By Guy Lodge
According To The variety If all you know or remember of the eponymous biblical character’s story is that he defeated a hulking giant with a humble slingshot, then “David” might have some surprises in store for you — chief among them, the fact that the film continues for a full hour after this famous, seemingly climactic showdown. But the films of Angel Studios, by and large, are not for audiences only vaguely acquainted with the Bible, and this surprisingly slick animated feature will play best with viewers who can see its every narrative turn coming. That is a sizeable demographic: Released wide last weekend, Brent Dawes and Phil Cunningham‘s film overperformed notably at the box office, landing in the runner-up spot to “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” and aptly defeating relative toon Goliath “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants.” This is all a perfectly on-the-nose outcome for a tale preaching the message that one must never underestimate the modest and pious when they’re up against the wealthy and decadent. (Or whatever moral descriptor applies to SpongeBob.) But “David” attains its success by cribbing from the playbook of far mightier animation houses: There are shades here of Disney and DreamWorks — the latter’s scripture-based hit “The Prince of Egypt,” in particular — in everything from the film’s character design to its original song score, making for a proficient family entertainment that’s nonetheless a little too precision-engineered to feel truly stirring. Faith, “David” has in spades; soul, not so much. With Pixar-wide eyes and a mop of intricately tousled, treacle-brown hair, the young David (voiced by Brandon Engman) presents here as a plucky, intrepid moppet in the typical cartoon-hero mold. He’s introduced as a keen musician and lowly shepherd’s son, dutifully minding his father’s flock on the outskirts of Bethlehem, before swiftly launching into his generic “I want” song, the first of several peppily template-based but swiftly forgettable compositions by Grammy-winning Christian artist Jonas Myrin. Like any cutely drawn protagonist in his position, he yearns for bigger things, though he gets more than he bargained for when — after valiantly protecting his sheep from a preying lion — he’s summoned before the Prophet Samuel (Brian Stivale), who anoints the nonplussed lad the future king of Israel. Meanwhile, the present king, the insecure and short-tempered Saul (Adam Michael Gold), is facing rejection by God and a declaration of war by preening Philistine monarch King Achish (British comedian Asim Chaudhry, offering something of a throwback to limp-wristed comic stereotypes). Enter David, brought into Saul’s court to soothe the king’s anxieties with his deft lyre-playing, though the tyke soon proves an unexpected military asset: Cue the famed face-off against Goliath, which is quite dazzlingly staged in a vast field of scarlet poppies, petals spraying like confetti when the iceberg-sized monster hits the ground.
Taking place around the 50-minute mark, this scene proves both the narrative and aesthetic peak of a film that, clocking in at an indifferently paced 110 minutes, could test the patience of younger children. Everything that happens after, as David grows into a strapping, stout-hearted man (now voiced by Christian singer-songwriter Phil Wickham) and eventually challenges Saul for the throne that is rightly his, is checked off in fairly rote fashion. Expanding on their 2023 Angel Studios miniseries “Young David,” Dawes and Cunningham obviously hew closely to the Book of Samuel — this isn’t the genre for significant creative license — but also to the familiar rules of any Hollywood hero’s journey.
None of which would be a debit if their David had a little more personality of his own, but he remains a stubbornly dull anchor for the film, bound by the generally humorless, declamatory tone of the writing. Supporting characters are similarly lacking in wit or detail, while the film’s vocal performances (save for Chaudhry’s odd caricature) are adequate but not especially distinctive. It follows that the faces on screen are perhaps the least characterful element of the film’s generally impressive visual design. Everything around them, however, is vividly realized, and occasionally even inspired. “David” is nothing if not a spectacular showcase for the technical capabilities of South African animation house Sunrise Productions — demonstrated here both at a large scale, in the palpably dusty, sun-scorched vistas of ancient Israel, and in small, supple glimmers of fire and water. One musical number, “Tapestry,” registers as a standout not for the song but for its visual treatment amid a busy weaving workshop overhung by cotton-candy bales of pastel-dyed wool. Indeed, textiles are perhaps the most consistent marvel of “David,” as even the ecru hessian of the title character’s shepherding smock is rendered with textured, tactile specificity. Reveling in the material may go somewhat against the film’s principles, but respecting the little things does not