The Celestine Prophecy

James Redfield's hit novel has been adapted into a rather plastic, schlocky, action-adventure feature that moves so swiftly it's difficult to catch the New Age principles representing the heart of the author's work. Matthew Settle plays John, an unemployed history teacher who travels, more or less on a whim, to Peru to look into the discovery of ancient scrolls with “insights” about the next stage in human spiritual evolution. Once there, however, John discovers that the Catholic Church and Peruvian government have both conspired to try to suppress the information on the scrolls, which they believe threatens mainstream life, especially subservience to institutions. The hero quickly goes on the run with the scrolls, joining up with other “seekers” who head for the wilderness, along the way struggling to absorb the scrolls' lessons about the interconnectedness of reality, flow of energy, and so on. Unfortunately, the insights here are reduced to chatter in the ceaseless rush of B-movie action. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include a 26-minute “making-of” featurette, and trailers. Bottom line: a small extras package for a disappointing adaptation.] (T. Keogh)