"Hank, do you really think that you're going to save, let alone restore your marriage, by putting your wife's wishes above mine? She wants to break up your marriage, Hank. I want to save it."That... is a line stated unironically by Jesus in this Christian film by Christians for Christians. I have to suppose that neither the writers nor any producers nor the director nor the actors nor the camera man, nor anybody else involved in this production stopped and said "that doesn't sound like something a good person would say".Some people talk about production values. I'm ready to set that aside in the case of a well done story or, where it's a part of discussion or meditation on a topic, a well done discussion or meditation. This was not well done as a meditation or a discussion.The matters being touched upon include the problem of suffering, the problem of Hell, and biblical atrocities. That would be all well and good if this movie was at all interested in any of those things beyond coming up with a quick excuse for the almighty. These are questions that have to be struggled with, not just passed off.I imagine that lack of intellectual depth is why Jesus says things that, if anybody had given half a moment to think about, would be far more at home in the mouth of a deceiving demon than a true wise healer.And, the characters are similarly lacking in depth. Matters such as an identity crisis and severe abuse exist only for the Jesus character to pass them off as less important than himself, thus adding to the feeling of an evil Jesus.As to the acting... well, in the part of Jesus I suppose that soft voice might have worked better had the writing not given him such evil to display. But, as it is, it sounds far less like compassionate wisdom and far more like a being that's desperate to seem compassionate despite the, again, evil he's speaking.It's a shame because the premise has potential for the intent. This could have been done much better. It would have taken people who are more ready to struggle with their theology.Christians, if Jesus ever says the things to you that he said to these diners, it's not Jesus and you tell that being "Get thee behind me".

The first time that I'd watch this movie was after midnight one night, I had to get up early the next morning to go to work,but, I couldn't turn the movie off,it was so interesting that I had to watch it to the very end, needless to say the following Sunday I couldn't wait to recommend it to my minister, and a few other people as well as posted it on my Facebook page. The reason why I'd summarized this movie as a refresher is because, we as Christians should be reminded that we are still sinners and need to be reminded that we still have a Savior who forgives us for our sins. We are tempted everyday and even the most strongest in faith fall down sometimes, but, we get up with the strength of our dear Savior. Amen.

A dark stormy night . Rain and landslides have blocked a remote country road and a Highway patrolman informs drivers they have a long about detour . The only building in the area is a diner and a handful of drivers stop and ask for something to eat and drink . The person serving at the diner is called Jesus and informs them he can get them something to eat but the only drinks he can serve is water Yet another Christian propaganda film made because if you make enough eccelestical movies that will somehow prove there is a God and an afterlife . This isn't as bad as the poisonous bile that was THE MOMENT AFTER and its sequel but is far more minimalist and therefore tedious featuring effectively one set and a handful of not very good actors , it's no less simplistic than any other Christian movie pushing an agenda One internal argument Christians wrestle with is " If God exists then why does he allow bad things to happen ? " The whole function of THE ENCOUNTER is to gather a handful of literary devices and stick them in a setting where the argument can take place . There's no subtlety or sophistication to any of this . The audience are asked to literally believe this bloke behind the counter is the Biblical Jesus and the literary devices are used as a sounding board to ask " Well Jesus something bad is happening in my life so please explain to me why are you being so cruel ? " . There is no God so that will answer a few searching questions . Where I'll give this film some small credit and if I was present in this diner I'd be asking " Why do you allow so many atrocities to take place in your name ? " and this is effectively what one of the sounding boards ask and Jesus replies that he doesn't ask for actions like abortion clinics to be bombed . Fair enough and scripture doesn't ask for that but when asked about genocide against Canaanites which does appear in the Old Testament Jesus gets out of this by a rambling reply that he's a God of love . Yeah we've all heard about these priests wanting to share their love with choirboys haven't we ? The other arguments don't stand up to any scrutiny and it's amazing what you can get away with if you constantly say " God loves you " to an uncritical audience . One thing Jesus as seen here needs educating on is the selfish nature of human beings . We're merely vessels to carry our DNA in order to keep the species going . If you're on a sinking ship and you grab the only lifejacket letting someone else drown you're committing a selfish act but at the same time by surviving as an individual you're potentially helping the species to survive . We have an inbuilt survival instinct hence the amoral aspect of human nature . Likewise our obsession with sex . All this is easily explained - we're carriers of DNA , and a belief in God is merely simply down to cultural conditioning

This is a decent Christian film based around a lot of dialogue in a small diner. It discusses certain aspects of Protestant Christianity like how salvation is a free gift, but it doesn't cover everything. It's a solid film to show at an evangelistic meeting or something like that. Because the film is based on dialogue with little action, it can be a bit boring at times. I think I closed my eyes and almost fell asleep for a couple minutes near the end. I guess I prefer a movie like Left Behind more.I had modest expectations, but I thought the acting was surprisingly solid. I didn't realize the football guy was played by the wrestler Sting (Steve Borden) until after I watched it. Apparently, he is a Christian.