The Apocalypse

I will only write about one thing, since others have covered the excellent Richard Harris' performance: This was the first time we got a small idea of Revelation, thanks to good computerized special effects. I say a small idea, because the actual book of Revelation in the Bible contains what must be the ultimate in fantastically spectacular scenes-and a multitude of them at that. It is strange that no big production has ever attempted it. From all the existing films with titles referring to Apocalypse or Revelation, this is the best one by far. The others are no different than low budget-low interest movies, which don't even begin to reach the magnitude and magnificence of the book of Revelation.

While banished to the island of Patmos, "St. John" (played by Richard Harris) receives visions from the Lord which results in his writing the "Book of Revelation". However, this is not a movie about "the Apocalypse". Rather, this film is more about his life on Patmos and his visions than anything else. I say this for several reasons. First, the event called "the Apocalypse" isn't constrained to just the "Book of Revelation". The fact is that much of what we know about this subject also comes from the "Book of Daniel" and the "Gospel of Matthew" along with various passages from other books in the Bible as well. Because of this, there were many passages about the Apocalypse which were left out of the film. Along with that, those passages that were included weren't explained well at all. Further, like so many other Biblical movies, there are some non-Biblical elements thrown in for dramatic effect. In this particular case it involves a beautiful Christian woman named "Irene" (Vittoria Belvedere) and a Roman spy by the name of "Valerius" (Benjamin Sadler). So basically, if you're looking for a film about the Apocalypse then it might be better to look elsewhere. However, thanks to a very fine performance by Richard Harris, this movie is still somewhat enjoyable all the same and can safely be recommended to anybody of any faith. That said, I rate it as slightly above average.

RELEASED TO TV IN 2000 and directed by Raffaele Mertes, "The Apocalypse" chronicles events during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian (Bruce Payne) circa 90 AD when the elderly apostle John (Richard Harris) is imprisoned on the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea (off the coast of modern day Turkey). John experiences strange visions, as detailed in the book of Revelation. Christian Kohlund plays a formidable Roman commander ordered to kill Christians in Asia Minor while Vittoria Belvedere plays a devout believer in love with a duplicitous man who is sent to the penal colony on Patmos as a Roman spy (Benjamin Sadler).

Any film that attempts to tackle the biblical book of Revelation is ambitious, to say the least, and "The Apocalypse" should be respected for this, particularly since it's a surprisingly quality period movie, which doesn't forget to be entertaining while conveying worthy mind/spirit food. Being made in 1999 and limited by a TV budget, I was expecting lousy sets, costuming, locations and, especially, bad CGI effects. But, thankfully, the movie delivers in all these areas. The F/X hold up surprisingly well, all things considered, and they helped me better visualize John's visions in Revelation, which heretofore I had only 'seen' in my mind. Speaking of which, to appreciate this movie it helps to be a little familiar with the book of Revelation, otherwise you might be lost, especially since the movie's plot is a tad convoluted.

Interestingly, in one of his apocalyptic visions John sees the twin towers of the World Trade Center burning, which of course came to pass in real life a mere year after the film's initial release!

THE MOVIE RUNS 96 minutes and was shot (at least in part) in Morocco (I can't find any other info on the locations). WRITER: Francesco Contaldo.

GRADE: B

The Apocalypse is essentially two films. First it's a ground to earth story about corruption in high places and persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire during the days of the Emperor Domitian. Depending on the politics of the day until Constantine became a Christian, persecution waxed and waned in those first 200 or so years. Domitian like some of his predecessors has declared himself a god and doesn't like people around who aren't recognizing his deity. So it's round up the Christians like it was during Nero and slay them, sometimes for sport and amusement.

Sent to the Isle of Patmos where it is rumored that the last of the disciples of Jesus is living the Apostle John, is Benjamin Sadler who both finds John and finds true love with Christian girl Vittoria Belvedere. He also finds a lot of corruption and a great deal about himself.

The aged John is played by Richard Harris and he does it well, one of his better performances in his last years. The second part of the film are the fantasy sequences that become the basis for the Book of Revelation. Do not be watching this film if you are on any kind of pharmaceuticals.

The Apocalypse does have a preachy tone to it which might be off putting to many. Still it's not a bad work and should get more than church viewings.

Richard Harris's moving performance is the centerpiece of this film, in which members of the early church, struggling for faith and reassurance in the face of violent persecution, are searching for John the Beloved, last of the living apostles, who is "hiding in plain sight" on the prison island of Patmos. However, don't ignore some very good performances by several of the others. The visions of John are depicted judiciously, considering the CGI available in 2000 and the budget (that is, they don't scream "made-for-TV"); the montages do not try to show every detail but give a general idea of the visions. To watch this is a good adjunct to reading Revelation, to remind one that these fantastic visions came to a real person in a very chaotic time.