‘David’ brings the beautiful biblical story to life.

By Amelia Morris

‘David’ is a musical biblical epic following the life story of king David. Even from humble beginnings he is chosen by God for a greater purpose, more than he could ever imagine. 

The story begins with David as a young shepherd, defending his flock from danger. When Samuel the prophet visits David’s home to anoint him, the parallels between David as a shepherd and becoming the next king are not lost on anyone in the audience. David was an excellent shepherd and that is precisely what the people of Israel needed. Moreso, they needed guidance back to God, letting Him be their shepherd through David. 

David’s ascension to the throne does not come quickly or easily. The movie focuses on his conflict with Goliath and his resulting closeness with the current king Saul. Then, David spends years fighting alongside Saul, somewhat becoming a second son to him.

As David grows older he learns his place in the kingdom is more than just becoming king. He is destined to do God’s work for Israel.

‘David’ did a great job of transitioning through time jumps. The movie had to cover 15-20 years of content in its less than two-hour run time and it did so beautifully. There were no choppy endings to scenes. The entire movie flowed as one complete story beginning with David as a shepherd and ending with him being king. 

The film is an excellent adaptation of the biblical story. Every scene, song and character in the story worked together to form the tapestry of David’s life. The heavy foreshadowing told the audience of God’s plan, something that can also be seen in the Bible.

David is most famous for his Psalms so it makes perfect sense that songs are used as a mode of storytelling in this movie. The songs advance and flow with the story instead of being out-of-place and jarring like some musicals can be. 

For a kids movie,“David” was emotional – nearly moving me to tears in one of the final scenes. It was amazing to see an accurate representation of David’s awe-inspiring life brought to the screen. The overall message of the film was excellent. No matter what, David gave glory to God through his immeasurable faith. Even when he doubted God’s plan, he put his pride aside and trusted in the Lord. 

“David” has a beautiful animation style down to the minor details. The color choices by the animators are very symbolic, choosing purple to show King Saul’s royalty, and blue and green to show David’s attachment to the earth. Every character had individual features specific to them. The music is powerful, showing David’s unwavering faith and resilience through every challenge he is faced with. 

This story is truly inspiring for all ages. David gave everything over to God and trusted even when no one else did. When he succeeded, it was only because of God. David had an outlook on life that we should take on today. This visual representation of his story only made the theme that much more powerful.

David embodied God’s plan for Israel. The movie takes you through his struggles and triumphs on his way to becoming king. Nothing that happened to David came of his own ability, rather God was orchestrating every detail of David’s life. “David” reminds the audience that God has a plan for every person.

“David” is an excellent film, leaving a smile on my face as the credits rolled. The movie was so uplifting and encouraging for people of all ages.

“David” is currently available in theaters and will be streaming soon on Angel Studio’s streaming service called Angel. 

Amelia Morris is a freshman journalism major and writer for Cedars A&E. She loves reading, writing and being in nature with her dogs.

Images courtesy of Angel Studios.