Noah

Darren Aronofsky’s first movie since 2010’s Black Swan, Noah follows the title character (Russell Crowe) as he becomes convinced that God wants him to build an ark designed to hold two of every species of animal – with the movie detailing the character’s efforts at accomplishing this incredible task alongside his patient wife (Jennifer Connelly’s Naameh) and two sons (Logan Lerman’s Ham and Douglas Booth’s Shem). Director Aronofsky, working from a script cowritten with Ari Handel, has infused Noah with a larger-than-life and thoroughly epic feel that’s often at odds with the low-key, simple storyline, with the filmmaker compensating for this difference by punctuating the narrative with several gleefully broad set pieces and sequences – including an unexpectedly enthralling battle between Noah’s core group (which includes rock monsters!) and several hundred angry villagers. And while the film is exceedingly well acted, with Crowe’s turn as the surprisingly conflicted Noah an obvious highlight, Noah suffers from a pervasively uneven atmosphere that’s most prominent in the rather needless third act (ie the flood feels an obvious climax and yet the film continues for almost a full hour beyond that point). It’s ultimately clear that the movie could’ve lost half of its running time without sacrificing any of its important story and character beats, with Noah‘s mild success due almost entirely to its often mesmerizing performances and Aronofsky’s admittedly impressive visual flair.

**1/2 out of ****