The Bible (Miniseries)

Mark Burnett (Survivor, The Voice) and Roma Downey (Touched by an Angel) produced this History Channel event, and whatever you think of the final product, the ambition is undeniable. Trying to compress the entire Bible into 10 hours means everything gets compressed, but the selections are smart — Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Daniel, and Jesus get the most screen time. Diogo Morgado's Jesus (later expanded into the theatrical film Son of God) is one of the more charismatic portrayals in recent memory. The production values swing wildly — some episodes look cinematic, others feel rushed. The ninja-angels in the Sodom sequence became an unintentional meme. The strongest episodes are the ones that focus on a single story: the Abraham and Isaac sequence is genuinely tense, and the Daniel in the lions' den episode is well-crafted. The weakest try to cover too much ground too quickly. Hans Zimmer's score ties everything together with appropriate grandeur. As an introduction to biblical narrative for people who've never read it, it serves its purpose. For viewers who know the source material, mileage will vary based on tolerance for creative liberties.