Highly Overrated But Still Good

From my favorite movies..

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This movie was disappointing in the sense that it was more about the guy's life experiences (and struggles) while writing his book than actually anything about the book itself. Seems like a PR stunt to me. I was expecting something that would at least go into the content of the book, maybe go into what he was feeling and experiencing. But then again it seems like he was more of just a 'medium' for this spiritual writings rather than actually having experienced anything spiritual worth showing/portraying. The movie makes what he ended up producing out of all of it somewhat of a side note, not particularly significant to the storyline. The Celestine Prophecy movie seemed more interesting than this, and that thing was really shallow/cliché in itself.

In actuality, the last line of the movie uttered by the lady is the most truthful one: she also had conversations with God, only that Neale's book confirms that. Why does she need confirmation? Because voices confuse our mind every day: the presidential candidates speak promise or lie, no clue. TV commercials are selling true or false hope, no idea. Media are creating voice and noise, either meaningful or meaningless. Only the conversations of God give us peace yet that's hard to get hold of.I do wonder why the production house dared to take such a box-office risk to shoot this film where plain and linear narration takes it all. However, anyway, no matter what, it is with us now, though we don't welcome it with wide open arms, we don't find it annoying and we don't drive it out. After all, in a world like the one we are now having, conversations with God do help clear up our troubled hearts and garbage-stuffed mind.Let's quiet down, listen to His voice and get Him right, at least this time.

If you've been wondering whether this movie accurately reflects the beloved book series, wonder no more. I can confirm it absolutely does...very effectively! I saw the movie last month (September 2006) at an advance screening in Minneapolis. Stephen Simon (producer/director) has artfully interwoven the message of the books with Neale Donald Walsch's story of homelessness, healing and unexpected acclaim. If that's enough to launch you in the direction of the nearest theater showing "CwG," you can stop right here. Or if you'd like to hear more, keep on reading.I'd never claim to be unbiased in my enthusiastic endorsement of this movie. Here's why: I met both Stephen and Neale during my years of working with WISDOM TV/Media Group (DISH Network, Ch. 264). I took an 8-week spiritual cinema telecourse from Stephen. And I worked a book signing for Neale after he wrote "Friendship with God." It was great to chat with both of them again in Minneapolis. As beings of compassion and integrity, Stephen and Neale just get better with the years. And I came home with a CD of the signature soundtrack (composed especially for the film by Emilio Kauderer) and an autographed copy of a beautiful coffee table book about the making of the movie (in Ashland, OR)."Conversations with God" is wonderfully entertaining, dramatically moving, and oh-so-uplifting! Getting lost in our heads (a great way to retreat from the edge of our comfort zone) won't serve us here, or do justice to the incredible gift of this movie. Giving our hearts (and our imaginations) permission to let Neale's story become our own, if only for the 109 minutes this movie takes, just might. It did for me. I love abstract ideas, and I'm sure a lot of you out there do too. In this case, let the art of the movie do its own communicating...there's no way it won't! The movie is fabulous in its cinematics and message.In his treatment of Neale's life story, Stephen also crafted a powerful cinematic statement about homelessness. It reflects Neale's real-life practice of compassion toward the homeless because of his own painful experience. (As Neale said to the audience after the screening, tongue-in-cheek, "You never know which next bestselling author you might be helping.") When Stephen asked Neale before production began what, in the end, his "CwG" experience had done for him, he replied, "It gave me back to myself." That this gift was a direct result of that down-and-out time in Neale's life is just one piece of the larger miracle. In case any of you remember Canadian actor Henry Czerny's name from the movie "Mission Impossible" (1996) or "Clear and Present Danger" (1994), his performance here as Neale is spectacular!When you see the movie, I think you'll love Stephen's sensitive use of special effects to portray "giving Neale back to himself." These days the term "special effects" often means the slam-bam, shock-and-awe images of action films. Here Stephen demonstrates how such techniques can create incredibly tender effects with a goal 180 degrees from that. Check out his Spiritual Cinema Circle websites at www.spiritualcinemacircle.com; www.spiritualcinemanetwork.com...and treat yourself to a special night out at the movies!Cheers, Mary

I saw a preview of this movie on Oct 22nd and very much enjoyed it.Except for the main character's fake beard which I also found distracting (see someone else's post on this), this was a good, thought-provoking film. The overall theme should resonate with people who feel there's more to our existence and for that matter, what God is, than what we've been taught to believe in church. Probably not a movie for the extreme religious zealots out there or atheists either.But, this is not some sort of exploitative, religious flick. You won't be hit over the head with a holier-than-thou guilt trip. And I'm not sure this or any other movie can change anyone's life either, as some may suggest. It is inspirational, though.I've never read the books, but the author truly believes what happened to him and the movie simply chronicles his story. This sort of movie is a good way of sharing such a story with lots of others and hopefully this one was not produced just to pocket more profits. I hope it is well-received and stays at the theaters for a long run.