Christian values made an epic comeback at the box office with Angel Studios’ Christmas-season animated biopic David, set around the Biblical lore of God’s King for his chosen people. At time of publication, the film has grossed over $65 million worldwide, which has earned as spot as the highest-grossing animated faith-based film of all time.
In line with the box office draw, audience scores for the film highlight the absolute disgust with mainstream Hollywood filth. Children and parents alike who hunger for meaningful media content found what they were looking for in David. On both IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes, reviews from movie-goers make it clear the musical centered around integral Old Testament stories hit the right chords.
For background, at time of publication on January 4th nearly 50% of all recorded scores gave the movie a 10/10. The next three highest scores were 9, 8, and 7. Overall, the film has an impressive 7.5 rating. On Rotten Tomatoes, even woke critics settled on 74% while audience reviews gave it an astounding 98%.
One reviewer on IMBD said he brought the entire family, which included four young film critics and his wife. “All of my children loved it and they can be pretty critical of animated movies. My wife and really enjoyed it as well,” the user wrote. “The animation is fantastic. The artists were able to capture the Israel environment beautifully with a level of believable realism. Character animation was very well done. There movement of hair, clothing, fabrics and nature in the wind was impressive. At a minimum I would recommend this movie just to watch outstanding animation.”
Commenting on the film’s story, the user continued by saying that background knowledge, or limitations of such, don’t improve or impede one’s enjoyment of the film. “The storyline covers a long period of time, but does so with easy to follow transitions. You don’t need to know the Biblical account of David to follow the story and there are enough cultural cues and visuals to pick up on the plot. David’s historic role as a warrior is downplayed in the story which helps make this more of a family friendly film.”
After comments about he religious aspect and refutation of critics, the post concluded that it was a great choice to bring the family. “Overall this is definitely a movie to watch with the family. David is a story that amplifies light with positive messaging about family, taking care of the poor, helping others, trust, humility, and doing what is right in the midst of fear.”
One of the other top comments on IMDB noted that this was one of the best religious films for kids they’ve seen and that it’s a generational success. “If you are an academic (like I am) who likes diving into biblical history, this movie might seem a bit rushed for you. However, as a kids’ movie, this seems great! I love the songs (I had them on a YouTube playlist even before seeing the movie), and the story illustrates some of the major points of David’s life without making it too scary or adult themed,” the review stated.
“I took my parents and adult brother to see this, and to my surprise, neither of my parents fell asleep (which they often do when we see movies in the theatre). They were interested the whole time! My brother liked the movie as well and believes this will be like the new generation’s Prince of Egypt (I agree).”
Over on Rotten Tomatoes, where again the audience score was a whopping 98%, several comments agreed on the film being a masterpiece for its music, story, and themes. “Best animated film Ive ever seen! My kids love it. Absolute must watch for everyone regardless of age! God will use this film to do great things in the hearts of those who watch it!” one user wrote.
“Incredible production quality for an indie movie. Characters, lighting, textures, writing, voice acting, songs, incredible!! Animation wasnt [sic] quite to the same level, but normies wont notice at all. Great story,” said another.
“The animation was incredible. The first scene with the lion was intense for younger children and then later as well. My son took my grandson(31/2) but it was not a movie for that age. I think it was one hour 50 min. Maybe 5 Year old but there were intense scenes. My 10 yr old granddaughter was scared. At Amalekytes. It was rated correctly at PG. I loved the music and the whole movie. A beautiful story to tell.”