This movie was very much hyped up on the internet and is a great story that could be told. So like many I looked forward to this with great enthusiasm. But after the wait I was really disappointed. In all fairness this was not a Lord of the Rings budget to get the best actors and best effects, but 'cheap' doesn't have to be nasty - just look at what Robert Rodriguez does on a low budget. A lot of Mormon families will claim this is a great film, but not all Mormons are brain-dead when it comes to films and their short comings.
So what made this film a poor story of the Book of Mormon?: Here are some reasons: 1) The actors seemed to look just like American tourists dressed up in 'authentic' period costumes, rather than people that would seem naturally to be from Israel. All their mannerisms just seemed to appear American no matter how hard they tried.
2) The costumes look very cheap and very false. The wardrobe or costume crew just don't seem to have realised the story telling power in just clothes alone. In one scene they have been in the desert for a period of time away from their homes, just you see them walking around with clean clothes that would pass any doorstep challenge for soap powder and their detergent would be a wonder product for P&G.
3) Continuity and scenes - There are some little things that make the story less believable. These are not things that cost anything, but by not doing them makes the film out to be funny where it should not. An example is that they reach the Promised Land after weeks at sea. However you see the family members walking on the beach after leaving their ship, out towards the horizon, but they are walking from the sea towards the land, but with perfectly dry clothes (not even their feet are wet).
OVERALL it would say this film made me laugh more than anything. All through the film it just seemed so ridiculous that we just seemed to laugh at everything. It seemed so poorly done that rather than keep it simple and let the excellent story tell itself, it seemed to be butchered and battered into shape with no real feel of a great film. If you want to get an insight into the Book of Mormon story, you are better off just reading the Book of Mormon itself. It will give you all the story without the 'cheese' and laughs caused by a poorly made film.
So what made this film a poor story of the Book of Mormon?: Here are some reasons: 1) The actors seemed to look just like American tourists dressed up in 'authentic' period costumes, rather than people that would seem naturally to be from Israel. All their mannerisms just seemed to appear American no matter how hard they tried.
2) The costumes look very cheap and very false. The wardrobe or costume crew just don't seem to have realised the story telling power in just clothes alone. In one scene they have been in the desert for a period of time away from their homes, just you see them walking around with clean clothes that would pass any doorstep challenge for soap powder and their detergent would be a wonder product for P&G.
3) Continuity and scenes - There are some little things that make the story less believable. These are not things that cost anything, but by not doing them makes the film out to be funny where it should not. An example is that they reach the Promised Land after weeks at sea. However you see the family members walking on the beach after leaving their ship, out towards the horizon, but they are walking from the sea towards the land, but with perfectly dry clothes (not even their feet are wet).
OVERALL it would say this film made me laugh more than anything. All through the film it just seemed so ridiculous that we just seemed to laugh at everything. It seemed so poorly done that rather than keep it simple and let the excellent story tell itself, it seemed to be butchered and battered into shape with no real feel of a great film. If you want to get an insight into the Book of Mormon story, you are better off just reading the Book of Mormon itself. It will give you all the story without the 'cheese' and laughs caused by a poorly made film.