Evan Almighty

With a cast of hugely talented comedic actors like Steve Carell, Lauren Graham, John Goodman and Wanda Sykes, I was expecting a laugh out loud comedy. Sadly, Shadyac's 'Evan Almighty' only provides a few such moments. There just isn't enough comedy and at times it's a little too dramatic. Throughout the films, there are only but a very few dialogues that are funny as a result of which actors like Sykes and Graham don't have enough comedy to work with. Carell reprises his role from the prequel 'Bruce Almighty' but this time he's a little more of a nicer guy. Overall, Carell does a good job but he's more in the 'Little Miss Sunshine' mode which brings 'Evan Almighty' down a notch because that kind of character doesn't fully work for this kind of film and it is Shadyac to be blamed for not making something better of something decent. Yet, Carell's the only one who provides comic relief even though it's with limited quantity. His interaction with the animals are awesome to watch. Morgan Freeman is more cheerful and more annoying in this one. Lauren Graham plays the typical housewife and mother well and her reaction to Carell's transformation is excellent. In spite of all it's flaws, it is the last half hour that lifts the film. It builds up the drama and suspense very well and sort of has an adventurous feel. This entire sequence is very well executed. The soundtrack is well used and the songs are nice too. Thus, despite its shortcomings, it's still entertaining, but don't expect a laugh riot.

Evan Almighty generated a lot of hype before its release. A lot of people loved Bruce Almighty, and were expecting something just a zany and hilarious in Evan Almighty. Most of them were disappointed: this movie was received negatively by most critics and audiences alike. Well, I liked it! First of all, this movie has been misunderstood, because it was mismarketed. It was marketed as a hilarious sequel to Bruce Almighty (and the trailer made it look that way, too). But, to be perfectly honest, this is more of a family film than a comedy. But it is a really good family film.

This film had a lot of potential for comedy. It delivered at times, but not consistently. It also had two very crude toilet humour jokes involving male genitalia (just the word, though, nothing beyond that). I will freely admit, this isn't nearly as hilarious a comedy as the original. But it's good in its own right.

Morgan Freeman's scenes as God were excellently written and performed! One scene in particular, in a restaurant, was really touching and moving. Freeman is really a terrific actor, I'm glad they cast him as God. The performances in this movie were, overall, great. (Although it's a lot of fun watching the young kid unable to resist looking into the camera when pointing out two doves to his dad.) So, all in all, Evan Almighty is not "almighty" but it's still "alrighty".

I don't understand all the negativity towards this movie, I loved it and thought it was just as good as Bruce Almighty (if anything, I think I may prefer it). It's creative, lighthearted, and overall a fun movie that I've watched several times!

This movie turned out to be a little better than I thought. Steve Carroll was funny as usually. The animals were cool too. Some of them were real, but a lot of them were computer generated. I thought the film sent a good message. That spending family time is important and that is what God was trying to teach the Baxter's. I liked the part that Evan couldn't cut his hair or beard and then then the Moses robes added to the effect. I have to take away some praise though with the whole ark floating though Washington DC. That was just plain silly. Wanda Sikes gets some good one liners too.

FINAL VERDICT: More geared for kids. It's OK to watch once, but not good enough for more viewings.

This was, simply put, a bad movie. As a big fan of Steve Carell, I had high hopes, at least for his performance. Unfortunately, he could do nothing to save it. There were even times when I found him to be incredibly annoying. The pace is too fast, to the point where watching the beginning of the film is like seeing a montage of events that happened prior. There is little to no character development, especially for Evan's family. While the film is visually stunning, an overinflated budget cannot always save a film from a poor script, poor acting, and poor direction. Don't waste your time unless you're with children.

5/10