Evan Almighty

This was, simply put, a bad movie. As a big fan of Steve Carell, I had high hopes, at least for his performance. Unfortunately, he could do nothing to save it. There were even times when I found him to be incredibly annoying. The pace is too fast, to the point where watching the beginning of the film is like seeing a montage of events that happened prior. There is little to no character development, especially for Evan's family. While the film is visually stunning, an overinflated budget cannot always save a film from a poor script, poor acting, and poor direction. Don't waste your time unless you're with children.

5/10

I don't understand all the negativity towards this movie, I loved it and thought it was just as good as Bruce Almighty (if anything, I think I may prefer it). It's creative, lighthearted, and overall a fun movie that I've watched several times!

I didn't expect much when I bought this film, actually I never even heard there was a sequel to the wonderful Bruce Almighty until I noticed the similar names while browsing in a shop, and I remembered the name Evan. How could anyone forget Evan Baxter from the first movie? His performance, although short, was fantastic, and the scene where Bruce was messing with him was very memorable.

I found Evan Almighty to be quite good, in contrast to some of the reviews here. I was very surprised to see this movie scoring at only 5.7 at the time of this review. Sure there were some cheesy scenes, Wanda Sykes' lines were hit and miss, Jonah Hill as Eugene was just... weird.... but those things don't detract from what is a solid movie with lots of laughter. The only thing I can think of is that Carrey fans would probably be disappointed, as there's less slapstick action but more subtle humor. This is because Steve Carell has a different style, so it's extremely unfair to compare him to Jim Carrey.

This is a family comedy with excellent morals. It should definitely be viewed with the entire family. I enjoyed the humor from Carell, I thought the character for him was spot-on and really gave him an opportunity to shine on the stage. Lauren Graham was decent, I thought she played a deeper character than in Bad Santa, but she was okay as the wife. Morgan Freeman was great as usual. The other characters all did well including John Goodman but Carell carried this movie. There are some surprises that some may find cheesy or too predictable, but the final scene was immense. It was definitely more powerful than any scene from Bruce Almighty.

So give Evan Almighty a chance, rent it at least. It's a nice movie that I really can't find any glaring faults that would turn someone off.

With a cast of hugely talented comedic actors like Steve Carell, Lauren Graham, John Goodman and Wanda Sykes, I was expecting a laugh out loud comedy. Sadly, Shadyac's 'Evan Almighty' only provides a few such moments. There just isn't enough comedy and at times it's a little too dramatic. Throughout the films, there are only but a very few dialogues that are funny as a result of which actors like Sykes and Graham don't have enough comedy to work with. Carell reprises his role from the prequel 'Bruce Almighty' but this time he's a little more of a nicer guy. Overall, Carell does a good job but he's more in the 'Little Miss Sunshine' mode which brings 'Evan Almighty' down a notch because that kind of character doesn't fully work for this kind of film and it is Shadyac to be blamed for not making something better of something decent. Yet, Carell's the only one who provides comic relief even though it's with limited quantity. His interaction with the animals are awesome to watch. Morgan Freeman is more cheerful and more annoying in this one. Lauren Graham plays the typical housewife and mother well and her reaction to Carell's transformation is excellent. In spite of all it's flaws, it is the last half hour that lifts the film. It builds up the drama and suspense very well and sort of has an adventurous feel. This entire sequence is very well executed. The soundtrack is well used and the songs are nice too. Thus, despite its shortcomings, it's still entertaining, but don't expect a laugh riot.

Steve Carell reprises his role as Evan Baxter in this sequel to Bruce Almighty.

Evan Almighty jumps right into the mix of things with little build up. Right off the bat we find out that news anchor Evan Baxter has segued his career into one of political aspirations. Soon after being elected to the United States Congress under a slogan painting him as a politician out to change the world, God (Morgan Freeman) commissions Baxter to build an ark in the midst of one of the worst droughts in the history of the area.

In a predictable move the area townspeople antagonize Baxter as he begins the construction of the ark. Baxter's reputation is further soiled by the fact that his political career is being looked as a joke when he starts wearing sack cloth on a regular basis, and animals of all kinds are following him around in pairs. Baxter's boss Congressman Long, who once supported him quickly, becomes the antagonist as the people begin to turn against Baxter.

Evan Almighty is predictable on every turn, and has enough humor to satisfy. The animals do their part to provide a fair share of fecal humor. Morgan Freeman offers up plenty of wisdom in the role of God. Steve Carell does an exceptionally adequate job of delivering very humorous dialogue, which in his style is sure to be adlibbed in great part. The sheer amounts of animals in this film are overwhelming and a treat to behold. Overall the storyline and humor feel very cliché. Evan Almighty was a mild success, but just does not offer anything special apart from a few good laughs. Parents with children will get their money's worth out of this, but for everyone else it is a worthwhile rental.