Steve Carell and Morgan Freeman star in Evan Almighty, a modern day Noah's Ark.

I was asked not to do a detailed review of Evan Almighty until opening night of this film. So this page will be updated opening night of the film (June 22, 2007).

You might remember Evan from the first of this series, Bruce Almighty. Evan was the reporter who lost his job when Jim Carrey's character (Bruce) misused the powers "God" (Morgan Freeman) had allowed him to use for a day to see if it was as easy to be God as Bruce thought.

This time, God gives Evan (Steve Carell) an assignment--build an ark. Evan scoffs at the idea because it doesn't fit into his plans. Afterall, he's doing well as a politician now and enjoying his life. He doesn't want to start another project or make a fool of himself. But He submits to God's will. How will it turn out? Well the full review of Evan Almighty from a Christain viewopoint will be here Wednesday June 22nd without spoilers.

However, let me say that this movie is family friendly to the point that it would have probably been considered family friendly in the year 1950. This movie has grown from the Christian overtones of Bruce Almighty to a character who becomes outright relgious and reads Bible passages outloud. Furthermore, there are no "adult" parts of the movie. And by that I mean that there are no sexual references at all in the movie so you can relax and enjoy the movie with your children--and I hope you do. The movie is delight and will have you laughing about scenes that passed several minutes ago. And when you walk out, you'll feel refreshed to walk your Christian walk.

I truly hope Evan Almighty is a sign of things to come from Hollywood.

June 22, 2007 Update

Despite the fact that early viewers were asked to wait until today to review this movie, some wrote detailed reviews anyway. I waited because I was asked to wait by the people who allowed me to watch the movie at no cost and I have honored their request. Now it's time to add more details to my review of Evan Almighty.

As I mentioned above, Evan has used his successful career as a news anchor to become a United States congressman. He moves his wife and three sons to a new part of the state in a very wealthy neighborhood. Evan wants to "change the world" for the good but slowly begins to realize that not only does it seem he can't accomplish the large projects needed to quickly change the world, but that he is neglecting his family because of the amount of time he spends away from them. And there you have the critical turning point. When Evan gets on his knees and prays to God for help in bringing his family closer to each other.

God takes him seriously. The next day Evan figures out some fairly obvious clue and opens his Bible to read God's instructions for what he is to do. He considers it strongly but talks himself out of the thought that this message was directly from God. So God shows up to convince him.

Eventually, Evan finds himself devoted to what God has told him, even though he doesn't understand all the details. God has told him there will be a flood and Evan believes God despite the fact that he is a laughing stock for building an ark on dry land. At one point in the movie, the only supporters Evan has are his wife, sons and God. He learns with help from God, that if God and family are for him, it doesn't matter who is against him.

But is God speaking to Evan in some sort of poetic code or is God being literal in saying that a flood would come. Evan takes God at His word but you'll have to watch the movie to see what happens in that respect.

Beginning early in this movie, be sure to watch for Bible references on inanimate objects and even in what people say.

As I said earlier in this review, I truly hope this is a sign of things to come from Hollywood.

-Lee Wilson

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