We do not know for sure if the project signed by C. J. Miles was inspired by the recent social and political context, but certainly, the message it conveys comes as a kind of oasis of tranquillity in the midst of an extremely turbulent period. ‘WHAT A BEAUTIFUL GOD‘ is not, however, what we might call a conventional animation, despite the visual effects signed by Anikmhamud. Rather, it has the appearance of a motivational video structured around a few quotations taken from the Holy Bible or belonging to several personalities devoted to the Christian religion. In addition, the music signed by Clayton Bruce Willis becomes a kind of backbone of the whole project that not only supports the slow transition of the sequences but also creates a peaceful reverie-like atmosphere, urging the viewer to a moment of contemplation.
The result is not spectacular, nor does it aim to be like that. This is because the director consciously avoids the mechanisms of the cinematic language per se, without exposing ideas or emotions through a concrete narrative. We do not dive into a fictional experience, and we do not interact with a character who leads us throughout the story. In fact, the project seems more like a therapeutic act for the director, an impulse to reconsider Christian values at a time when spirituality is facing a severe crisis. Obviously, such a goal has its followers and opponents, and each viewer is invited to judge the product, depending not only on their expectations and tastes but also on their own religious beliefs. At the same time, the simplicity of the project can be seen both as a quality by those who are looking for a disconnecting experience and as a defect that imposes a certain monotony on the whole product. But what some of us would call structural risks, for C. J. Miles these become rather secondary issues. In other words, ‘WHAT A BEAUTIFUL GOD’ is a project designed especially for those who have a predetermined affinity with the message displayed, which, far from astonishing, impressing or shocking the spectator through its “originality”, offers to the one who has “eyes to see and ears to hear” a moment of calmness in the middle of a world invaded by noise.
Share:
