Fabulous Bible movies

Now I have to say that 3 of these movies are absolutly great, but the genesis one is a stinker! Esther, Jeremiah and Soloman are all dramatisations of the Biblical stories with great actors who put in brilliant performances. Genesis is a bunch of weird looking guys just walking around with a boring narration. And the narration does not even match what is on screen half the time. If Ed Wood did a Biblical epic it would look like Genesis!

Ok, glad I got that off my chest. Buy the box set, use Genesis for a frisbee!

God made him strong, women made him weak

A romanticized but quite accurate account of what is written in I Kings and II Chronicles, this made-for-television film is exceptional and boasts a brilliant international cast and fabulous settings.
Filmed in Quarzazate, Morocco, the landscapes are wonderful, and the buildings and set decoration, in warm amber shades, are a visual delight, enhanced by the cinematography of Raffaele Mertes. The terrific score by Patrick Williams also adds much to the atmosphere.

The section devoted to the Queen of Sheba has been embelished, but Viveca A. Fox is ravishing as the queen, and it makes for great drama.
The emphasis on this part is to show Solomon's destructive tendencies; women were his weakness, and the rationalizations for his behavior his undoing. From Adam to modern history, it's a common story, but in the case of Solomon, what he gave up for his weakness was God's mighty blessing, and the inheritance he would leave his heirs.

Ben Cross ("Chariots of Fire") as this complex character is marvelous, and he is surrounded by a superb supporting cast. Though it's hard to take the nordic air from Max von Sydow (who in 1965 played Jesus in "The Greatest Story Ever Told"), he is nevertheless an aging giant of a man as King David, and France's great Anouk Aimee plays Solomon's mother Bathsheba with vigor, as she holds on to the reins of power with tenacity.
Other notable performances come from David Suchet (who was so good in the 1998 "The Perfect Murder") as Joab, Ivan Kaye as Solomon's half-brother Adonijah, and Richard Dillane as the laborer who ultimately rules ten of the twelve tribes, Jeroboam. Even the smallest parts are believable, which reflects on the excellent direction by Roger Young.
This is a Bible epic well worth owning for repeated viewing; some of it is poetic, some of it action-packed, often inspiring and thought provoking, and always fascinating.

Accurate

Overall these are very accurate. I would like to point out, that many biblical scholars believe that Solomon did in fact marry the queen of Sheba. This is based on the history of the nation of Sheba (aka Ethiopia) and although the Bible dosen't explicitly say that they were married, there is nothing in Scripture that would contradict it. In fact the people of the Ethiopian nation were followers of the Jewish faith, that is why the Ethiopian enuch in Acts is reading from the Old Testament. According to the history of that country Solomon and the queen had a son and he sent priests and Levites to train him in the faith. This isn't somthing that the films makers made up.

Esther and Jeremiah are also very accurate, but I thought that Genesis was a little slow. It is mainly narative. After the story of the Creation it could have been acted out.