The Gospel of John film

At our cell meetings every Tuesday, we have started watching the "Gospel of John" film. At first I had some reservation watching the DVD because I have seen other renditions of stories from the Bible and they where nothing to write home about. We only watched the first three chapters but once it got under way, I was pleasantly surprised. It was fresh, intimate and accurate. A must see. Things were just made so much clearer watching John's unique perspective into the life of Jesus Christ. It establishes from the beginning the sovereignty of God and that Jesus is the Messiah that was prophesied in the Old Testament. God loves us so much that he sent us his Son, the Lamb of God. Yes, the group enjoyed the first part and can't wait to see the rest of it, but if John said in chapter 1 verse 10 that "He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him." How does the world receive this message today? Here are a few reviews I found on the Internet on the "Gospel of John" film...

• "The greatest story ever told? I don't know about that, but it remains a real humdinger."
• "A faithful, reverential version of what remains to this day to be the greatest story ever told."
• "This is so beautifully done. If you love Jesus you will love this movie." "A sluggishly painful, uninteresting film that might be of value to New Testament students who don't like to read words unless they come with pictures."
• "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly."
• "I found this Gospel long, dull and, for the most part, acted without apparent inspiration."
• "Though I approached The Gospel of John with some trepidation, I've now seen the film twice and consider it to be an extraordinary achievement."
• "Feels like the longest Sunday school class ever." "I believe this is one of the greatest evangelical tools present before us. I recommend it to everyone, and especially to those who are trying to discover the Good News about the life of Jesus."
• "A hero, especially a tragic hero, becomes empathetic when his own actions collide with the hand of Fate. But when the crucified hero is an all-powerful God, when his free will is the only determinism, Fate goes out the window and with it, our sympathies."
• "A word-for-word adaptation of the New Testament book ... Nothing was added and nothing was omitted."
• " I loved this film; it is word for word of the Gospel of John. My whole family was clued to the film. My husband has loaned it out to new and non believers and they were changed. It's something to see; you will be inspired!"
• "If you can come out of a 3-hour movie and say, 'Wow', then it must be divine."