The Case for Christ (2007 Video) User Reviews

Answers questions but lacks in style

[dagger1504 · 8/10 · 1 October 2010]

I'm sure many people watch this movie and even read the books to find answers for their questions...well here they are. Strobel asks many experts with a very lengthy education on the subject these tough and widely pondered problems about the New Testament and they give you some very reasonable answers. Of course, all-in-all it really will require faith but this movie will help you to understand the basis of your faith.

If you are a Christian this movie is sure to help you grow stronger in your faith and even motivate you to do further research. If you are not a Christian be sure to watch with an open-mind and further in your own personal research.

The only bad thing I have to say about this documentary is the style. I don't know what was up with he introductions to all the people being interviewed but it just came off as corny. I was a little disappointed that it looked as if this film was made specifically for church groups instead of a more "Hollywood" type movie. If you look past all that the interviews and questions being answered are still there.

GOOD ... But My "DE-MAN-SPLAINING CHRISTIANITY WILL BE MUCH BETTER!

[Erin50266 · 7/10 · 10 April 2023]

Why? Because as informative as all the male scholars were, why no women? (And these were the best you could find? Thanks for no RC priests though, truly!) Just because all the scriptures were written by Jewish men, not to mention just for Jewish men, in the beginning? Which is where Christianity started to go wrong; about 5 minutes after Jesus ascended into heaven. The Jewish men were unhappy with God's 'only' 10 laws, so they had to make a bunch more. But to have been told that now they only had 2?! Oh, horrors! Enter organized religion, hypocrisy, and corruption.

Doesn't it matter that most 'eyewittnesses', especially any of the original 12 or 70, middle-aged in 33 a.d. Roman life expectancy was 40 tops. So how could they have been original source writers? Even John is a stretch. (BTW, the Book of Revelation is about the fall of ROME. That's all they were concerned about-why do you think Jesus was murdered via politically? Paul really shouldn't be trusted as he is mainly Christianity's 'marketing man'. An unbeliever should look to Flavius Josephus, et al for true history and if one follows Jesus and believes HE IS THE RISEN LORD, faith.

48 is really gr8!!! Blessed Easter 2023.

brilliantly done

[theurchin · 10/10 · 2 January 2008]

Lee Strobel's book is considered to be a masterpiece by one and all. acclaimed authors like Ravi Zacharaias and others have given it an APOLOGETICS TOOL status. now thats something big for a book. the documentary or the video doesn't disappoint. it sounds like a boring thing but trust me its sharp, smart and intelligent. the matter is good and something that other books haven't explored or dwelled with. visually the documentary is brilliant. its appealing and the locales and pictures just add to the excellent material. the camera work though simple, adds that extra bit to the documentary. its informative and explores other areas besides just a Christian's perspective of Christ. the screenplay is fast and gritty and keeps you hooked on to the on goings. great stuff, can be viewed again and again. and above all it does what it set out to do - be a tool for evangelism

Honest answers to honest questions

[locoowl · 10/10 · 29 January 2008]

I have not read the book, although I had heard of it.

This is a documentary about one man's search for answers to the major questions in life : Is there a God; is Jesus for real; is Christianity true.

Strobel asks honest questions and lined up quite a few of the top Biblical and historical scholars to find his answers. He was also honest enough to go wherever the evidence led. That is a far cry from those who already have their mind made up and just seek to get support for their position.

There were some hard questions asked and some very good answers given. If the book is anything like the documentary, it will be well worth reading.

Made for a Christian audience, unfortunately

[ajpinker · 5/10 · 8 January 2011]

I'm a Christian viewer and sorry to say that Strobel's film version of 'The Case For Christ' will be barely watchable for anyone not already dabbling with Christian theology. Antagonists to faith will find none of the featured historical "experts" trustworthy or convincing, given that every face appears linked to a seminary or church. Could they really not find any Atheist professionals who would both agree on these historical points AND offer their likenesses to the film? Sad either way...

Strobel's own dramatic journey seems woefully underplayed and underutilized as well. Rather than taking us through the hard questions and arguments in his own atheist checklist, he simply splashes around in the theological shallow end -- the serious parties (intellectuals and science- types) won't find his History Lite bold or dedicated enough at all.

A nice idea based on an effective book, but the movie's just too much a pep rally. I would be far more interested to see this revised for a strictly irreligious audience.

Lee Strobel puts Jesus on trial. Oh my!

[reade-1 · 18 September 2009]

There are countless people of good faith who require no proof of Jesus' divinity. But Lee Strobel isn't one of them. Strobel isn't the first person to put Jesus' divinity on trial, but why would we want another bite of that apple?

Courtroom trials don't determine "truth", they don't even have much influence on public opinion. J.O. Simpson and Lizzie Borden were both acquitted of murder, but would you be willing to data either one of them? Anne Boleyn was convicted of adultery and beheaded. But most historians will tell you she was innocent and that her only crime was that Henry VIII tired of her.

Strobel says that Jesus rose from the dead, not because it adds value to his life or provides him with comfort. He believes in the resurrection because he can't imagine that eye witness testimony could be wrong or that oral traditions could be corrupted. When people require proof, of what value is their faith?

Propaganda masquerading as a documentary

[tashikitten · 1/10 · 24 December 2010]

I watched this "documentary" last night with my friend Tom. I spent most of the time grunting in painful disbelief, having "wha...?"s dragged out of me, and bursting out laughing. Mostly it just made me angry because the "research" that went into this can hardly be called such. It is criminally lazy, one-sided, and even the side they present isn't presented well. I've had more convincing conversations with Christian friends who aren't so-called "experts". The people in this film bring up questions only to gloss over them. At certain points, they even unintentionally manage to make the argument AGAINST Christ. Even many of the Christians who reviewed this on Netflix think it is terrible (it got an overall 1.5 - out of 5 - star rating). I like the first Netflix review, by lostboy, a self-proclaimed Christian, who gives the film an amazing 3 pity stars, and then proceeds to take the film apart (and really does a better job of it than I ever could). Another review, by a non-Christian, gives it 4 (?!?!?) stars and then trashes the one-sided aspects and lack of objectivity. I can't imagine this film even convincing Christians experiencing a crisis of faith. It is nothing but amazingly poorly executed propaganda. It's too bad, too, because it would be fascinating to see a film about an actual atheist (and this guy couldn't convince us that he had ever been one) who did actual research, and got ALL viewpoints, and was converted. That would be amazing. This was crap. I wish I'd been drinking, but then I would have been laughing so hard, we never would have finished it. One star, but only because I can't give it fewer. How on earth does this film have a 7 star IMDb rating?

Inbreeding in Investigation

[arieliondotcom · 3/10 · 24 October 2010]

I'm a Baptist minister & a Christian but I was turned off by this "documentary" because it exclusively uses Christians as the critics. That's like asking a drunk if someone should stop drinking. It makes the whole thing just silly. Not to mention that the whole reason the "investigation" was started was because his wife was a Christian. So he had a vested interest in supporting the Christian beliefs.

I became a Christian as a result of hearing Erich Von Daniken's book "God is an Astraonaut" I said "I can make a million bucks writing a graphic novel about all those Bible studies really being visits by aliens!" But I had to read the Bible so I got one that was supposed to be pluralistic and said outloud to any aliens, gods or whatever, "I want to know the Truth, whomever & whatever that is!" Before I finished reading it through the first time I met and fell in love with Jesus Christ. The rest is history. :0) But what convinced me was statements in the Bible itself like there being 500 eyewitnesses at the time these things were written who never contradicted it.

If you're a Christian this might feel like an inspiring documentary. But if you're not a Christian read the Bible for yourself notas told to you by Christians. Ask GOD to show Himself to you as you do & be prepared!

Starts with misinformation, and doesn't stop

[dresdendollar · 1/10 · 25 November 2010]

Immediately after this movie showed up in my video streaming service of choice, I felt I had to watch this, just to get the other side of the story. Not 5 minutes in, this film starts with an incorrect definition of atheism, one which loads itself with implications that "God" exists. "One who denies the existence of God" is the definition given. Already this "Documentary" is stating its position, that "God" exists, and that atheists are merely "denying" his existence.

The gospels are later described as eyewitness accounts, despite being written decades after the deaths of the attributed authors.

The movie continues to spout blatant falsehoods, and outright lie until you get sick of it and turn it off. 1/10

Is the Bible the Only Source of Information about Jesus?

[Urantia · 5/10 · 13 February 2011]

Documentaries about Jesus typically offer more questions than answers. This one was no exception (although it was better than I expected it to be). For me, even the Synoptic Gospels never sufficiently answered my questions about Jesus. It was more like reading excerpts from an unfinished story that inevitably triggered additional questions the answers to which were not to be found anywhere in the Bible. All of my questions about Jesus (along with other philosophically challenging questions about God and the universe we live in) were finally answered when I was fortunate enough many years ago to come across a copy of The Urantia Book (aka The Urantia Papers). As the most recent epochal revelation of divine truth bestowed upon our planet (but don't take my word for that...read it and judge for yourself before making a determination about what it is or is not), 77 of its 196 Papers are devoted exclusively to The Life and Teachings of Jesus. I recall being repeatedly scolded by more than one nun in my youth when I would ask things such as: Why do the Gospels jump from Jesus as a kid in the Temple around age 12 or so to Jesus as a full grown adult in his mid-30s? What happened to Jesus during those intervening years? In response to these and other thought-provoking questions I persistently asked, I was often told God did not want me to know those things. They wanted me to just shut up and smile and be blissfully content on the outside whilst on the inside I choked upon their fossilized versions of tainted truth without rebelliously questioning either the actual source of their dead-dogma doctrines or their primitive Gestapo-methods of using fear and intimidation and even occasionally physical violence to exert their Nazi-like mind-control over those of us who were unfortunate enough to have become their intellectual prisoners. To paraphrase, they were utterly clueless when confronted by the curiosity of a child. I thank God who has graciously seen fit to provide me with unlimited access to detailed records of those missing years in the life of Jesus along with more complete versions of His final days in the flesh that are covered elsewhere.

Recounts information we already know

[b-suss · 31 January 2013]

In this documentary, the filmmaker rounds up a bunch of experts, many of whom are priests, pastors, or divinity professors, and presumes that these are unbiased experts who can help determine the validity of claims made by the bible. Their research tells them that everything in the bible is true, and hearing voice after voice make these affirmations we are supposed to be convinced that Jesus was actually God. It is a defense without an opposing argument. It is an artificial consensus.

They say that all the claims made about Jesus are true because there are eyewitnesses, and that is irrefutable proof. Eyewitnesses who passed teachings down by generations is irrefutable if you believe these experts and would stand up in a court of law. Not really. There are many eyewitnesses of UFO's, alien abductions, bigfoot. Yet who of these experts would consider that irrefutable.

So Jesus went around performing miracles, in a totally not magical way, and this was prophesied in the OT, therefore he is God. Look, I dunno, the universe is pretty big for one guy to create. So for me that left the Gnostic Gospels to believe in, which these experts dismiss as bull with no validity. Obviously there is some basis for Christianity or else billions of people wouldn't be believing in it, but just saying everything in the bible is true by experts isn't enough to convince anyone who isn't already convinced. This is merely a detailed recounting of information we already know: Because a tomb was empty, because people had visions of him, because people witnessed him perform miracles, because this was prophesied, he must be the Son of God.. This proves nothing.

4/10