by Joseph Ross
Huge, intimate, loud, quiet, daring, confusing, radical, fascinating. These are a few adjectives that describe Darren Aronofsky’s new film Noah.
Forget your old Sunday school lessons everyone. This new biblical epic isn’t in the same league as the so called classics of Hollywood’s heyday. This is one of the first biblical films that doesn’t feel like a religious sermon. This is a directors interpretation of the story of Noah. As kids we were taught the basic version of the tale; how God told Noah to build an ark to house all the worlds animals so he could flood the earth and start fresh. I even remember a VHS cartoon video that depicted a smiling Noah surrounded by cute little critters as they sang songs and sailed under a rainbow.
In Aronofsky’s take, God takes a back seat to Noah in this one. We know what God wants through Noah’s thoughts and dreams. We see how God’s plan takes it’s toll on this mortal man and the result is an interesting look into a soul hell bent on doing what he believes is the right thing, God’s will. Even if the outcome is brutal and heartbreaking, God’s will (or in this film’s case, God is referred to as The Creator), is law and must be carried out for the sake of saving the earth’s innocent.
The cast here is impressive. Russell Crowe gives an amazing performance as the tormented Noah. He carries the film on his shoulders. Jennifer Connelly does some solid work as his noble and undersstanding wife. Ray Winston plays evil like no one else does. His descendant of Cain (as in Cain and Abel) is a good mirror image to Noah. Anthony Hopkins shows up to play Noah’s grandfather and chews the scenery for a bit.
Tech credits are top notch. The cinematography is moody and atmospheric, placing us right in the middle of this the raw and barren earth. When the flood arrives, it’s a spectacle that would have had DeMille foaming at the mouth. There are some images I can’t shake. The last few scraps of humanity being swallowed up by the sea. A version of the 7 days of creation that is so well done I can’t wait for the DVD so I can examine it frame by frame. Angels falling from the heavens and being enveloped in rock and clay.
This is a film about ideas. A film to sit and talk about over coffee. And trust me, you’ll be talking for hours on this one. Go see it.
