I Am David

I decided at the beginning of the week that I would go see Paul Feig’s (creator of Freaks and Geeks) film “I Am David“. I knew just a little of what to expect having downloaded the trailer once before. But having seen the movie, I was left with a very positive feeling!

I don’t think I should spoil anything about the movie since I believe you should see it yourself. Paul has once again taken a subject matter and portrayed it so realistically with elegant attention to detail. David has such an innocent, very identifiable quality about him that carries this film from beginning to end. You realize when it’s over the amazing adversity and doubt this boy had to fight in his journey.

After the movie finished, Paul and a moderator stayed for an extra 20 or so minutes commenting about the movie. Paul was so formally nice in his suit and well groomed haircut. A few recollections from his comments: I was amazed that the whole movie was filmed completely in Bulgaria. Bulgaria, from my little knowledge and ignorance about it, always seemed to be klumped in that whole poverty, war torn land that much of eastern europe gets a bad wrap for. However, I think this movie brought so much justice to the beauty and elegance of that country. Another quality that Paul has kept true is his quality to not settle for just any actor. When he’s in charge of a casting call, he makes sure that he finds the right person for his projects. It’s amazing how he finds just the right person for the right role, and he once again did a great job with this cast. Another trivial fact about the actress named Maria; she didn’t know any English prior to being cast but Paul was so very convinced that she needed that role. Although the story of this film is fiction, the factual basis of the events taking place is real. I really think it helps the nature of this film to be more believable. And finally, this role was filled by Jim Caviezel BEFORE he was cast in the role as Jesus.

One other quality that really helped me enjoy the movie even more was the music. Freaks and Geeks had the best soundtrack that any show on TV has had. I Am David, once again, had an impeccable selection of orchestral music, such as Winter from The Four Seasons and Ave Verum. (I sang this at a Latin competition in high school so it REALLY made a positive difference for me!)

The movie is being released around the first of December and I highly urge you to support Paul and the filmmakers. If you enjoy movies with a lot of character development, I think you’ll definitely enjoy I Am David.