The Book Of Clarence

The Book of Clarence was one of the first movies I wanted to go see this year. After watching the trailer I was sold. The cast, the director, the subject matter, and the premise enticed me from the jump. One thing that stood out to me immediately was how the movie started. It took away all the preconceived notions you could have going into the film. Then made you sit with that image sinking in your mind for the duration of the film. Jeymes Samuel is known for his creative storytelling. The Book of Clarence is no different.

This story follows Clarence the “13th Apostle” or what he would be later known as the “New Messiah”. He is skeptical in nature and has the desire to be a “somebody” like Jesus and his 12 disciples. This movie covers a lot of notable bible stories condensed into this fictional story. So with Clarence as the main protagonist, it brings some friction to the story. Because Clarence is someone who thinks knowledge is more powerful than belief. He thinks Jesus’s miracles are just tricks.

But after a little bit of brainstorming of the herbal variety. He has the brilliant idea that with some help he can recreate those same miracles. Well as you would expect things did change for Clarence but it came at a heavy price. I won’t get into specifics but things take a turn for the worse. Now what I will sat is the payoffs that are a byproduct of Clarence’s circumstance were elite.

This movie is good because of the way they used the setting and subject matter of the film. It enhanced the comedic effect of the film because the jokes have a way of lending themselves to the times. They found a way to ground the project. To put it simply they found a way to make a movie set in ancient times not feel dated. I do think this movie is a little too long but they make up for it in full-circle moment. Plus the amount of underlying messaging in the film was just the right amount.

Overall, this movie is super solid because for one the subject matter alone is tricky. But also the level of execution in the story and character development was one point. I’m super impressed by Lakeith Stanfield’s performance. And this movie was a really good watch.