Pilgrim's Progress: Journey to Heaven
Director: Danny R. CarralesStudio: Christiano Film Group
MPAA Rating: Unrated
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Running Time: 105 minutes
DVD Release: July 1st 2008
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DVD Review
Pilgrim's Progress; Journey to heaven is a modern adaptation of John Bunyon's beloved classic tale. Amazing visual effects, beautiful locations and a wonderful cast bring to life the story that has inspired each generation for hundreds of years. Follow Christian and his companies on the great journey from the City of Destruction to the gates of Heaven. Along the way, the pilgrims face obstacles large and small, man-made and demon-spawned. Beyond the gripping drama, Bunyon's powerful allegory teaches us the hazards and hopes of the Christian life, and the triumphant glory that awaits all who faithfully follow the King of Kings!
User Reviews
A way to learn - Rating: 5/5
This presentation is too real, with characters we all can identify with. A real eye opener.
Pilgrims Progress: Journey to Heaven - Rating: 5/5
I thought this movie was very good. Good effects. It definetly shows the journey that a christian can go through, especially in these times. But shows there will be a reward at the end of your journey through the grace of God. I enjoyed it very much. Good for older children.
Pilgrim's Progress: Journey to Heaven - Rating: 5/5
The is the best classic allegory that I have ever seen on the Christian life.
I bought two copies; one for myself and one for my brother.
Great DVD. Everyone ought to have a copy.
A real Christian movie - Rating: 5/5
I just recently watched Pilgrim's Progess: Journey to Heaven, and was completely satisfied with the experience. I would recomemend this movie to any Christian and/or fan of John Bunyan's classis story.
First of all, though the problems with the movie are few, I want to address them for the sake of giving an accurate review. The special effects are good (they don't look like a cheesy Saturday morning cartoon), but they are more like what you would see on a decent TV show than comparing with a Hollywood Blockbuster. That being said, the effects were well done. Also, as the director Danny Carrales correctly pointed out in a brief message on the DVD, not everything that is in the book has made it to the film. Like other movie adaptations, this one is only on Christian's story and does not address Christiana's travels (which was about half of John Bunyan's book), and some of Christian's story is shortened or ommited.
All that being said, the message of John Bunyan is faithfully conveyed in a powerful way. Granted that it takes a couple of minutes to get used to seeing the modern settings and clothing, but I don't see this a problem because Bunyan was writing to his contemporary audience, so making the message seem applicable to our lives is keeping with the spirit of the book. The acting was superb, and really served to help the viewer relate to the characters. The dialogue was strait and to the point and well-executed without feeling awkward. The cinematography was excelent in serving to ground the veiwer in place and mood. But what I thought the best part of the movie was is how it constantly hammers the Gospel Message from the start all the way through to the very end. I couldn't keep count of the times that the message of Salvation from sin through the Grace of Jesus Christ alone was clearly stated. This film did not pull any punches or gloss over the Gospel Message an any way, shape, or form.
A quick note to parents: this film is not rated, but it does have a couple violent parts in it (you may recall the battle with Apolyon) and some disturbing content (hell is suppose to be disturbing). This film would not get a rating higher than PG with the MPAA, but parents with younger or more sensitive children may want to preview the movie first.
Overall, I would have to say that as a longtime fan of John Bunyan's classic story, this is the first movie adaptation that satisfied. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a non-watered down Christian film as well as anyone who is not a Christian but is interested in what the true Message of Salvation is.
Rich content - poor production - Rating: 3/5
I was looking forward watching this movie since I am reading the book as well. The movie is pretty close to the content of the book...although many scenes from the book were left out. Although the overall content left you with the message, I was disappointed in the production itself. With todays technology the special effects were below standard and the acting was in many cases not believable. There were a lot of scenes that could have been better with more impact in both acting, cinematography and scenery.
