This is clearly a dreadful movie, but it's still difficult for me to rate, since I think it's a contender for So-Bad-It's-Good status. It's a last-judgment-end-of-days-prophecies supernatural horror thriller, and it had a pretty decent budget, enough to hire a few name actors and to film on location in Italy and Israel (as well as the U.S.) Even so, the special effects are amusingly crude for 1999; there's no suspense, since the ultimate battle between Evil and Good comes off a bit like "Bambi meets Godzilla"; and it suffers from the prophecy movie problem that none of main characters' actions seem to have any effect whatsoever on the outcome. But what's wonderfully awful about this film is the way the non-supernatural events are vastly more implausible than the supernatural ones: that is, it's possible to suspend one's disbelief when viewing the supernatural plot elements, but you can't watch the supposedly human action without thinking "no effing way would that ever happen." A good one to laugh at with bad-movie-loving (and at least somewhat irreverent) friends.

Gifted director Robert Marcarelli flirts with greatness in bringing this thought provoking and exciting motion picture to the screen. Using his camera like a sculptor uses his chisel, Marcarelli crafts a film of suspense, adventure, philosophy, and ultimately, Truth. Screen writers Stephan Blinn and Hollis Barton have fashioned an unusually intelligent, intellectual script that manages to educate and illuminate as it entertains the audience in grand style. Casper Van Dien is superb as usual, playing a man in search of the truth while another, essayed with brilliance by the wonderful Michael York, seeks to change history to his own advantage. The lovely and extremely talented Catherine Oxenberg is also great in a significant supporting role, as is veteran Michael Ironside, making a strong impression in a small part. The past, the present, and the future hang in the balance as a struggle between good and evil will ultimately decide the fate of humanity. This is a philosophically challenging film and is destined to stimulate even the sharpest intellects with its sophisticated puzzles.

I don't watch many violent movies, but when I do.., they better be good(think Clint Eastwood, Steven Segal). I was willing to go along with this movie and was perfectly fine with it until...The woman that he spent the whole movie with and who risked her neck getting the lead actor onto a "network jet" to smuggle him out of Rome...pulls a gun (with a silencer) on him. Give...me...a...break. It just reeked of Hollywood so badly: A cheap, sensational, non-sensical turn in the plot. Totally without any credibility. (Think DaVinci Code if the leading lady had turned on Tom Hanks 3/4 the way through the movie). I turned the movie off, sighed, and threw it out.

I was not only disappointed; I was embarrassed. As a TBN viewer and supporter, I had heard all the buzz and thought that maybe, at long last, we Christians had finally produced a quality movie on a par with secular productions. Dutifully, I invited and bought tickets for several unbelievers to attend with me. The movie was so amateurish, so fraught with plot holes and so poorly edited both pre- and post-production that I was mortified. Since I work in this industry, it was readily apparent to me how easy it would have been to maintain plot integrity and thereby give the production the quality it was lacking. I was astonished that no effort was made to do so. I can, however, give this movie credit for teaching me never to listen to hype and always preview any Christian movie before inviting unbelievers.