David might be one of the best projects from the Christian-based Angel Studios, mostly because it doesn’t feel like it’s trying to masquerade as a mainstream movie in Christ-bedazzled garb, unlike their previous picture. It’s an animated musical that mostly sticks to The Book of Samuel and is presented as though it would’ve been a follow-up to DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt. I’m sure a common praise for the picture among its base will be a return to the days when either religious epics were more common, animation had more musical numbers, and movies at the theater were bold enough to tell a Christian story. While I doubt David will inspire that level of resurgence, there’s a mildly refreshing quality that offers a more competent picture than the usual slapdash efforts of Christian productions, where the message takes precedence over quality.

If anything, the film tries a little too hard to match the exuberance of most mainstream animated movies, skating that line of being an exaggerated mess. I thought for sure I was going to grow tired of the shepherd David (Brandon Engman) and his overtly chipper demeanor when caring for his goats in between musical numbers. But the film thankfully doesn’t soften its corners too much, favoring drama as David struggles to protect a pregnant sheep from a pursuing predator. That dash of danger ensured that by the time David gets to his iconic showdown with Goliath, it won’t be a slapstick ordeal.

Similarly, the film doesn’t go easy on the depiction of Saul (Adam Michael Gold), the king of Israel, anointed by the prophet Samuel, but who has since lost his connection. There’s an existential dread that creeps into his mind about how he is losing his grip on this world and that his rule will be coming to an end. Thus, Saul’s favoring of the grown-up David (Phil Wickham) sours quickly when realizing the boy who slayed Goliath is destined to be king. Chaos ensues as David goes on the lam while keeping up his faith in God among his allies, his loyal friend Jonathan (Mark Jacobson), his cute sister Zeruiah, and his loving mother Nitzevet (Miri Mesika), who specializes in weaving and hitting high notes in songs while fleeing pursuing Israeli forces.

The most admirable quality of this depiction of the story of David is the animation. While the woodblock compositions amid the overly bouncy hair take some getting used to, the style works well for the story’s scope. There are several scenes of grand armies and vast landscapes, loaded with details strong enough to go sandal-to-sandal with most computer-animated productions. All of this works fairly well for a film that wants to dollop some light-hearted charm amid scenes of betrayals, spirituality, war, and protest. The musical numbers, while far from the earworm status of Disney’s heaviest of hitters, are pleasing enough for the ears, even if those many high notes are brief in their bravado.

Where the film runs into problems is how it prolongs its preaching, running dangerously close to two hours and growing thin on clever dialogue and songs to keep it going. A number of passages and songs about faith come off more like hollow declarations that run counter to the rest of the exchanges, as though the characters immediately dropped their scripted lines and switched gears to reading passages. This is where the story treats its portrayals of Israel and belief in God as more passively accepted than explored in greater depth. Although not treated as annoyingly ubiquitous as the deluge of watered-down Christian mush I’d been served on VHS in Sunday School, there are some sanded edges here that are hard to ignore. And for a film that is already gunning for the length of an epic, it would’ve been more compelling if it had delved a little deeper into belief rather than take the easy route of embracing the decent war drama and compelling character arcs of the original story. That said, it was mildly exciting to watch Jonathan march off into war against the Philistines and David attempt to stand up to the enslaving Amalekites.

David comes closer to being a more compelling Christian CGI film, but there are still a few cracks in this underdog picture’s animated slingshot. There’s some solid animation and decent (though brief) musical numbers that make this Biblical epic more appealing. Despite this, the pacing slogs and the tone teeters on the edge of trying too hard to be entertaining for the family. It’s still an enduring story of fighting against the odds that the kids dragged to this Christian cartoon won’t be bored with it.

Not available on any streaming platforms.

Source: