PILOT REVIEW: A.D. The Bible Continues

A.D. THE BIBLE CONTINUES

Starring: Richard Coyle, Vincent Regan, Adam Levy, Joanne Whalley, Jodhi May, Juan Pablo Di Pace, Chipo Chung, Babou Ceesay, Kevin Doyle, Ken Bones, Denver Isaac, Fraser Ayres, Johann Hakur Johannes, Pedro Lloyd Gardiner, with Greta Scacchi

Based on The Bible, Developed by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey
Written by Simon Block, Directed by Ciaran Donnelly

THE PREMISE: Picking up where History Channel's hugely successful mini-series The Bible left off, A.D. The Bible Continues starts with the crucifixion of Jesus (Juan Pablo Di Pace) and will continue with the first ten chapters of the book of Acts. Prominent biblical characters featured include Caiaphas (Richard Coyle), Pilate (Vincent Regan), Claudia, wife of Pilate (Joanne Whalley), Peter (Adam Levy), and Mary, mother of Jesus (Greta Scacchi).

THE GOOD: I never watched The Bible on the History Channel so I can't compare it to that but this show is very well produced. The scenery and costumes are magnificent and it really feels like we've been transported back to Biblical times. It felt more like a movie than a TV show from a cinematography perspective. While this story has been told countless times in media in many different ways, the storytelling here was solid and compelling. The performances were solid across the board, particularly Vincent Regan, Joanne Whalley, and Greta Scacchi. The crucifixion story told in the first episode was still powerful despite not being as graphic as something like The Passion of the Christ.

THE BAD: I could have done without the aerial shots as well as some of the slow motion moments. It felt like they were trying to be too dramatic as blood slowly splashed to the ground or we got an airplane view of Jerusalem. The production value was excellent and stands by itself without needing extra filming gimmicks. If you came to this show hoping to see a new twist or a new take on the story, you were probably disappointed. It was fairly faithful which may be seen as a good thing to some and a bad thing to others.

BOTTOM LINE: This is one of those shows that Christians will embrace and others probably won't see what the fuss is about. It is well done though and that should make a difference but it probably won't. Christians will see past any flaws and embrace it while non-Christians probably won't even give it a fair chance.