MOVIE REVIEW
MPA Rating:
for intense disaster sequences and some language.
Reviewed by: Sheri McMurray
CONTRIBUTOR
Moral Rating: | Average |
Moviemaking Quality: | |
Primary Audience: | Adults Teens Family |
Genre: | Sci-Fi Action Thriller |
Length: | 2 hr. 38 min. |
Year of Release: | 2009 |
USA Release: | November 13, 2009 (wide—3,000+ theaters) DVD: March 2, 2010 |
Relevant Issues
FEAR, anxiety and worry—What does the Bible say? Answer
Prophecy
PROPHECY and the Bible
PROPHECY—Is there valid prophetic evidence that the Bible is God’s Word? Answer
FALSE PROPHETS—Nostradamus, did he predict the bombing of the Twin Towers in New York? Answer
Apocalypse
Book of Revelation
Divine judgment
Judgments of God
Death in the Bible
Final judgment
Noah’s Ark
Noah
Ark
Deluge/Flood
Did Noah take dinosaurs on the Ark? Answer
Has anyone discovered Noah’s Ark? Answer
Read our illustrated story of Noah and the Ark—GO…
Learn much more about Noah’s Ark and the Flood, in our special section on the Flood—GO…
God and His plan
What will the biblical Millennium be like? Answer
How can we know there’s a God? Answer
What if the cosmos is all that there is? Answer
Discover God’s promise for all people—told beautifully and clearly from the beginning. Discover The HOPE! Watch it on Christian Answers—full-length motion picture.
Why is the world the way it is? If God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and loving, would He really create a world like this? (filled with oppression, suffering, death and cruelty) Answer
Do you understand God’s Story? Take a multimedia journey through the Bible, from Creation to eternity. Hear and read an exciting summary of the Bible’s most important records, in chronological order.
Why does God allow innocent people to suffer? Answer
What about the issue of suffering? Doesn’t this prove that there is no God and that we are on our own? Answer
ORIGIN OF BAD—How did bad things come about? Answer
Miscellaneous
Learn about archeology and the Bible
What do Hollywood celebrities believe about spiritual issues? Find out
Featuring | John Cusack … Jackson Curtis Amanda Peet … Kate Curtis Chiwetel Ejiofor … Adrian Helmsley Danny Glover … President Thomas Wilson Thandiwe Newton … Laura Wilson Oliver Platt … Carl Anheuser Tom McCarthy … Gordon Silberman Woody Harrelson … Charlie Frost Morgan Lily … Lilly Curtis George Segal … Tony Delgatto John Billingsley … Professor West See all» |
Director | Roland Emmerich — “Independence Day,” “The Day After Tomorrow” |
Producer | Centropolis Entertainment Farewell Productions See all» |
Distributor | Columbia Pictures, a division of Sony Pictures |
I must admit, I have had a time figuring out which “angle” to take concerning this review.
Do I attack it from the point of view that “2012” has caused a renewed belief and subsequent panic over human life as we know it ceasing to exist on December 12, 2012. Should I spend paragraphs disputing that view and state the fact it just is not true and that the Mayan calendar never did predict the now much touted end of the world?
The Mayan calendar, although exact in its calculations for a civilization of its time did not predict the end of the world.
In fact, the Maya themselves did not equate the date with the end of the world, and in their writings predicted events they said would take place long after it.
Should I instead report what a stunning CGI visual effects movie this is and how rip-roaring fun it is to sit in your seat and feel as though you’re on the most epic thrill ride ever? That the acting is top notch and that all 2 hours and 38 minutes of it were never boring, and even, although at times frightening, fun to watch. Shall I tell you the truth of the matter which is that “2012,” a film by serial-doomsayer/director Roland Emmerich who previously assaulted Earth with aliens in “Independence Day” and global warming in “The Day After Tomorrow,” has admitted that he originally intended “2012” to be a take on every disaster movie of the past 40 years.
So, “2012” started out as an idea for a parody in the mind of Mr. Emmerich and is although at times dramatic and sincere in its delivery, a product of one man’s very creative imagination, and never intended to be taken literally.
“We’re pattern-seeking primates,” says science historian Michael Shermer, founder of the Skeptics Society.
“We look for patterns to connect A to B. And often A really is connected to B and B really is connected to C. The problem is we don’t have a baloney detection module in our brain to help us tell the true from the false patterns.”
What about the real scientific angle? NASA has even found it necessary to post a notice on their site because of the amount of questions posed from concerned people the world over.
NASA expert Dr. James Garvin says,
“We see absolutely no scientific evidence, no sign of any doomsday gloom or anything coming in 2012. We’re well aware of the kind of threats that the movie depicts, but there’s no possibility of those happening at the time.”
Since I am a Christian and have tried my best to catch the Christian aspect concerning the subject matter of this film, I must relate the very real message, and that is there will be an end to our world and to humankind as we know it because God says it is so.
Jesus Christ will return to call his people home before the beginning of a period of turmoil on Earth called the Tribulation. Believers will rise into the sky in a phenomenon known as the Rapture.
At an online Rapture Index, Terry James tracks world events for signs that the end is nigh. He says the site gets 13 million hits per month, a number that he expects will grow with interest about the movie “2012.”
As a Christian, he doesn’t hold with Mayan prophecy. But he says the current fascination may be serving God’s purpose.
“Even in the secular world, people are sensing that something is up,” he says. “At least there is a sense out there that things are boiling in that direction, and you at least want to know what it’s about.
Therefore, it plays into God’s hands, the way I look at it.”
As action movies go, “2012” delivers 100 per cent, but as a real account of what is to be, it’s a brilliant piece of fluff. If you want the real goods folks, go to your Bible. Within its pages (the complete book of Revelation as well as much of Daniel) is the true and terrifying factual accounting of where we are headed and the times of the end. The film is focused in on the ‘man saves man’ theme, when in all truth the real deal is ‘God saves man.’
In the movie “2012” main character Jackson Curtis (John Cusack), a writer and divorced father of two, is thrust into the overwhelming responsibility of not only keeping his ex-wife (Amanda Peet), children and friends from harm, but finding his own life’s worth under the weight of devastating uncontrollable natural disasters.
President Thomas Wilson (Danny Glover) and his daughter Laura (Thandiwe Newton) shoulder the emotional pressure of caring for a nation of people who have little or no hope of survival. While, at the same time, it is the determined responsibility of White House Chief of Staff Carl Anheuser (Oliver Platt) to make certain only the elite of the human race survive, at any cost.
Presidential scientific adviser Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) struggles to fight for the lives of all human kind to survive, no matter how unworthy they are considered to be by a dogged and unfeeling government.
We follow all of these characters starting out in unrelated points of the story until they converge in the climactic closing scenes to mesh together and save the survivors of the human race as we know it.
The message is, for the most part, humankind does not cause the fate of the human race, but that it is a complex set of natural disasters that we cannot and never will be able to control. Global warming or the aspect of a random meteor hurtling towards Earth is never mentioned. Instead, “2012” deals with how we deal with the events, and, as human beings, how we survive them, as its focus.
What would you do? Who would you call, what would you say to your loved ones, if, in fact, you were certain the end was near?
Not wanting to post any spoilers, I will keep the basic story description at a minimum and ask you to prayerfully buy your ticket and not take it seriously, as this is a movie perhaps inspired by a frenzy of end times predictions, but never to be considered factual. I leave you to the Word of God for the facts.
“2012” is rated PG-13, and I believe that to be accurate. No child under 13 should go if they are unable to distinguish between reality and movie magic. Although not much blood is shown, there are extremely real and terrifying images of cataclysmic disaster and devastation. No humans are ever shown up close being pulverized or crushed, except for a closing scene where a character’s foot is being crushed in a hydraulic wheel. As this is a disaster movie, there is no doubting millions of human beings are being killed on a massive scale—with natural disasters such as earthquakes, tidal waves and tsunamis as well as fire-breathing volcanic eruptions. The images can be overpowering at times, even for adults, so I cannot stress enough that parents use extreme caution when considering taking young children to see this film.
There are various profanities in this film—G_damn (6), misuses of “God” (about 14), “Jesus” or “Christ” (3), hell (11), sh_t (6), ass (2), f-word (1). The ‘finger’ is given to one character from another. Although no sex is shown, it is referred that one character has a mistress and that the main character is divorced and his ex-wife is living with another man. In the end, the main character reconciles with his ex-wife and the family is shown in a loving way and is re-united.
There is a definite struggle between what is right and what is wrong, as far as the way we treat one another as human beings. There is a decision that the writers want you to make within your own mind and heart. The final conclusion we are to come to—do the strong and rich survive or do we embrace all peoples of all walks of life, of all faiths, and save every last man, woman and child no matter what the cost? Are saving material things more important than the rescue of all human life? Do we, in the end, embrace every human life as apposed to rescuing only those whom we consider the intelligent elite of the species?
The character of the scientist asks the leaders of the world to consider their selfish acts in regards to their new beginning. He states, “Lets not start our future by an act of cruelty,” as the leaders of Earth in their zeal to protect only the intelligent and rich to propagate the species, are blinded to the fact they are leaving behind thousands of innocent people.
I was very pleased by the fact that, although in the beginning a hint was made that Christians who foretold of apocalyptic end times prophecies were not to be taken seriously, it was evident in the end that we were right after all.
I was impressed that ethics and Christian-type values were dealt with in a respectful manner in the end. The gospel of the Lord Jesus was referred to as stated that those who are saved “have nothing to fear.” Another character says “Make your peace with God first, then your soul will have its rest.” A man was shown telling another not to loose his faith. People were reported to be in desperate prayer. There were many scenes of people gathered together in prayer and in churches. The President of the United States was shown giving a final statement to his people and the world, where he recited the 23rd Psalm. He, also, was shown praying in the chapel before he went out to stand with the people of the United States and aid them in their despair. He stated he would “…stay behind and trust Jesus in prayer with the people.”
As the story deals with all peoples all over the world, it is expected that all faiths are shown, as the peoples of Earth deal with their eminent demise under many different religions. I believe it is done tastefully and no one religion is being pushed upon the audience as the best. On the other hand, being a Christian, I was very disappointed that in the end, after so many encouraging comments about God that He was not depicted as the final strength for humankind, but instead man was shown as the saver of his own soul.
One of the final scenes showed a depiction of the Sistine Chapel and a crack going down the painting by Michelangelo splitting the fingers of Adam touching that of God’s. To me, at least, it sent the message that God was not there, and I believe just the opposite, that our God is the crafter of the beginning of humankind and, also, will be there at the end of all he has created. Also, the hint was that scientific means will eventually save mankind from extinction, when it is clearly stated in Scripture that God is in control of all events and that man can and will never be in control over his destiny. These two messages clearly send a false hope to any non-believer watching this film and who takes it seriously.
“2012,” also, shows that man will know the time of the end and will deal with it using his military, constructural, governmental and intellectual strength to save himself. Jesus has already told us that no man, not even the Son, knows the time or day of the end. Instead, Jesus instructs us to take note of the signs of the end and to do that which is right to save our immortal souls. Jesus did not tell us to watch the Mayan calendar, He instead reminds us to be always looking up and to Believe in the Son, John 3:16.
He tells us that as little children are, so must we be, in order to enter the Kingdom. This may sound trivial or too simplistic a concept, but if one thinks about it, children have no pre-conceived ideas about others. They see no race or age, no intelligence or power in another person, no want, as apposed to material wealth. A child sees you for who you are, and Jesus urges us to be the same, for this is where all love has its beginnings. This is where man started, and this is where he’ll end up in Heaven at the end of days.
Okay, looks like I have wound up stating what needs to be said about “2012.” I have found my angle, after all. It is no matter what calendar or new world prophecy dictates, we all are to trust in His Word over the end of days and take comfort in the fact God has our times, beginnings and endings, in His benevolent Hands. Therefore, go into this film with your eyes open, your Christian knowledge intact, and your mind fixed upon the things stated as fact in The unquestionable Word of God.
There are many Scriptures about the end times signs and how we are to respond to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Word equates Christ to a groom coming for the Bride, which is symbolic of the church. As a bride awaiting the wedding day, so we should wait with great anticipation, watching for any indication that the time is near.
Because we have been given many signs, Christ fully intended for us to be alert and aware for many different reasons.
“Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness” (2 Peter 3:11).
We are to be looking forward to the promise of a new heaven and Earth and not enjoying the empty material pleasures of this Earth.
“Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless” (2 Peter 3:14).
Knowing that the end of time draws near should also serve to remind us to live a holy life, knowing that at any moment we will meet or precious Savior, face to face.
Violence: Heavy / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Minor
See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.
- Positive
- Neutral
- Negative
- Young people
- Non-viewer comments
Positive
Positive—“2012” is pure popcorn fare. The CG is phenomenal while the story is average, and the science is half pseudo intrigue. While the film does adheres to one particular Mayan Calendar, as a follower of Jesus and reading of the Bible, God had specifically stated that the world will not be flooded again but with fire. Over all, “2012” delivers a fun and visually gratifying destructive forces all around the world, mostly in California, the theme about saving not only oneself for the goodness of all mankind, but to save as many as possible is like the cliché that a beauty pageant contestant wants world peace.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Mang Yang, age 37 (USA)
Positive—I took my 9½ year old son, we have seen all the disaster films “all,” repeat… ALL. and he is well are of the difference between real and film. We both appreciate great action/thriller and superb CGI. (We were watching “Jurassic Park” together when he was 3). This film was better than average, even “GOOD,” maybe even “GREAT”!
I love the action, the suspense and the cliff-hangers. Yes, there was a few instances of using the Lord Jesus name in vain, what PG13 hasn’t done this, it only reinforces the power in His name that Hollywood HAS TO cast this into the script “every time”! The presz does kneel in prayer in church, and does recite the 23 Psalm (cut-off by lost TV reception) and there are numerous reflections on faith, on human compassion and the “true meaning” of life.
All in all, I have to say… films are suppose to be made to entertain, this film delivers… big time. Like a ride at Disneyland at times, thrilling, intense and fun! Only take kids with a full understanding of “fiction in film making,” it is intense! Most adults should get a real kick out of this, really!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Good / Moviemaking quality: 4½
Mike, age 46 (USA)
Positive—This was a very intensified movie! The special effects were great! I really enjoyed the movie! There was cussing throughout the movie. NOT a movie for children! However, I question how Hollywood came up with the idea for the ending (unless they are just running out of ideas for movies)? ***BEGIN SPOILER*** The movie is basically a 21st century Noah’s Ark story. I thought that was very interesting. Nevertheless, it was good! ***END OF SPOILER***
One negative thing about this movie is the references to fake boobs. Why does it seem in every movie (no matter the rating), there has to be references to woman’s anatomy? I don’t get it …there was no point in that being in the movie. There never is! I do recommend this movie! A lot of action and the hope for mankind!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Leslie, age 27 (USA)
Positive—In viewing the thoroughly entertaining film 2012 several themes emerged which are worth considering. One major theme is the way those with power (White House Chief of Staff portrayed by Oliver Platt) along with the heads of state of many (mostly European) nations selected who was to be saved from the coming destruction of the Earth, and how their human plan did not exactly work out. They thought they had the best plan and even some were assassinated for not keeping this plan a secret, but in the characters of John Cusack and his family we saw that others were, through many apparently chance events, selected to be a part of the group who would survive and repopulate the new Earth once the devastation subsided.
I appreciated the theme of “an afterlife” coming through consistently as many, though not all of the main characters, expressed a belief that there is a life to come (President Wilson, Anheuser the Chief of Staff, Italian Prime Minister to name a few). The value of “humanity” or fighting for the lives of others vs. falling into the cruelty of ignoring the cries of those perishing around you came through in the way those with the power of deciding this chose well in the end.
To me the film had a very positive view of humanity in that we would fight for one another and help each other (as John Cusack’s character’s book concluded)if faced with world-wide destruction. The film definitely brought to the minds of its viewers how one would face such a situation as the natural destruction of the Earth and hopefully we all walked away knowing in our hearts that this life is not the only life we’ll have but there is a place in heaven for each one of us who believes that Jesus Christ has suffered to share it with all of us who accept what He has done for us!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Good / Moviemaking quality: 4½
Elizabeth Bartee, age 46 (USA)
Positive—Let’s state the obvious. 1) Man won’t know when the end will come, for Jesus will come like a thief in the night. 2) The world will end by fire not by water. This movie could be viewed as secular environmentalist propaganda, or what it is: a movie. The CG is sick, and script will make you sick, and the acting, well… I can’t say much because of how hard it is to act and pull things off. I have yet to understand why Hollywood is so focused on recreating a modern version of Noah’s flood. Anyway, all this to say, this was a great movie.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Very Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3½
Matt, age 25 (USA)
Positive—I saw this movie with my family, including my father, husband and his two sons (16 and 14). It’s a great movie for all ages! It’s entertaining to someone who isn’t a football fan and all the more meaningful to someone who is. The themes of grace and love are really powerful. The movie takes on issues of race, poverty, motherhood and what makes a family. The idea of bringing someone into your home, life and heart are not sugar-coated and while a movie can not talk about all of the ups and downs, it’s a fairly honest look. We all loved this movie and would like to go see it again in the theater!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Good / Moviemaking quality: 4
J Sargent, age 36 (USA)
Positive—An excellent movie on many counts. Agreed with the reviewer that it showed Christians in a good light, as well as highlighting the good side of humanity and the importance of being a good person. I saw this twice, once with my husband and once with my daughter, and enjoyed it immensely both times. Definitely worth the price of a ticket. The special effects were amazing and intense!
Wouldn’t recommend it for little kids that might be scared by the implications, but adults can handle it, presumably. If you’ve made your peace with God, you have nothing to fear!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Excellent! / Moviemaking quality: 5
Alex, age 39 (USA)
Positive—In addition to others here who have mentioned the graphics (excellent) and story lines (tough to take), I do want to bring up a couple things about the symbolic meanings of some of the scenes and dialog—they’re easy to miss, but nevertheless there.
***SPOILERS*** Interestingly, when Washington DC is hit by the wave, it brings in with it a US naval aircraft carrier that literally wipes out the Capitol building: Was this a clever way to “cameo” the writers’ belief that the US military has played/will play a great role in the self-destruction of the USA and its world reputation? Maybe, maybe not, but it did present quite a graphic that could be open for that interpretation.
And another, although on the surface it seems rather innocuous and is actually very humane, is the “save all” concept of the large steel arks that were built to save only a handful of “selected” persons to carry on after the disaster. While hordes of people are clamoring to be let on board, but denied, arguments ensue among the leaders to change the plan from exclusivity to “all inclusive that could make it on board”. This seems loving and kind enough (it is), and in reality we probably would help all we could (and should) in such a situation, but I got a different take on this. I felt the writers may have been taking liberty to contend with an earlier and similar event (Noah and THAT ark), and sought to take issue with God’s decision the first time around to deny help to anyone but Noah and his family.
Now, this was not Noah’s idea but was God’s directive AND it was He who closed the door. I wonder if the writers were perplexed with that and thought they would show the “right” way to do it. The only problem we might run into here is that this movie and Noah have nothing in common regarding purpose and motive for the disaster.
This movie isn’t about God dealing with unrepentant and morally bankrupt mankind as in the days of Noah, but simply a worldwide disaster as a result of natural phenomena (the sun)—not because of an explicit purpose of God. Fortunately, the film does not even outright explore that concept. I may be missing the mark here in my take on the writers’ intentions, but they more than once portrayed those who prayed as dolts who were going to die in their religiousness. I don’t belittle the writers/director for these things, I only take note of them. The Creator will properly do His sorting in time, not me.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Cal, age 62 (USA)
Neutral
Neutral—Hello fellow film viewers, I saw “2012” opening night and was excited to see the special effects from the previews. First things first, there was crying children in the theater which leads me to say, that the theme of this film may be too strong for children (parents should explain the truth behind the end of the world, and that God is in control of what is to come) that being said; for teens and adults this movie is Okay. (Keep in mind some strong language is used, no sexual scenes.)
It is intense and keeps you at the edge of your seat. I teared and I laughed. There were good parts and sad parts and a few corny parts. However, overall the movie was Okay. The one very awesome thing was the special effects; they were impressive, but the film does show people by the masses being squished by monuments and taken under huge oceanic waves.
On a positive note the film does show the injustice and the goodness of humanity. It is definitely better to take all things into account before watching this film and talking to your family beforehand explaining to them this is not the end that God’s word says, (that is what my dad used to do for me, it helps to discern and discuss as a family). Other than my side notes the film is a sci-fi thriller and is super intense and a pretty Okay movie. Happy viewings!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 3½
Ami, age 25 (USA)
Neutral—The movie was just that, A MOVIE!! It was very entertaining if you think you are watching those 70s disaster films such as TOWERING INFERNO, EARTHWAKE and POSEIDON`S ADVENTURE all directed by Irwin Allen, some people complain toward the foul language or that is “not scriptural”, I will not enter into that particular discussion, you are in your own decision to avoid it or just simply watch it.
About this stuff toward the Mayan calendar, let me tell you that I always liked history, specially archeology, Mesoamerican cultures are fascinating. The Mayans, specially were great astronomers, despite we would be horrified by their pagan rituals like human sacrifices, very well depicted by Mel Gibson`s APOCALYPTO, but certainly this thing about the end of times is not accurate or what the Mayan believed; they were talking about the change of the ages because in their cosmovision, time was cyclical, in fact, they were the only culture who revered time as a divinity.
His calendar was divided into “Kines” (days), “tunes” (years) and “Baktuns” (ages) each “Baktun” lasts more than 400,000 years an,supposedly, this “Baktun” where we are now, ends coincidentally with our Gregorian calendar on Dec. 21 2012, that’s doesn’t mean the end of the World, simply a change but some people, especially New Age guys, thought that this is THE END OF ALL THINGS.
Remember what Christ said that “NObody knows the day and the hour, not even the son, only the Father,” the only thing that worries me is that there is lot of people who believe in this stuff and will commit suicide or hurt innocent people thinking that “the entropy has just begun.”
My Ratings: Moral rating: Good / Moviemaking quality: 4
Daniel, age 31 (Panama)
Neutral—The main problem I had with this film was the irreverence that particular characters had in the face of their likely demise. I can’t really fault this though since Revelation states that in the last days people will react similarly. There was a lot of good in the film, particularly the end. I found myself thinking, “The human race does not deserve to survive if it will cast away their less fortunate neighbors to save the elite and influential of the species!”
The core message of the film was fantastic, even if much of the scenery was gratuitous and needless. The core message of the film was about what really makes us human. And, I was pleasantly surprised that evolutionary philosophy was trumped at the end of the film. It was not about survival of the fittest, but about doing unto others. That was the film’s most worthy triumph. Not the special effects, and not the acting, but the outcome. Any film that presents the right of “All” humans to live has a great starting point.
Where 2012 failed was in it’s persistent irreverence to the Lord’s Name, which was far too much for me to justify calling this film a good one to watch.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 4½
Joel, age 36 (USA)
Neutral—This movie was not easy to write a comment on. However, this movie was certainly interesting to watch. The CGI graphics were unbelievable! I went with a Christian group on my campus to see this, and there were scenes where I just said, “Wow!”. Now granted, you cannot just base a movie on graphics. The plot itself, as the group and I agreed, was a little too thin and not fully developed. The language was uncalled for. I heard the “f” bomb, sh*t, you name it, it was there. Other questionable content was people being wiped out (I expected it in a disaster movie), even one scene where a man lost his leg.
No sexual inappropriateness, that I was aware of. Having said all this, I cannot recommend this film for younger viewers, period. There’s just too much destruction and chaos. As the reviewer said, you want a real, true story? Go to the books of Daniel and Revelation. My advice? Skip this movie.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 5
Alex, age 19 (USA)
Neutral—First, from a Biblical point of view, I must say that this movie was way off base. Of course we know that, from a Biblical point of view, the end of the world will not come until after Christ has reigned on Earth for one thousand years.
Secondly we know that when God does destroy the Earth the second time, it will be by fire, not by the Earth’s crust shifting, and by water.
Thirdly, The Biblical account of the Ark was given as a picture of true salvation. Only those who believed God were saved… Only those who were in the Ark (a picture of being in Christ), were saved, and those who did not believe, and who were on the outside, could not be saved. Yet this movie, using “Arks” as a means of salvation, turned the picture completely around. The rich could by their salvation, some who were in the “Ark” still died, and the doors were open after being closed to receive more people. This twist the Biblical view completely around.
However, I do not believe the movie was produced to present any type of Biblical view. It was created for the entertainment value alone. Sadly, viewing the movie from a purely entertainment viewpoint, it still fail short. The graphics were poorly done, the action scenes were not believable, and the acting was poor at best. So, in closing, I must say that the movie had a lot to be desired, from a Biblical viewpoint, and from an entertainment viewpoint. On a positive note, I will add that the language was clean (I think I remember one bad word), and there were no immodest scenes. If it were not for the bad acting, and bad graphics, I would probably recommend it.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 2
Evangelist Paul Dodson, age 50 (USA)
Neutral—I gave this movie a 3½, mostly because the effects are awesome and spot on with physics. The score also reflects the lack of character sympathy. The characters are in a word predictable. The mom is unsympathetic. Her kids are rude and the bio dad is a flake. And of course the tired old ending of everyone is happy with one another through a world at an end trauma. Okay some entertainment fair….it was a fun movie in a roller coaster type of feel. However, the use of Jesus Christ as a swear word and God D**n used on two separate occasions for a PG-13 pulled me out of what story there was. If I had know this I would not have gone. The sadder point is for most of those involved in Christianism do not find this a problem.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3½
Windfield, age 56 (USA)
Negative
Negative—The movie “2012” is definitely not for children. This movie blasphemes the Lord’s name numerous times and uses foul language. This movie promotes belief of man’s determination of when the end will come versus what the Lord said. Only God the Father knows when the world will end and no one else. Yes, the computer graphics were good but certainly a waste of time and money. There were no comments on this movie prior to my seeing it, and I made it my objective to provide comments to warn Christians of this offensive move. If any good thing would come out, I pray many will seek the truth and turn to Jesus Christ as their savior and find out what life is all about. Definitely not for weak Christians and not for anyone under 18 years of age. This movie will deceive many that are weak in the word of the Lord.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 1
Michael, age 51 (USA)
Negative—I have to admit, I really wanted to see this movie. Although I am a strong christian, I find all of the 2012 research interesting. I also have to admit that this was one of the worst movies I have seen in a long time. The story was weak, the acting only so-so, and everything that happened was cliché. Except for the special effects, which were pretty awesome, this movie had very little redeeming value. It was also just another example of Hollywood thinking that all we do is walk around and cuss at each other. The Lord’s name was taken in vain 5 times in the movie, which makes it unacceptable. I just don’t understand why Hollywood and moviegoers seem to think that is OK. I mean, they are only breaking one of the 10, right? But, until Christians stand up and say enough, they will continue to erode our beliefs. Again, I would rate this movie an overall D-.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3
Gary, age 47 (USA)
Negative—…“2012” is just another failed attempt by the left to indoctrinate the country with it’s liberal propaganda. No, the world will not end on December 21, 2012. The whole calendar is based on the Mayan Civilization. The only reason the calendar stopped on that date is because the Mayans were wiped out by an enemy civilization before they could continue the calendar. The whole idea that the world will end in 2012 is just a hilarious joke. They should have cast Al Gore in this movie. Hollywood has grown so politically correct… it is just laughable. There is just a plane wreck, then a boat wreck, then a car wreck. What is this movie trying to say? When the world ends, then all these accidents occur and then the woolly mammoth returns!? Geez… Here is a movie that is dopey, cheesy, and downright silly, but it’s a disaster movie, and it is supposed to be ridiculous, but not this ridiculous.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 1½
Jonathan Tran, age 25 (USA)
Neutral—Okay, I’m writing this as I’m watching the film… I’m a little over an hour in and I must say, I’m SHOCKED. This movie fails to deliver anything enjoyable. The plot is beyond predictable. The acting is that which you find in a soap opera, the graphics leave the viewer wanting, and overall there are FAR too many “close call” scenes that make it way too cheesy for my taste. I guess after all the hype, I was anticipating something superb, but this falls FLAT. I’m debating whether I even want to finish watching this.
On the plus side, there isn’t any sexual content, from what I remember, not much if any foul language, and aside from lots of CG explosions, there hasn’t been any violence. There is talk about “death tolls” and scenes of people rioting after an earthquake, but ultimately nothing offensive. All in all, I cannot suggest this to anyone, mainly because I’m bored out of my mind and hate to see anyone else in this situation.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 2½
Angelica, age 25 (USA)
Comments from young people
Neutral—The thing that I was most disappointed with in this movie was how unlikable all of the characters were. There weren’t many that made any sort of emotional connection. But if you go in with a blank mind and not expecting anything, you’ll probably enjoy it for what it is.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 3
Joel Dugard, age 17 (Canada)
Neutral—I was soooo excited to see this movie, and I went to see it with my parents and little brother, and I was kinda disappointed with it. within maybe the first half hour/ hour or so, when during the first major earthquake, as Jackson is trying to get his family in the car the f-bomb is dropped. that did take me by surprise. Then he uses the g** d*** word about 6 times throughout the movie. I had asked my parents if we could leave, but we didn’t which wasn’t so bad because they seem to calm down with the language somewhat. and also in the beginning the ex-wife’s boyfriend makes some comments like “let’s make a baby” and “women pay me thousands of dollars to handle their boobs but you get it for free” which where comments not needed for shopping in the supermarket.
For me, it was a love-hate movie, some parts I liked and others (such as taking Gods name in vain) not so much. but if you like somewhat cheesy disaster movies then you’ll love this movie (its like they took like 5 or 6 disaster films and combined them).
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 4
Georgette , age 16 (USA)
Positive—While “2012” is DEFINITELY not a movie for children (as all sensible adults should know from the “PG-13” rating), the film-making quality is high. There are several laughable scenes, and the action is stimulating. This is, however, a very standard disaster movie. It’s important to remember while watching this movie that God will never again flood the Earth. (Read your Bibles) The entertainment and moral values were quite high, by today’s standards. I highly recommend this movie, within reason.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 4½
Ethan Stroup, age 17 (USA)
Positive—This movie is awesome!!!… It had a few swear words, but I could hardly hear them. “2012” is a movie for about my age and up. It was very intense and not for small children, but it is great for older children. It was partly about people saving others with their own lives at risk. WATCH THIS MOVIE.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Joshua T, age 12 (USA)
Positive—This movie was wonderful. It makes you think about your life and others. It makes you realize how much there is to be thankful for. This movie shows that God blesses you so that you can bless others. This movie did have a few offensive words, but it was a overall wonderful movie.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 4½
TK, age teenager (USA)
Neutral—First of all, this movie had amazing graphics. There is some strong cursing. There are intense situations and some action. There was no real violence between people, but there is some disturbing parts like some one getting crushed by gears of a machine. I would recommend this movie to preteens and up. Overall, this is a must see movie, just don’t bring the small children.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Matt, A, age 11 (USA)
Positive—I went to go see “2012” with my older sister yesterday, and was really pleased with the movie. The graphics were amazing! There was only a little bit of profanity and there was no sexual content. The violence was pretty heavy, as to be expected, but not over the top. I think that this movie would be great for people my age and up.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Michelle, age 13 (USA)
Neutral—When I walked into the theater to see “2012” I was expecting a suspenseful science fiction film with great special effects. I wasn’t expecting this movie to win an Oscar for best picture or anything but to tell you the truth, I was kind of disappointed in this movie. I got the great special effects part but I really didn’t think it was suspenseful.
This movie was kind of like “Transformers 2” in a way because the both featured great special effects but a pretty bad storyline. This movie also featured some of the most annoying kids on the planet. The girl always screamed, “Daddy!” or “Mommy” and didn’t do anything else in the movie besides scream. The acting of the movie wasn’t that great either. You may have noticed that I put a better than average rating on here.
I know many of you who are reading this are offended of this because the whole “the world will end in 2012” thing is what the Mayans believe and as we all know, the world WILL NOT end in 2012 because in the bible it says that nobody in the world knows when it will be. But this isn’t supposed to be focusing on real life, it supposed to be a movie which is a lot different than real life, so don’t be worries by that part of the movie.
Although, if you are sensitive to a bunch of action, I suggest you skip this one and go see “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” or “Where the Wild Things Are.” The action in here involves, skyscrapers fall on each other, people fall into earthquakes, etc. The movie never shows really any violence except you see a dead body and somebody’s foot gets crushed in the ark’s engine.
I think the main reason, this movie was rating PG-13 because of the language. I have seen a lot of movies with more cussing in it but this one could get pretty bad at times. For example, a characters says the F-bomb once, many characters say, “Get your a-s off there” and “What the h-ll” many times during the movie and also a girl sticks her middle finger up at somebody at the end of the movie. You may not believe me but there is a part in the movie where you will notice the writers wrote something biblical in this movie, that’s a major part in it.
For one, ***MAJOR SPIOLER BEGINS*** the survivors of the movie find the way to escape is in a big ark. Ummm, I wonder where that came from?
***END MAJOR SPOILER***
Now is the part, you all have been waiting for. Did I like this movie or did I not. Well, overall I thought it was OK. I think I was way too long (2 hours and 38 minutes and plus twenty five minutes of previews make your butt hurt), the acting wasn’t very good and the story was flat. But I gave it some grace because the special effects were just too amazing to give it a low rating but you have to keep in mind, that the movie wasn’t very good. Would I see it again? Probably not but if it was on TV, I would.
And now for the final question, Would I recommend it to anyone? The truth is no. It was just too long and the story was really bad. If you want to see a good end of the world movie, I recommend you see “Knowing” or “The Day After Tomorrow.”
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I wouldn’t bring anybody under the age of eleven to see this movie because they may get scared.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 2½
Langston, age 12 (USA)
Positive—This movie is made great. The stunts and special effects are great. There are a few curse words. It’s not anything that a kid hasn’t heard. So people shouldn’t make a big deal about it. The violence is heavy but that is expected in this kind of movie. I know nobody knows when the world ends, only God knows. If you want a entertaining and good movie. You should see this one.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Olivia, age 13 (USA)
Positive—This is one of my favorite movies of all time. the suspense and action and special effects are awesome!!!… but there are a few sh*ts 1 f*ck and hell and God d*mn. I do not believe in the 2012 stuff as far as the world ending and all that. but overall an awesome movie!!!…
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 5
Jacob Atkinson, age 14 (USA)
Negative—Despite it’s large budget, big stars and lavish effects, this movie felt like nothing more than a philosophical muddle. The only emotion I felt in this film was boredom, as I dealt with cardboard cut out characters, hypocritical preaching, and a script that doesn’t know when to say “just wrap it up”. For all his ambitions, Cameron CANNOT write a script, as the tone is uneven, characters are severely underdeveloped with a lack of dimension, and pointless scenes drag on for so long that it makes the 50 minute-long spectacle feel boring.
Sam Worthington, the best part of Terminator Salvation, along with Zoe Saldana, work at their best with the weak material, but at most points, Cameron’s material is beyond fixing. The main thing most blockbuster directors realize is that their ideals are visual and are smart enough to specialize in directing their ideas, while hiring someone who knows how to write a script with some form of coherence and emotion. Ridley Scott regularly does this, while films like Star Trek and Watchmen were improved largely by their scripting, a very important element.
Even as Worthington and Saldana push through, the dialog is only basic in vocabulary level, and true drama is limited to melodramatic “fixins” to wrap the film up. I am by no means a conservative, but I still believe if you say something, you should actually back it up. Opposing capitalism is not a bad thing in and of itself, but when the film was clearly designed to be a capitalist goldmine (why else would the studio waste so much money?), and Cameron has shown himself to be quite excessive in nature if you look at some of his public records.
The film’s pseudo-humanitarian message is also laced with a bit of viciousness and possible racism. The viciousness relates to the lives of regular humans (not just military, but the film clarifies as humans in general) been thrown around like candy, without concern on the other side for the families of the specific person or thinking of actual motives beyond “this land is my land”. Yes, it was wrong for them to have their land taken, but is slaying hundreds of humans and widely condemning the human race any better? The possible racism relates to a fairly major part of the plot.
The Na’vi’s are shown to be drifting in their ways and out of touch, until the white man “Jake” shows up, perhaps echoing Cameron’s possible viewpoints that the Indians weren’t independent, intelligent, humane people until white men showed them the way. It is also shown in the final battle, that without Jake, the Na’vi are absolutely hopeless.
Violence is basic action violence, and largely bloodless. After a combination of boredom and loads of gunshots, you’ll become desensitized by it and not be disturbed. Language is basic PG-13, way less than what I hear from my brother. Nudity is non sexual in nature and a scene of lovemaking is implied. It’s content on the surface is pretty mild, but it’s messages seem to be pretty despicable in nature and regardless of your own interpretations, it’s hard to argue about the film’s problematic scripting and direction.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 2
Jonathan Bennett, age 14 (USA)
Comments from non-viewers
I heard from a very, very reliable source that this movie is horrible. There’s a lot of cursing (by the way… When I say a lot, this is what I mean: 1 F-word, 1 obscene hand gesture, 6 scatological terms, 3 anatomical terms, 14 mild obscenities, two different instances have male adults pantomiming curse words, 7 religious profanities, and 13 religious exclamations… [Whew!]
I did watch a trailer and it looked great. But that’s before I found out about the cursing. Please, for you, for me, and most importantly for God, don’t watch this movie. The Bible says “don’t set any unclean thing before your eyes” (paraphrased!). It really disappointed me that I told a friend of mine that there was a lot of cursing in it, but yet they still went. As Christians, it’s almost like we’ve grown to these kinds of movies. When we were kids, and we heard a curse word, we cringed. But now, what do we do? We just sit there. We hopefully pick it up, but we still just sit there. We don’t turn the movie off, or run out of the theater. So, the next time you sit down to watch a movie on your sofa, or picking out a DVD at the rental store, or going to the ticket counter to see the next “big” thing, think and ask yourself… Would Jesus watch this?
Elizabeth, age 16 (USA)
It’s a sad day when Christians say a movie is excellent that blasphemes God, or would even go to see it. People should start boycotting these movies and demanding that Hollywood put stricter ratings on them for blaspheming and calling it a blasphemy rating. I praise you Elizabeth for standing up for God and not seeing this movie, may God bless you greatly. I will take a stand and not see it as well. This movie should remind Christians that God is coming soon, will you stand before him ashamed that you did not take a stand.
Pat, age 54 (USA)
Satan is a liar and counterfeiter in every way. In the review Terry James of Rapture Index was quoted as stating, “Therefore, it plays into God’s hands, the way I look at it.” I would like to believe that. However I see a movie like this playing into the devil’s hands. Satan, knowing that God desired relationship with mankind created all kinds of religions to confuse the minds of men. At times when a Christian tries to share the gospel they are mistaken for a Jehovah’s Witness or some other member of a cult. Satan uses these religions to confuse the unsaved when a true believer encounters them. In the same way I believe he will use this movie. I have already seen it happen. Start talking to the unsaved about the end times and the return of Jesus Christ and they might confuse what you are talking about with the things that are being taught through this secular movie.
The only good thing is that this is just another sign that our Lord’s return is near. The devil knows this also and he will stop at nothing to continue to lie and deceive the unsaved.
As God’s children we must fight in the Spirit against such lies from the enemy. We shouldn’t partake of such things. The reviewer above was correct in stating, “So, the next time you sit down to watch a movie on your sofa, or picking out a DVD at the rental store, or going to the ticket counter to see the next “big” thing, think and ask yourself… “would Jesus watch this?” I truly believe that our Lord wouldn’t sit through ANY secular movie even for a moment. Watching these movies is watching a world without God. If people ever pray in a movie they are praying to the god of secularism. Truly there is nothing of value in the movies today for the Christian who wants to walk closely with our Lord.
Michael, age 56 (USA)