Movie Review: "The Bible Stories: Solomon"

Rated: Not Rated (Dove approved for ages twelve and up)
Starring: Ben Cross, Vivica A. Fox, and Max Von Sydow
Released: 1997

Synopsis: Solomon, the son of David--the "man after God's own heart"--is poised to become the king of Israel, and has been assigned the task of building the Lord's temple; a very arduous task indeed.  Once Solomon takes the throne, he immediately begins construction on it...but, soon after, his heart is won over by foreign women who worship other deities, for which Solomon builds temples, something God told him not to do.  With the nation in peril, will Solomon realize his mistake before it's too late?
Based on the Biblical accounts.

The Good: This movie definitely brought the Bible to life in a very vivid way.  The sets, the acting, the scenery, the attention to detail, and pretty much everything else were incredible.  While Solomon was a wise man--and, this film features him quoting Ecclesiastes and Proverbs--he also had some serious character flaws, as this film shows very well.  Fans of flicks based on the Bible likely won't be disappointed, except...

The Bad: This movie does take some liberties with the original text, especially when--spoiler alert!--Solomon marries the queen of Sheba and proceeds to get her pregnant.  That's not in the Bible, and some people may quibble with that; then again, Solomon had way too many women anyway, so, why not her as well? Also, the violence and sexual content, though true to the story, make this inappropriate for children; then again, if you've read the Bible, you know that already.

Content Concerns: I'm not going to do my usual listing because of the source material; see the above section for details on the content.

Score: 4/5