Review of Message, The

Introduction

The summary here, while being a simplistic summing up, is pretty much all there is to the film. Mohammad spreads the word according to God, and fights injustice, all the while preaching about one Supreme Being. This goes against the 300 Gods that are personified as idols in Mecca and threatens to usurp the existing barbaric rule, upsetting social order. Those that vilify Mohammad and his message will pay the ultimate price and there will be much bloodshed.

I`ve always taken a personal interest in films based on religion. Ever since Charlton Heston parted those waves in DeMille`s The Ten Commandments, I`ve been intrigued by filmmakers who get involved with interpreting a faith that several million follow. There`s the chance that several million will either hate it or like it, if they see it at all. Cynically I could say there`s cash to be made, but in the case of this film, it wasn`t made by Hollywood, but an independent that felt it was his duty to tell this story and use Hollywood production values to do so.

I won`t go into a theological debate about the authenticity of The Message since Islam is not something I`m not overly familiar with. I`m just here to watch the film. However this film does carry endorsements from scholars and historians of Islam as to being accurate so this must count for something. As such it`s an interesting point how Islamic tradition forbids any actual portrayal of the Prophet Mohammad in any form, as this offends against the spirituality of His message. The person of Mohammad is therefore not shown and means that we play the part in the first person as the cast look directly into camera and talk to us.

There are two versions here in this 2-disc set. Disc one houses the English language film with Anthony Quinn. Disc two is the Arabic version. For all intents and purposes, the films are the same except for casting and language. It was felt that an Arabic dub just wouldn`t cut it since the language really is different and no amount of work will make the lips synch. So there`s an Arabic cast and shooting takes place side-by-side with their English-speaking counterparts. As a result, this brings about a difference with the language bringing a slightly different intonation to various scenes. I don`t understand Arabic at all, but I did watch some of the Arabic film and I have to say that while it`s visually the same as the English one, it sounds better. The language sounds poetic and pleasing so it`s a shame there aren`t any subtitles.

I`ll review both films, though I`ll only look at the video/audio of the Arabic version since it doesn`t have any subtitles.

Video

English Language Film: Presented with a 2.35:1 letterbox transfer, it looks very good. However the lack of extra detail when zooming in is all too apparent. Why this is not anamorphic while the Arabic version is remains unresolved.

Arabic Film: Presented with a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer, it looks almost pristine. There were a few signs of compression creeping in but considering that the film runs for a whopping 203 minutes I`ll let it slide.

The desert doesn`t lend itself to vibrant colours though so you`ll have to be content with all shades of brown and the odd spicy colour chucked in for good measure.

Audio

There are two soundtracks to choose from for both films. There`s a choice of Dolby Digital 2.0 or 5.1 soundtracks and the difference is quite clear. 5.1 all the way for me. While there is some background hiss in the 5.1 track, the sheer clarity wins hands down. There`s not really any engagement of rear surrounds and everything is spread across the front. Dialogue is crisp from the centre and posed no problems (unless you count not understanding Arabic that is...)

Maurice Jarre scored the soundtrack and it suits the film very well. It never intrudes upon the quieter moments and adds to the epic feel of the film where the battles rage forth.

Features

Easy to navigate menus with just a couple of extras on the English disc:

• Documentary (44:40) - This is an old documentary but is nonetheless very good and covers the making of The Message. There`s extensive interview footage with the filmmaker Moustapha Akkad, writer H.A.I. Craig as well as other members of the cast and crew. The ups, downs and other production difficulties, such as shooting two versions of the film, are laid bare and it`s a fascinating document of the time. This is the kind of extra that should be made for most new films but isn`t.

• Trailers - Two trailers that show their age. They`re a bit dirty and a bit on the long side too. Far too dull as trailers go.

There are no subtitle options on either discs. The Message is packaged in a clear keep case with English and Arabic chapter information.

Conclusion

The thing about epics is, they`re all a bit long and The Message is no exception to this. But then you can hardly tell the story of the Prophet Mohammad in 90 minutes, can you? So then, with the official endorsements of Islamic scholars, how does it hold up as a film?

How can people who believe one second in worshipping the idols, mere wood and clay, suddenly switch to accepting one God in heaven? They reach their decision through recounting past experiences of forced immoral conduct. Their sudden awakening in realising that they actually share commonality with Mohammad`s message lights up their eyes and they are instant followers. Moral conduct, equality, compassion, love for all and the worshipping of one God, are the basics of the message that is spread. Even in this day and age it seems to have been forgotten that this is what enamours over a billion followers.

This isn`t an easy ride for the followers though, and we see a lot of conflict and pain in the quest for acceptance. Fighting in the name of God is hard work and these warriors that take up arms for the cause are merely defending themselves rather than taking the offensive. The rich, oppressive and hateful merchants are just that and there`s plenty of opportunity to paint them so. This provides plenty of contrasting opinions.

Message aside; the film itself is enjoyable, if a little long. There`s nothing to really disagree about when it comes to the story, though if it piques your interest you should check out other sources of information on Islam. Here it`s compressed into about three hours and it`s simply not enough time to do it justice, but I think it can certainly whet an appetite to learn more. It has themes that pretty much all viewers will be familiar with regardless of whether you follow any faith. While it doesn`t have the grandeur or spectacle of The Ten Commandments, it`s still an interesting film to watch.