Before movie-goers even got wind of the production problems plaguing the set of Darren Aronofsky's biblical epic, Noah already seemed like a disaster waiting to happen. After all, the infamous writer/director behind such works as Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan had never helmed a blockbuster of such huge proportions before he found himself adapting Genesis for the big screen. But what could have been downright awful (Russell Crowe as Noah?) turned out to be rather impressive - nothing akin to the awkward mess that audiences had prepared themselves for. So Noah did okay business at the box office, whilst critical reviews were on the warm-ish side. Detractors of Aronofsky's film set their crosshairs on a perceived bombastic tone, and a general refusal to buy into the plot. Still, if you can suspend your disbelief for a couple of hours, Noah makes for surprisingly good entertainment. A movie of such determined sincerity - especially one with a plot like this - might seem laughable at first, but there's an admirable quality to Noah that lots of folk have grudgingly overlooked. Far from a bad movie, in fact, it's a wholly laudable one.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
