The Moment After 2: The Awakening

The first “The Moment After” movie was a popular seller on DVD that instantly became a hit with believers (and maybe some non-believers). Now the story of those left behind continues seven years later with the second chapter of the series. Wow! Seven years for a sequel. That’s almost the length of the Rapture. (Ha-ha. I made a funny!)

The film picks up two years after, as we follow former FBI agent Adam Riley (David A.R. White), now an inmate on Death Row and being driven to his execution. He escapes federal custody when the global patrol drivers are shot dead during a dramatic escape, and is reunited with his old friend Jacob Krause (Brad Heller).

The military, now led by Commander Fredericks (Monte Rex Perlin) wants help in bringing Adam and his band of believers to justice. Fredericks forces Charles Baker (Kevin Downes), Adam’s former FBI partner and disgraced agent, to infiltrate the group and to send Adam back to Death Row. Charles hesitates, but doesn’t have a choice when Fredericks tells him that his “believer” wife Rebecca (DeAnne Bonneau) has recently been arrested. Fredericks makes a simple promise to Charles: If Charles leads him to both Adam and the small band of believers, his wife is free to go.

As with this installment, subplots are involved. The first follows a ragtag group of militia, led by “Captain” Jackson (Lonnie Colon), as they attempt to spy on the believers and steal Bibles for their own personal gain, and this subplot I found confusing. A little less with the second which involves a new character named Cassie (Andrea Logan White), Adam’s ex-girlfriend who has now moved on and married her believer husband Richard (Mark Atteberry). Certain questions came up when viewing both: Why wasn’t she mentioned in the original? What happened to their relationship off the field? What are the militia's true objective, and what hopes do they accomplish in stealing the Bibles? Questions like these are explored in the movie, but never fully answered.

As a film reviewer, these are better films, talking about these subjects, than the “Left Behind” films, and I wished it had gone longer than 90 minutes (these are the direct-to-video norm, the only exception I’ve seen so far are “Species III” and “Guyver 2: Dark Hero,” as they both clock in below or over the two hour mark). This movie is a strong recommendation for Christians because it influences the positive messages found in the original, but there are some over-the-top moments. There is, however, a scene in which Adam and Jacob argue over the validity of Jesus’ word, and both are chosen to try and forgive Charles for the things he did to both of them, but overall I find nothing objectionable in the delivery of Christ’s teachings.

The production values are good, and the actors are wonderful. David A.R. White and Brad Heller are good in their respected roles, as the latter shows a powerful affection to the spirit of both God and the Savior. Monte Perlin is outstanding and believable in his role. The final battle between Adam and Commander Fredericks provides some great suspenseful moments, but the cliffhanger is very weak. Ending aside, this is still a fairly descent sequel that overall improved on the production and storyline quality of the original.

Extra Tidbit: The original subtitle for the movie was “Sleepers Awake.”

Violence: Mild / Profanity: Minor / Sex/Nudity: None

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