Mattaniah Gibson Bunyan's work contains so much potential for a fantastic film- and this attempt just misses it. Where is the fight with Apollyon? This story is action packed, and in the hands of good director would be a visual masterpiece with a riveting story. This? It's garbage. It's slow, unexciting and visually appalling even for a late 70's production. Good grief, even the 50's animated version outdoes Anderson! Of course, all my fellow Christians will adore it because they like the message while completely missing the utter lack of artistic imagination.The actors are not inspiring- we need a protagonist who displays the variety of emotion described by Bunyan. I really wish a capable director had made this movie a few decades earlier and cast Jimmy Stewart as the main character. The choice of George Beverly Shea as the narrator doesn't help at all. Seriously, was there no one else willing to do this? The sets are equally uninspiring- the story is basically a walk in a lush green, tame countryside that never changes. This story begins with a man going stir-crazy and this garbage has him sounding apparently confused with a lovely English countryside behind him. They needed grit, drama, emotion and beauty. They delivered none of these.

meredithdevoe I live in Africa where this film is used in village outreaches and the crowds really respond to this film. The simplicity of it makes it cross- cultural, and the lack of special effects and "action" makes it understandable rather than dazzling to people who are not jaded... I have seen crowds burst into applause when Christian's burden rolls away at the foot of the cross. It really brings the message of God's grace to people, even children. And the final scene where Satan is pointing to gravestones saying "That one's mine, that one... how about you?" makes the message clear. If you are looking for entertainment, keep looking; but you should know this about the film: God is still using it!!

deacon_blues-3 I think that most of the other commentaries on this film are more concerned with PP as allegory and literature. What they fail to take into account is that this film, by contrast, is primarily concerned with taking the reality behind the allegory seriously. In this, it follows Bunyan himself, who would have been horrified by the prospect of literature students studying his little book as mere literature, when he himself was motivated by the same zeal that also motivated the makers of this film, namely, to save souls from hell! The film is narrated by George Beverly Shea (Dr. Billy Graham's favorite baritone vocalist). Ken Anderson Films is a shamelessly evangelical Christian ministry. I myself first saw this film (and Liam Neeson as well) at a Baptist Church movie night. I was much impressed by both the spiritual content of the story and the arresting screen presence of Neeson, whom anyone could see was headed for stardom. Granting that the production is extremely low-budget, and the acting is quite amateurish at best (except for Neeson, of course). The film is faithful to the message of the book, although condensed into a very abridged format. I applaud the filmmakers for keeping their dramatic devices simple and unsophisticated, as Bunyan himself would have approved. Their point was always the universal plight of the sinful human soul, and it's salvation through the Word of God and the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, not artfully reproducing each minute literary detail of Bunyan's allegory. My candid advice to the other commentators on this film: please be gracious enough to allow real Christians who care about the true purpose of Bunyan's book to use it as it was intended without harsh criticism. PP is not mere literature, it's only worth is in service to the gospel of the living Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. When you study it as mere literature, you do it and John Bunyan's memory a great disservice, as he would tell you himself if he were here.

bubbles_horwitz This has to be one of the worst films ever made. I just finished watching this film in literature class after studying the book. How they were ever able to get this film from such a great book is well beyond me. The acting is abysmal, the direction poor, and the writing is some of the worst I have ever heard. The way the devil just pops in and out of scenes is very much like a power rangers episode. The dialogue between the characters is laughable. A lot of the characters seem flamboyantly homosexual when they're not supposed to be. Not even Liam Neeson saves this film from the dustbin. Don't w.a.s.t.e. your time with the movie, read the book instead.