Review: 'David' puts a family-friendly animated gloss on the Old Testament, with strong visuals and forgettable songs

It’s always interesting to watch filmmakers try to deliver Old Testament stories in animated form, as the makers of “David” do as they turn the bloodiest parts of the Bible into a cartoon musical spectacle that will earn a PG rating.

For those who don’t already know the story, as told in the first and second books of Samuel, a quick synopsis: A prophet, Samuel (voiced by Brian Stivale) enters Bethlehem and tells a family that their teen son, David (voiced by Brandon Engman at this age), is God’s choice to be the king of Israel. This is not welcome news for the current king, Saul (voiced by Adam Michael Gold), who got the job the same way — by Samuel’s pronouncement of God’s decision.

David says he doesn’t want to be king, Samuel answers, “that is a surprisingly good criteria to be a king.” David tells Samuel that he’s just a shepherd, to which Samuel replies, “the people are lost — they need a shepherd.” Still, Samuel advises David and his family to keep this prophecy a secret for now, so as not to incur Saul’s wrath.

Saul has a lot of wrath already, which he dumps on the line of musicians outside his throne room in Jerusalem, all under orders to try to distract the king from his heavy royal burdens. David ends up in this line, and his song — did I mention this is a musical, even if the songs are forgettable? — gives Saul something to smile and laugh about, and soon David is welcomed into the royal family, and quickly befriends Saul’s son, Prince Jonathan (voiced by Mark Jacobsen). David never lets on that he’s been told God wants him to replace Saul.

It takes nearly an hour of this two-hour movie to get to the moment everyone knows about David’s story: When he faces the massive champion of the Philistine army, Goliath, and fells him with a rock and a slingshot. I can’t decide whether the movie takes too long to get here, because it drags getting to this high spot, or too fast because defeating Goliath and the Philistines could easily be the climax to a perfectly decent Bible story.

The second half continues through the books of Samuel, as the adult David (now voiced by Christian singer Phil Wickham) first must escape the kingdom with his family to avoid Saul’s rage, then return understanding the weighty responsibility of following God’s will. That’s made more difficult because the townspeople in this B.C. era, like the Hebrews in Cecil B. deMille’s “The Ten Commandments,” whine and complain to David at every turn, no matter how many times he proves himself and God’s power.

Directors Phil Cunningham and Brent Dawes take the script (by Dawes) and use it to find some striking images in computer animation. “David” becomes a feast for the eyes, though likely only nourishing to those who already know their bible stories. 

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‘David’

★★★

Opens Friday, December 19, in theaters everywhere. Rated PG for action/violence and some scary images. Running time: 115 minutes.