End of the Spear DVD with Louie Leonardo, Chad Allen, Jack Guzman (PG-13) +Movie Reviews

Effective.

tvtv3 | Sorento, IL United States | 03/22/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Hollywood makes movies all the time that involve the murdering of innocents. However, these movies rarely illustrate any positive consequences that result after the murders, let alone any spiritual sentiments or moral understanding that occur within the murders themselves. END OF THE SPEAR is a film that not only does both these things, but also tells how the deaths of those killed helped bring about the salvation of an entire race of people from the verge of a self-inflected extinction.

END OF THE SPEAR is largely a movie about the Waodani people. The Waodani are a people that live in the jungles of Ecuador. Despite the pressures of the outside world that continued to squeeze the environment and resources of the Waodani, they continued to live a self-sufficient and self-contained life in the jungle. That is, except for one crucial element: the Waodani were killing themselves to death. For whatever reasons, the Waodani had split into different tribes. The lack of resources and women caused the tribes to perform raids upon each other. If a child lived after one of these raids, he would grow up to seek revenge upon those who had killed his family. Thus, back and forth the violence continued for several generations until only a handful of Waodani were left and they were on the verge of a self-inflicted genocide.

They were saved by a group of missionaries. Five young men slowly made contact with the tribe. Eventually, they attempted to have a face-to-face interaction with members from the tribe. The attempt ended in the murder of the five men (Jim Elliot and Nate Saint included). Undeterred the wives and families of the murdered men contacted the tribe and came to live with them. This act of compassion, grace, and mercy proved to save the Waodani from both disease and themselves.

In Christian circles, the lives of Nate Saint and Jim Elliot have taken on almost mythic proportions. Inspiring as their lives were, the movie END OF THE SPEAR helps to ground the story in truth and reality by telling the story from the perspective of Mincayani, a Waodani leader and the man who killed Nathan Saint.

END OF THE SPEAR was made on a shoestring budget with limited promotion. Yet, except for the sometimes cheesy voice-overs, the picture appears to have the budget of a normal motion picture. The cinematography is vivid, the acting is good, and the editing concise. There is a spiritual slant to the movie, but unlike many Christian films the Gospel message and story of conversion isn't contrived. Instead, it occurs naturally and fits with the pace and story of the rest of the film.

Granted, END OF THE SPEAR isn't for everyone. It begins rather slowly and there are a few awkward moments. Nevertheless, the filmmaking in END OF THE SPEAR is on par with the average Hollywood flick and its storytelling is on a level above much of the garbage that Tinsletown vomits out every year. The movie is not only based upon a true story, but stays true that story and has a great message about compassion, grace, and reconciliation. Hollywood could learn a thing or two from a film like this."

I Was Presently Surprised

David A. Dein | The Garden State | 03/15/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Growing up a Protestant kid in the 80's I tripped over the story of Nate Saint, Jim Elliot and the three other missionaries who were brutally murdered by the Waorani people in 1956. It is the tragic story that caused a sensation in the United States. Not because the men died in vain, but because the wives of these men reached out to these violent people and changed their lives forever. It's a story that captivated me. In fact when I was eleven I told many people that I one day wanted to make a movie about these very people. To my surprise THE END OF THE SPEAR came along and does just that.

SPEAR tells the tale from the vantage point of young Steve Saint (Chase Ellison), Nate Saints (Chad Allen) pre-teen son, and Mincayani (Louie Leonardo) the Waorani leader whom killed Nate Saint with his own spear. It begins as the Waorani people are on the verge of the extinction. Their violent society has the Ecuadoran government ready to go in and kill them all, and their warlike ways have made them unable to survive very long anyway. It's only when Saint's wife (Cara Stoner) and sister Rachel (Sara Kathryn Bakker) move into the tribe and attempt to reach out to the Waorani women that redemption begin to take hold.

I walked into SPEAR with very little expectation. You have to understand I have seen hundreds of horrible "Christian" films. Most are not worth the film they are printed on. But SPEAR works. Yes it's got some very clunky scenes, the dialogue is a tad bit simplistic, but it has a dramatic tension I wasn't quite expecting. I was actually moved by scenes. I rooted for characters and did not feel talked down to. SPEAR is not a movie about saving souls, it's a movie about characters. It is the kind of movie that if given a chance will spark debate and inspiration. It's motive seems innocent and not heavy handed.

The cinematography while simple by Hollywood's standard is effective. The score doesn't get in the way, and Director Jim Hannon fills his story with just enough detail that it's believable. He gets performances out of his actors that are simple and understated. It's not Oscar caliber, but that's not to be expected. The dialogue works, even if the Subtitles seem to rob the Waorani language of any real nuance, it's simple and get us from point A to point B as well as it can. There were moments I wanted to movie to explain the motives of it characters a little better. But for what it's worth SPEAR is still effective.

My qualms with the casting of Chase Ellison as Young Steve should also be noted. Some heavy scenes fall on this young boy and unfortunately he doesn't have the chops to hold it on his shoulders. A better child actor should have been sought. Casting children can be very hard. But the only scenes I didn't buy fell on this poor kid to vocalize and the poor material stuck out like a sore thumb.

I also hated the ending. It hurt the picture. There must have been a more powerful way of ending it. But unfortunately it pushed the story into the melodramatic range. It also introduced a supernatural twist that needed an explanation. We saw the scene earlier and these events didn't occur, why now? Hopefully this sour ending will not hurt the rest of the picture for most audiences. I for one was a little disappointed.

But all in all END OF THE SPEAR is not a bad film. It has its flaws. But at its heart it's the kind of movie that will inspire those whom let it. It will move those whom allow it to move and hopefully it will open a dialogue about International Missions. A job that has gotten a bad rap by people whom don't understand its importance in shaping the modern world. I'm glad that this story was told and that I had an opportunity to see it.

***1/2 (out of 5)

"

Bigger Reality than Hollywood Can Create

Michael Oh | 05/04/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Some of the magic of Hollywood is its ability to take a story and make it "bigger than life". Visually, graphically, technologically Hollywood is able to do amazing larger than life productions. What struck me about this movie is that instead of this movie being larger than life, the actual lives lived by the men and women portrayed in the film were so much larger than the movie. That is not a criticism of the movie, instead it is a wonderful window into the weighty real lives that they lived. Often we watch movies in order to escape reality and enter into another world. This movie inspires us to enter into not an imagined world but into reality - the kind of reality that we all long for - a life that is weighty, sincere, meaningful - a life worth living."

I NEVER Spend Full Price On Movies, But I Did TWICE For This

Colorgirl | NE US | 05/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"END OF THE SPEAR is about what sounds like a relatively mundane story. Five US citizens set out to Ecuador to try to befriend what at that time was considered to be the most violent tribe on the planet at the time. It appeared that the US citizen were making progress when suddenly the tribe went ballistic on them and murdered them in cold blood.

It was in 1956 and the news blared across the world. Most older people will remember that story well. There was a large photo spread and coverage in LIFE MAGAZINE and it was quite the talk of the world for a while.

After these men were murdered, some of the wives of the murdered men went to live (touting their young children) with the tribe as a sort of an oxymoron- to get something out of their husband's lives being given up- so that they would not have died in vain.

Eventually, the tribe had a huge transformation and they are completely different people today.

Sounds kind of boring - at least it did to me- why would I want to see such a story? I mean these men knew what they were getting in to (4 or 5 other men were murdered in the previous decade so they knew what they were up against), I was puzzled as to the big shock of the murders..........

END OF THE SPEAR is the story told from the more compassionate and youthful perspective of Steve Saint, son of Nate Saint, one of the murdered US citizens. Instead of the dry statistical account of the situation, suddenly I found myself experiencing the entire event as if Nate Saint was my father and I was his son.

This story is told from the perspective of the Waodani tribe who open themselves up with a childlikeness that's both beautiful and disarming.

When asked in a filmed documentary to describe what their lives were like before the murders (I was fortunate to see some interviews on television before the movie came out- you can see them and more in the documentary BEYOND THE GATES OF SPLENDOR), they list the lifestyle of unending murders that plagued their people almost to the point of extinction. Accounts of each murder in the history of each tribe member is reenacted with animation and detail- every person in the tribe lost many family members due to the constant stream of cold blooded killing.

When a man in a family died, it was customary to bury the youngest child or child of choice by the father or mother with the dead or dying man ALIVE. One could only imagine how each child would die a frightening and painfully slow death. (knowing that before you see the movie might be helpful).

To break that cycle, one of the tribe's girls runs away to outsiders so that she will not have to die that way with her father who clamors for her company in his grave.

This escaped girl moves in with Rachel Saint and other women there (Rachel is Nate's sister) and learns English and how to live in the new culture which was so foreign to her.

It was some time later that the five men came to make friends with the tribe. They intended to teach them that there was another way to live besides constant murder and death. Several tribe members came to meet the men and wanted to see their sister Dayume (played by Christina Souza). The language barrier made the situation frustrating. When one of the natives lied out of fear when he returned to the tribe, this led to the murder of the men.

Mincaya (full name Mincayani- played by Louie Leonardo) was the man who murdered Nate Saint. After befriending Mincaya, Steve (both Nate and Steve are played by Chad Allen whom you might remember from Dr. Quinn, and Our House TV series) has to deal with the fury and confusion of suddenly finding out that his friend is the one that brought him the most pain.

I have written a more extensive review at Epinions(dot)com of this movie with in depth information about the movie, background and cast if you are interested in reading it.

Suffice it to say that after many bad movies telling stories of similar nature, I was expecting this movie to be substandard. I was shocked at how moving and intense it really is.

The critic reviews were completely unfounded and everyone we talked to outside the theater after the viewing said the same thing- and they were from VERY diverse backgrounds. Different religions, different perspectives, different political persuasions.....I was intrigued by the way that this movie affected everyone we talked to that went.

I can not recommend this film highly enough- and the fact that this little tribe of people gave up their time and privacy because they were concerned about the US becoming what they used to be due to violence says volumes.

This movie is not like any other movie I have ever seen. I would highly recommend viewing the documentary (Beyond the Gates of Splendor) before you see the movie as it enhances the movie even more. If you can not see it, however, the movie stands very well on its own.

We were able to rent the documentary at a local Movie Gallery.

"

Moving film that could have been more - 3+1/2 stars.

G. T. Howell | Elkridge, MD | 03/25/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

""End of the Spear" is the story of five American missionaries who were speared to death while trying to contact the fierce Waodani tribe (also called the Aucas) in 1956 Ecuador. The film relates how, even after this tragic loss, their wives remained committed to reaching the Waodani people. Years later, the son of one of the martyred men returns to the tribe and struggles to forgive the men who killed his father.

For many years this event, as related in Elisabeth Elliot's book "Through Gates of Splendor", has inspired generations of Christians to lives of missionary zeal and selfless service. The film beautifully captures the poignant drama of this moving story. The cinematography and music are superb, and the performances are excellent. The native actors do a splendid job, and the film is a fascinating study of the (then) lawless and violent Waodani culture. The script hits the right emotional notes without being syrupy, and the story is skillfully told.

What keeps this movie from being a five-star film isn't what's IN the film, but what MISSING - a clear presentation of the Gospel that the missionaries were willing to die to proclaim. This retelling alludes to the Gospel in a murky way, but one could easily get the impression that the missionaries merely wanted to end the Waodani's murderous ways and make them "better people". A few might even think that they were interfering, Western do-gooders who got what they deserved when they tried to interfere with Waodani culture. In reality, they had come to tell the Waodani people that they needed God to forgive them and give them new hearts -- that God loved them, and that by sending His Son Jesus to die as a sacrifice He provided the way of salvation for all who will repent of their sins and put their faith and trust in Christ's atoning blood and triumphant resurrection.

The viewer never learns about the true passion that compelled these five families to leave the comfort of America and risk their lives. In fact, other than the Saints, too little screen time is spent on getting to know the missionary families. Having read "Shadow of the Almighty", the biography of Jim Elliot, I was looking forward to seeing him portrayed on film. I actually had a hard time figuring out which one he was! The scene where the missionaries are killed is powerful and shocking, but we feel for them only because they seem like nice guys. The scene would have carried more impact if the script had helped us get to know them as individuals.

The film has also been plagued by the controversy surrounding the producers' unfortunate (and in my view unwise) decision to fill a key role with an actor whose advocacy of an immoral lifestyle has been very public. For the record, I thought his performance was very believable, and his voiceover narration seemed heart-felt. I think I would probably have enjoyed the movie more had I not known of his background, though. It's sad that the movie-makers undermined their own film (and probably their box office) by not exercising more discernment.

Controversy aside, Christians who already know the "back story" will appreciate this film, but will probably feel frustrated by the missed opportunity to tell the story in all its fullness.

"

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