Muhammad: The Last Prophet

A kid-oriented biopic of Islam's founder, presented with Hollywood-style animation, Muhammad: The Last Prophet was originally scheduled for U.S. theatrical release in early 2002 but then was pushed back until 2004 owing to perceived anti-Muslim sentiment in the wake of 9/11. Indifferently received—although it offers a reassuring, inclusive portrayal of Islam and its founder—the sincere and respectful Muhammad suffers because of religious taboo against visual depictions of its subject. The filmmakers attempt to work around this drawback by delegating much of the action to secondary characters, but when Muhammad must appear, the yarn switches to point-of-view shots that compromise the narrative flow in a manner some might find unintentionally humorous. Director Richard Rich (The Fox and the Hound) fully covers the prophet's life, beginning with his visit to a cave where he receives a vision from the Angel Gabriel. Returning to the city of Mecca, Muhammad preaches monotheism and charity, which alienates elders of the Kuraysh (the ruling body of pre-Islamic Arabia), eventually forcing the prophet and his followers to escape to Medina, where they wage several titanic battles against their persecutors before defeating them in the famous “Battle of the Ditch” and returning to Mecca in triumph. Brian Nissen's script, apparently vetted by Islamic scholars, is a bit too pious to make the film genuinely entertaining, and the subjective-camera technique injects a touch of unwanted whimsy that will at times remind viewers of a video game. Optional. (E. Hulse)