Flood alert

Film review: Noah (12a)
Running time 138 minutes
Rating:***
If you want to identify the ultimate story which covers all the narrative bases and has every genre included then you couldn’t do better than look to that book that can be found in many a hotel bedside table – the Holy Bible. There’s mystery, thrills, life and death, torture and forgiveness, plus some cracking taglines for the more lowly cinema poster. I mean, who could do better than “In the beginning…”? The majority of the major events described in the Old and New Testaments – as well as writings in other faiths – have been portrayed cinematically over the years, many with breathtaking results that bring religious thoughts and teachings to life which, to this day, mould the thoughts and actions of billions of people round the globe. However one, Noah, and the destruction of a sinful world by the Almighty, hasn’t been tackled in recent times, even though end-of-the-world films have been all the rage over the last decade or so. But now Noah, starring Russell Crowe as the master ark builder, hits the screens, telling the story in a way that will delight some people of a religious turn of mind, and niggle those tending towards absolute scientific reasoning. Noah, along with his wife and three offspring (Jennifer Connelly, Logan Lerman, Douglas Booth and Leo McHugh Carroll) take to the ark along with two of everything, in order to survive the cleansing of the world by a God unhappy with all the sin in it. In the beginning, those inside the ark are reasonably content, apart from Noah, who becomes increasingly angry. Those still living in the world outside include some very nasty pieces of work, led by Ray Winstone, and so, when the water level starts to rise, there is the inevitable cry for swimming lessons and any kind of boat, and, failing that, how about letting us into the ark please? However Noah, being a man of absolutes, holds firmly to his own beliefs and even considers killing his own family, so uncertain is he as to what the Lord intended for them all. And so the story unfolds. Yet, despite such a notable storyline and the support of good actors and a top director (Darren Aronofsky), the film is faintly disappointing. There are some slick, but somehow inappropriate interpretations of disquieting sub-plots and then there are the special effects. Given the subject matter, these should be world-class, but are not. There has been much additional hype around the making of Noah prior and during its release, even down to the matter of where, and if, Crowe was going to meet the Pope in Rome. Set that aside, Noah is a good film which many will enjoy, but it could have been a great one.