly Song entitlted "Sneeze if You Need To", performed by Larry the Cucumber as the Sneeze Doctor, with Bob the Tomato starring as the tormented patient with a sneeze at the tip of his nose. While I can certainly sympathize with Bob - who hasn't felt a sneeze coming that wouldn't arrive - this Silly Song fell short of the VeggieTales standard offerings. Many of the Silly Songs I'm familiar with have been the catchiest, most entertaining songs I've heard - prompting many spontaneous bursts into song by myself and my youngsters. I just can't see that happening with "Sneeze if You Need To". It's easily forgettable with the only memorable moments being the sneeze related trivia shared within the context of the song.

Thankfully the second story segment on Abe and the Amazing Promise is excellent. Larry stars in "Blunders in Boo-Boo-Ville" as Jacques; an amateur inventor whose need for speed leads to haphazard inventions that are less than fully functional. When the Mayor of Boo-Boo-Ville threatens to shut down the annual festival do to lack of boo-boo birds, Jacques is set upon a course of action involving the development of patience. The repercussions of his new mind-set have resounding, lasting effects upon his character, work, and relationships. Combining an unusual goal, fun songs, a tad more depth and a meaningful take away lesson, this segment was without a doubt my favourite on the disc.

Of note to long-time series fans is the fact that this installment of the series is the first full-length episode directed by John Wahba. While John and I don't always share the same sense of humor, my five-year-old certainly appreciated his unique touch. But really, if the punch line in a children's song segment doesn't work for me, but my daughter points out that it's one of her favourite parts - her opinion likely has more weight than mine.

Wahba's emphasis seems to be more focused on bringing to life a film that plays to a child's sense of imagination and humor, rather than engaging in the asides and in-jokes for adults that adult fans are used to finding sprinkled throughout the VeggieTales series. As a result adults are generally finding this installment lackluster, and are typically expressing similar concerns regarding the Abe and Silly Songs segment. In all honesty we don't purchase these discs for ourselves - my kids and yours will still be greatly entertained by the antics of their favourite animated vegetables. My two-year-old started laughing hysterically and dancing during the opening theme song - she loves these guys.

As always, the VeggieTales DVD itself was superb. Sparing parents and advertising susceptible children from interminable numbers of previews, most were relegated to the bonus features, with only a sprinkling included before the feature. Subtitles that perch near the speaking character and the 5.1 surround sound are the most notable viewing options. The list of fun and informative bonuses is quite lengthy. Parents will appreciate the behind the scenes glimpses that include a full length studio commentary track that plays over the film, art gallery and discussion guide. Children will dive into the video trivia game, interactive storybook, Silly Song sing along and how to draw segments.

I'm thankful that the team at Big Idea adopted the character trait of patience for one of their full-length installments. It's a virtue that most children, and many adults, can use more of. Whatever the weaknesses of the first half of the film, by the end of the 45 minute play time, and with a couple of relevant Bible verses, Bob and Jr. drove their message home.

Veggietales has always had the ability to make me awe at how clever they are, and how witty they can be... while still conveying a biblical message. This unfortunately the worst attempt they have ever made in my opinion. If you don't own any veggietales movies... don't start here. You'll get the wrong impression. Start with A Snoodles Tale, The Big River Rescue, The Easter Carroll, or the Sumo of the Opera. It just is bland. The message fails to come across... and the silly song is weak.

It seems as if the writing was either rushed or done by somebody else.

I would only recommend this one if you are like my family and own every single one of their movies and basically want to continue collecting all their films.

Someone mentioned in an earlier review it seemed as though this was not written by the same person that wrote the other Veggie Tales...they are right. Phil Visher usually wrote all of the stories for Veggie Tales. Since he lost control of Big Idea (I highly recommend his book "Me, Myself, & Bob" that tells what happened) some others have taken turns at writting. Not a good thing.

While very good as far as children's videos (Christian or otherwise) it fell short of the Veggie Tales quality. The animation was great, the story line was a great idea but fell short of what it could have been. Of course, all Veggie Tale fans will want to have this, but if this is your first Veggie Tale or you are short on cash, do what a fellow reviewer suggested; get Snoodle's Tale, an Easter Carol, or Lord of the Beans.

As far as Veggie Tales offerings go, Abe and the Amazing Promise is average. This means that my kids and I still happily watch it over and over again.

The first story tells how Abraham and Sarah had to wait for God to fulfill his promise of giving them a child, Isaac. It is surprisingly short. It is pretty weak for two reasons: it doesn't tell much of the actual Abraham story, and it is so packed full of whiny characters that need to learn patience that it can be painful to listen to.

In the Silly Song, Larry is a Sneeze Doctor attempting to treat Bob, who is trying to sneeze but can't. It is catchy enough that I have spontaneously sung it in public.

The second story tells how an impatient inventor named Jacques must learn to take the time to do his work well so he can bring the BooBoo birds back to BooBooville. It is the longer and better story of the two -- very entertaining! It has a good plot full of random twists, witty lines, and fun music.

All told, this DVD is one of my two-year-old's current favorites. He has clearly taken its message to heart. He runs to put it in the DVD player whenever we tell him, "You need to be patient."

Bob the Tomato and Jr. Asparagus are the hosts for the newest addition to the VeggieTales library. Jr. is a bit distracted, however, because his mother promised his cookies when the show was over. Not perfectly fits with today's theme, Patience.

Up first is the title story. Bob is filming a documentary on Abraham (Pa Grape) and Sarah with the reluctant help of Jr. and the French Peas. But the Peas are constantly complaining about how hot it is and Jr. still wanting to get back in time for those cookies. Will they learn that waiting on someone who is trust worthy is always worth it?

This segment had some great laughs, especially the running gag of the nurse (Miss Achmetha) constantly mistaking "patience" for "patients." However, I was disappointed with a couple things in the story. First, they leave out the example of impatience, Ishmael. That one I can certainly understand. But they cut out an entire decade of how long Abraham had to wait for God to fulfill His promise. As much as I get the fact that this is a fictional take on a Bible story, that still seems like a major error.

The new silly song is "Sneeze if You Need to." It finds Larry playing a doctor who is trying to help Bob the Tomato sneeze. Frankly, I didn't find the song that funny, although the breaks they take to share trivia with us were pretty good.

Finally comes the longest segment, "Blunders in Boo-Boo-Ville." Jacques (Larry the Cucumber) is a member of an inventing club. But no one in the club has the patience to properly make their ideas, causing all kinds of problems. Will they ever learn to be patiently diligent?

This segment includes most of the songs, but they aren't quite as inspired as normal. Again, there are some good laughs here.

There's a good message to this disc, and some decent laughs. But this one is aimed more for kids then their parents or the series' many adult fans.

I was excited to see that Abe was coming on Gospel Music Channel this morning...THE DAY it comes out at Christian bookstores and BEFORE it comes out everywhere else. My 2 and 3 year olds and I sat down to watch it this morning and were not dissapointed. The show starts off with Junior, filling in for Larry, rather impatiently trying to hurry the show because his mom said cookies would be ready after the show. Bob takes the opportunity to tell that the story today is about patience and proceeds to go to "Bible times" with Junior to make a movie about Abraham. The Abe part of the movie is shot documentary style with interviews of Abe, Sarah, and Lot. I was amazed at how effectively in the amount of time they had that they told the story of Abraham and conveyed the truth that if we trust God, we can trust that He keeps His promises to us even if we have to wait on those promises. Next, is a story called "Boobooville Blunders" where Larry is an impatient inventor always trying to take shortcuts. Larry ends up learning that all of his inventions have failed because he tried to take the easiest routes. He learns patience by growing a flower from seed to finish and helps the town with the return of the booboo birds by patiently planting flowers all over the town. In the end everyone learns patience and gets some of Junior's mom's cookies (except for Bob....Larry accidentally ate his).

Love this DVD. It's lots of fun for the entire family from gradma to the 2 yrs. old. It makes it easier for kids to understand and gives parents good ideas for furthering the story and those that follow in the Bible.

I feel like I watched a different episode than the rest of the reviewers! I'll agree that the first story about Abraham was just alright, but then my opinion differs with the rest. Blunders in Boo-Booville is one of my favorite Veggie Tale segments. The story is a nice take off on the beginning of Beauty and the Beast and the songs follow suit. There are three great songs in this story that rank highly in Veggie Tales cannon for melody, humor, and feeling. Visually it is also one of the most beautiful animated stories yet. I made my son a Veggie Tales mix CD and was highly disappointed that I can't find this songs anywhere for purchase. Anyway, don't miss Blunders in Boo-Booville.

We love all the Veggie Tales, and this one is no different. If you collect Veggie Tales, this is another keeper...and if you don't, it's a great one to start with. God is faithful--always--even when we're not!

This came here in excellent condition and was here way sooner than i ever expected. Will definitaley order from this place again! Plus veggie tales is just awesome no matter how old you are