onthuhlist

No, despite the assertions of Bobby (another reviewer of this movie) I am not high. No, I am not lying. No, I am not related to or associated with anyone who made this movie. And none of the other ad hominems apply to me that he throws out there to intimidate anyone who likes this movie. As you probably know, those who resort to ad hominems have nothing intelligent to say about the subject being discussed, so they use put downs instead, thinking their anger will bolster their point. Perhaps my response to the movie is different than this other reviewer because I don't have a hang-up about acknowledging our creator's plan to save humanity through his son, Jesus Christ.

The movie is funny. It made me laugh many times. It is entertaining. The plot kept my attention, and made me look forward to see what would happen next. It isn't preachy in its tone. Though there are some viewers who will feel it is preachy because they don't want to hear truth expressed in a movie. That doesn't mean this is a bad movie. Seriously, the movie is not preachy in its tone.

I loved some of the over-the-top characters, and the imaginative scenes were entertaining. I liked seeing the characters' progression and growth as the plot progressed. These characters are not static/predictable.

I understand this is a fictional series, but like Dan Brown's The Davinci Code, it purports to be a story against a real, historical backdrop. In this case, the stories of the Bible. Of course, taking artistic license is common for such settings, because the historical records only tell us so much, and we have to fill in missing details. However, this series goes way beyond this to the point of grossly mischaracterizing the historical accounts. Normally this isn't too big a deal either, such as in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, or Mr. Peabody and Sherman. In these stories, for the sake of entertainment we are able to overlook, for example, Beethoven rocking out with a modern keyboard or otherwise acting goofy or speaking with modern idioms.

But where Chi Rho crosses the line is in re-characterizing the very nature of Jesus Christ. Abandoning the historical eyewitness accounts of Jesus's miracles, the 4th episode of Chi Rho transform Jesus from the Christ to merely a talented "people person".

Chi Rho explains away the eyewitness testimony of Jesus' miracles as him just being a good listener (to cast out demons), a good encourager (to heal sickness), and a challenger of tradition (to fill nets to overflowing with fish when professional fishermen caught nothing). This historical revisionism was not-so-subtly embedded in the 4th episode. And targeted at kids!

Lest some think I'm making a big deal out of nothing, we need to consider the potential consequences here. Since Jesus Christ claimed to be the only way that God has provided whereby we may be reconciled back to God (by paying the penal price for our wrongdoings in our stead) then Chi Rho's re-characterization of Christ from son of God to merely a charismatic leader could have eternal consequences for the children who are misled by this re-characterization. Jesus put it this way, when referring to children and those who mislead them: "Things that cause people to sin must come, but woe to the person through whom they come. It would be better for that person to have a millstone placed around his neck and be thrown into the sea, than to cause one of these little ones to stumble...See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven."

This is why it is important not to mess with Jesus Christ by re-casting him according to non-historical interpretations pulled out of thin air, while ignoring the historical written records of his life as recorded in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, 1 and 2 Peter, and James.