Seen through the eyes of the Apostle Mark, this beautifully animated recreation begins with Jesus' joyful entrance into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Then follows the drama of Christ's betrayal, arrest and crucifixion - and Hi... more »s triumphant resurrection and ascent into Heaven. Presented in glowing, full-color animation with an all-star voice cast, this vivid production embraces all the wonder and glory of what many have called "the greatest story ever told."« less
I've been on the hunt for either a book or video that could explain what Easter is REALLY all about without scaring my little one. This This EAster video is done very well. It's quite "light" so to speak and enough so that you get the idea of what happened, but they don't show much. They're not showing Jesus being nailed to the cross, nor are they showing him being beaten with the cat of nine tails. They show a shadow of a Roman guard using one, but you have to just imagine what he's doing. The only time you see any blood is when they just show a shot of Jesus after they've put the crown on his head and they show some blood running down His face. Even when He's carrying the cross, there's no blood on his robes and he's fully clothed. They do show Jesus hanging on the cross, but only one long-view and it's very brief. They mostly get a close up of Him as He is saying, "Forgive them, for they know not what they do," etc.
Don't get me wrong, those things HAVE to be taught but I don't think right now as a young toddler is the time. I've heard of many children being very upset learning that Jesus died and it just scares them to pieces. I was trying to find some way of explaining it without scaring my little one until he's actually old enough to really understand what happened. This video does an excellent job of toning down the brutality of it but getting across what Jesus did for us. It is Biblically accurate and since it is Hanna-Barbera, it's just wonderfully animated and beautifully done. Also, I just found this at my local Christian Book store. I highly recommend it and if you think that your little one is not ready for the crucifixion scenes, well, they're very short. Short enough to just fast forward through them. It's neat how they show Jesus going up into heaven too. Great video and well worth the money! I'm buying more of this series!
Julie B. (thebairds) from ONEIDA, TN Reviewed on 12/6/2007...
Of course this is a great story but it didn't hold the interest of my kids, ages 3 and 6, at all.
Movie Reviews
Very well done, excellent purchase
Bianca Clark | Exeter, CA | 05/29/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"We bought this for our 4-year old daughter and she loves it. The movie is very well done and she wanted to watch it over and over again. She asked a lot of questions and I am really impressed how this movie helped with the explanation of the true meaning of Easter and what it still means to us this day.
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A good church resource
Paul D. Bryant | 04/11/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"We purchased this video to show the Easter Story to the children at our church. It was well done, connected modern day kids with ancient Biblical truths, and handled the crucifixion in an appropriate way for younger children. It kept the attention of the children, as well as the adults. A good resource to have at Easter."
Decent, but kind of "surfacy"
LiteratureLady | 02/15/2010
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This movie presentation of the Easter story of Jesus was a bit shallow, and honestly I was pretty disappointed that it wasn't as spiritual as I had hoped it would be. It was more historical in scope and feeling, and I swear one of the character's voices is straight from Scooby Doo...the animation is similar in kind, too. It's not violent--my 4 year-old watches it just fine, but I was hoping for more of an emotional effect. The "Jesus" they presented in the story lacked depth and wasn't really that likeable or even developed as a character. I'm still searching for a good cartoon version of this story, basically."
Good Stuff
L. Kellner | Gambrills, MD USA | 02/08/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love that Hanna and Barbera of cartoon fame did this series of cartoons to tell important Bible stories....recommend it!"
Children's minister
Altamont Christian Church | 09/24/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I thought it was a very good, kid friendly rendition of the Passion of the Christ. It seemed to get a little "boring" in part of the story telling, but over-all was a reverent, well-done portrayal of the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord."