Church Releases First Book of Mormon Video

[smac97]

Here:

It was released earlier today, and has 11,500 views so far.

Thanks,

-Smac

[smac97]

From this news item:

Quote

A new video will be released every Friday this year, which will cover the first 138 pages (1 Nephi to Enos) of the Book of Mormon, which is considered holy scripture by church members.

Church members believe the Book of Mormon came as a revelation from God to church founder Joseph Smith nearly 200 years ago in upstate New York.

Videos, which feature actors will continue to be released throughout 2020 and 2021 which will cover the entire book.

Thanks,

-Smac

[The Nehor]

How long before we get the video of cureloms and cumoms?

[SettingDogStar]

6 minutes ago, The Nehor said:

How long before we get the video of cureloms and cumoms?

And the Bees in a submarine!

[LoudmouthMormon]

Yay!  Not cheezy!  Not low-production values!  Not bad acting!  Not painful to watch at all.  I picked out Nephi, Lehi, and Laman before we heard their names!  It's hard to make a movie out of a book (regardless of whether it's a book of fiction or scripture or history), but this is the best attempt I've seen coming out of scripture (with the possible exception of The Prince of Egypt from 1998).

It's worthy of a few of my nitpicks, which I do whenever I find something worthy to nitpick:
- Ain't no camels mentioned in the BoM.
- Lehi's "house" - sort of small, compared to the image I've had in my head for years, of his household consisting of various extended relatives and servants and hired hands and whatnot.

 

[Ahab]

Awesome!  18 minutes and good quality.  We make such good videos in our Church!  

I wonder about people who play the bad parts, though.  How do they feel, I wonder, when they are asked to play roles like that of Laman and Lemeul, for example.

You would be so good for it!  You're practically a natural for the part!

And they all do look like they are fit for the part.  I would just rather play the role of a Nephi than the role of a Laman or a Lemuel.

[smac97]

17 minutes ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

Yay!  Not cheezy!  Not low-production values!  Not bad acting!  Not painful to watch at all.  I picked out Nephi, Lehi, and Laman before we heard their names!  It's hard to make a movie out of a book (regardless of whether it's a book of fiction or scripture or history), but this is the best attempt I've seen coming out of scripture (with the possible exception of The Prince of Egypt from 1998).

I really like Prince of Egypt.  Its only blemish is "Playing with the Big Boys" (and the portrayals of Hotep/Huy generally).

17 minutes ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

It's worthy of a few of my nitpicks, which I do whenever I find something worthy to nitpick:
- Ain't no camels mentioned in the BoM.

Wouldn't that be a reasonable extrapolation, though?

Thanks,

-Smac

[smac97]

1 minute ago, Ahab said:

Awesome!  18 minutes and good quality.  We make such good videos in our Church!  

I wonder about people who play the bad parts, though.  How do they feel, I wonder, when they are asked to play roles like that of Laman and Lemeul, for example.

You would be so good for it!  You're practically a natural for the part!

And they all do look like they are fit for the part.  I would just rather play the role of a Nephi than the role of a Laman or a Lemuel.

My sister-in-law played a small role in these videos (Zoram's wife, IIRC).  She's had some interesting stories to tell about the production.

Thanks,

-Smac

[Kenngo1969]

8 minutes ago, Ahab said:

Awesome!  18 minutes and good quality.  We make such good videos in our Church!  

I wonder about people who play the bad parts, though.  How do they feel, I wonder, when they are asked to play roles like that of Laman and Lemeul, for example.

You would be so good for it!  You're practically a natural for the part!

And they all do look like they are fit for the part.  I would just rather play the role of a Nephi than the role of a Laman or a Lemuel.

We can always hope that those folks are cast "against type."  That's why they call it "acting."😀

[Kenngo1969]

8 minutes ago, smac97 said:

My sister-in-law played a small role in these videos (Zoram's wife, IIRC).  She's had some interesting stories to tell about the production.

Thanks,

-Smac

Ohhh, come onnnnn!  I hate it when something I really want to know about is just "teased"!!! 😀

[bluebell]

11 minutes ago, smac97 said:

My sister-in-law played a small role in these videos (Zoram's wife, IIRC).  She's had some interesting stories to tell about the production.

Thanks,

-Smac

I would love to hear some of the them.

[Bernard Gui]

21 minutes ago, Kenngo1969 said:

We can always hope that those folks are cast "against type."  That's why they call it "acting."😀

Wouldn't it be more realistic if Laman and Lemuel were cool hunks and Nephi was just a regular guy? 

[Stargazer]

1 hour ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

Yay!  Not cheezy!  Not low-production values!  Not bad acting!  Not painful to watch at all.  I picked out Nephi, Lehi, and Laman before we heard their names!  It's hard to make a movie out of a book (regardless of whether it's a book of fiction or scripture or history), but this is the best attempt I've seen coming out of scripture (with the possible exception of The Prince of Egypt from 1998).

It's worthy of a few of my nitpicks, which I do whenever I find something worthy to nitpick:
- Ain't no camels mentioned in the BoM.
- Lehi's "house" - sort of small, compared to the image I've had in my head for years, of his household consisting of various extended relatives and servants and hired hands and whatnot.

 

Haven't yet watched this, but as for camels, just because the BoM doesn't mention camels, doesn't mean they weren't present.  If you were to write something about your life, describing a journey you took into town to get groceries, you may or may not mention your car.  "I went into town today to pick up some groceries."  One of your far future readers, who has never seen a car (because they use teleportation instead), either imagines you walking to town, or popping over to the teleportation pad.  And then when some guy comes out with the dreamie version of your story, there's this boxlike thingamajig with big puffy wheels that you get into and drive.  She's thinking, "He never mentioned these "cars" things!  What's up with that?"

Also, when Nephi was writing this stuff, he's not writing on his laptop using MS Word with all the cool editing features, he's either writing on parchment, papyrus or for goodness sake, a gold alloy, and when it comes to talking about camels he's thinking: "Heck, why bother mentioning camels? Everyone knows about camels, duh, and what idiot would think we flipping walked all the way to Bountiful? Just leave it out, dude."  I also note that there's very little information about the foods they took along.  Are we to assume that they didn't eat on their journey to the New World?  Of course not.

Edited September 20, 2019 by Stargazer

[LoudmouthMormon]

45 minutes ago, smac97 said:

Quote

It's worthy of a few of my nitpicks, which I do whenever I find something worthy to nitpick:
- Ain't no camels mentioned in the BoM.

Wouldn't that be a reasonable extrapolation, though?

 

4 minutes ago, Stargazer said:

as for camels, just because the BoM doesn't mention camels, doesn't mean they weren't present. 

 

You both saw me explicitly say I was nitpicking, right?  I don't have many guilty pleasures, please don't deprive me of this one. 

 

I'd never be caught dead nitpicking Johnny Lingo or the 2003 Book of Mormon Movie.  But this new production is worthy.

[Stargazer]

11 minutes ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

 

 

You both saw me explicitly say I was nitpicking, right?  I don't have many guilty pleasures, please don't deprive me of this one. 

Not depriving you!  Just exercising my own right to nit pick your nitpicking!!  

11 minutes ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

 

I'd never be caught dead nitpicking Johnny Lingo or the 2003 Book of Mormon Movie.  But this new production is worthy.

I agree.

[Ahab]

53 minutes ago, Stargazer said:

I also note that there's very little information about the foods they took along.  Are we to assume that they didn't eat on their journey to the New World?  Of course not.

He did mention something about eating jerky, though.  Meat the "Lord" made sweet that wasn't cooked.  Didn't say what flavor it was, though, or what it had in it, so I'm thinking maybe teriyaki or peppered or just "plain" like what I usually eat.

With maybe a carrot or some corn on the cob or some other veggie every now and then.

I suppose we'll probably see some of that in one of the next videos.

Edited September 20, 2019 by Ahab

[Amulek]

1 hour ago, smac97 said:

My sister-in-law played a small role in these videos (Zoram's wife, IIRC).  She's had some interesting stories to tell about the production.

I learned from my wife, who's apparently (though not surprisingly) better socially connected to my own relatives than I am, that I'm related to the actress who plays Abish. I've heard nothing but good things relating to the production, and she has shared some nice personal stories as well. 

 

[Kenngo1969]

1 hour ago, Ahab said:

Awesome!  18 minutes and good quality.  We make such good videos in our Church!  

I wonder about people who play the bad parts, though.  How do they feel, I wonder, when they are asked to play roles like that of Laman and Lemeul, for example.

You would be so good for it!  You're practically a natural for the part!

And they all do look like they are fit for the part.  I would just rather play the role of a Nephi than the role of a Laman or a Lemuel.

 

1 hour ago, Kenngo1969 said:

We can always hope that those folks are cast "against type."  That's why they call it "acting."😀

 

1 hour ago, Bernard Gui said:

Wouldn't it be more realistic if Laman and Lemuel were cool hunks and Nephi was just a regular guy? 

Son, I'm a-feared that Arnold Friberg already done let that thar harse outta tha barn!    (Speaking of "playing to type" ... )

Edited September 20, 2019 by Kenngo1969

[Ahab]

1 hour ago, Bernard Gui said:

Wouldn't it be more realistic if Laman and Lemuel were cool hunks and Nephi was just a regular guy? 

I don't see anything cool about men who reject the teachings of God or who don't put in the effort to find out what God actually teaches when they don't know for sure for themselves.

Whining, whimpering, stubborn obstinate neanderthals (people born in Europe a long time ago) is an image that springs to my mind when I consider men, or males, who act like Laman or Lemuel.

[stemelbow]

3 hours ago, LoudmouthMormon said:

Yay!  Not cheezy!  Not low-production values!  Not bad acting!  Not painful to watch at all.  I picked out Nephi, Lehi, and Laman before we heard their names!  It's hard to make a movie out of a book (regardless of whether it's a book of fiction or scripture or history), but this is the best attempt I've seen coming out of scripture (with the possible exception of The Prince of Egypt from 1998).

 

I"m not a qualified critic of such things, but I'm feeling like you and I watched different things.  All I saw was cheesy, low-productions value, bad acting, and something that was really painful to watch.  Ah well, we're all different, I guess.  

[stemelbow]

2 hours ago, smac97 said:

My sister-in-law played a small role in these videos (Zoram's wife, IIRC).  She's had some interesting stories to tell about the production.

Thanks,

-Smac

By all means share with us.  Why tease us with a "I know someone who saw things"?  

[Scott Lloyd]

From the narration:

”Based on actual events as recorded in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.”  

Those who profess belief in the Book of Mormon while rejecting its historicity might have heartburn over that. But I’m glad to see it reaffirmed here. Can’t happen often enough, say I. 

Edited September 20, 2019 by Scott Lloyd

[JAHS]

Opinions;
When Lehi said he saw God sitting on His Throne, is that meant to be literal or figurative? Was He really sitting on a throne? 

[Scott Lloyd]

1 minute ago, JAHS said:

Opinions;
When Lehi said he saw God sitting on His Throne, is that meant to be literal or figurative? Was He really sitting on a throne? 

Do you mean is that literally what Lehi beheld, or is Lehi himself speaking figuratively to convey what he actually saw?

[SettingDogStar]

6 minutes ago, JAHS said:

Opinions;
When Lehi said he saw God sitting on His Throne, is that meant to be literal or figurative? Was He really sitting on a throne? 

I think it was literal to Lehi. Is there a real throne? Probably not. Unless SpaceShip Celestial Earth has a captains chair I see no reason for a literal throne. Lehi recognizes it as symbol of power and glory, so that’s what the Lord most likely showed him.