"And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him" (Genesis 17:3)
A 2023 Biblical drama film written, directed, and edited by David Heller. It retells the story from the Book of Genesis of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, Isaac. The bulk of the story consists of Abraham and Isaac's journey to the place of sacrifice, accompanied by Abraham's servants Kelzar and Eshcolam. Along the way, they have run-ins with a group of menacing soldiers, and Abraham's past is examined through flashbacks and conversations.
It is Heller's feature directorial debut and the first release from the theatrical division of Angel Studios, the producers of The Chosen.
This film provides examples of:
- Affectionate Nickname: Kelzar frequentely addresses Eshcolam as "Esh."
- Anachronic Order: Downplayed; the main narrative is in chronological order, but interlarded with several separate streams of flashback.
- Depraved Bisexual: When Isaac offers to take the place of the kidnapped girl, the horsemen sneer that she's damaged goods anyway and imply that they'd be just as happy to sexually assault him.
- Didn't Think This Through: Sarah, dismayed by her own infertility, suggests that Abraham should try to conceive a child with Hagar. When Hagar does become pregnant, Sarah realizes what a bad idea that was: Hagar lords it over her, and Sarah and Abraham are no closer to having a child of their own.
- Distant Epilogue: The final scene shows the crucifixion of Jesus, two millennia after the main events of the film.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Abraham tears a circular piece of bread in half just before saying "We do it in remembrance." This deliberately pre-echoes Jesus' Last Supper and liturgies based on it, and the context (a discussion of blood sacrifice) implies a connection to Eucharistic theology.
- The Dulcinea Effect: Late in the film the horsemen reappear with a kidnapped girl in tow, and within a few minutes Isaac is impulsively (but seriously) offering to exchange his life for hers. It's used to illustrate his innocent righteousness.
- Eerily Out-of-Place Object: A subtle one: In one scene the Lord's robe is made of shiny white-on-white damask that would have been aesthetically puzzling (not to mention impossible to manufacture) during the time period portrayed. It's a little reminder that, as God, he's not limited by time or culture.
- The Faceless: The Lord's face is never clearly seen.
- The Ghost: Ishmael's birth and banishment are a notable subplot in the flashbacks, but the closest we get to seeing Ishmael is a shot of Hagar pregnant with him.
- Gold and White Are Divine: The Lord is always accompanied by white light and dressed in white robes.
- Happy Flashback: Abraham's immediate preparations to kill Isaac are intercut with a flashback of Sarah and Abraham cuddling him as a newborn. In a particularly heart-wrenching moment, a shot of Abraham supporting little Isaac's head is immediately followed by a shot of him doing the same to bigger Isaac as he lays him on the altar.
- Hiding Behind Religion: Escholam accuses Abraham of this, noting that nobody else has seen the Lord and Abraham could be inventing the encounters as an excuse to do anything he wants.
- Inelegant Blubbering: Sarah has two big crying scenes, in which the actress is uninhibited and the camera unsparing. And yes, there's snot.
- Mythology Gag: A non-humorous example. During Ishmael's conception, clouds part above the tent to reveal a crescent moon with a bright star between its horns—a modern symbol of Islam. This seems to be a nod to Ishmael's importance in Islamic sacred history, in a film otherwise told from a Christian perspective.
- "Not So Different" Remark: When one of his companions expresses disgust at another nation's practice of mass concubinage, Abraham points out that he, Abraham, is just as capable of evil. Based on the surrounding flashbacks, he's probably thinking of his treatment of Sarah and Hagar, which is similar (in kind, if not in scale) to the behavior under discussion.
- Sex Slave:
- The "stolen daughter" is heavily implied to have been taken for sexual purposes.
- Abraham's party comes across a tent bordello. The prostitutes' free-or-slave status is ambiguous.
- In the backstory, Sarah was forced into Abimelech's harem. Downplayed in this case since, per the Bible itself, she was spared from actual assault.
- Take Me Instead:
- Abraham begs the Lord to take him instead of Isaac.
- Isaac offers to take the place of the kidnapped girl.
- Targeted Human Sacrifice: The Lord asks Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, Abraham's son.
- Tribal Face Paint: Sarah has (probably anachronistic) Bedouin facial tattoos.
- What the Hell, Hero?: After Abraham impregnates Hagar at Sarah's suggestion, leading to tension and misery within the household, Sarah calls Abraham out on it. Her logic is this: When she made the suggestion, she didn't have enough perspective to realize it was a bad idea. But he did, and still went along with it when he should have refused.
