the encounter christian movie review

The Encounter

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Here’s what the distributor says about their film: “Stranded in the middle of nowhere five strangers find themselves marooned in a deserted roadside diner. An arrogant businessman (Steve “Sting” Borden), a lonely single woman (Jaci Velazquez), a couple on the verge of divorce , and a youthful runaway all come face to face with a diner owner who serves them more than temporal nourishment. This genial host is a certain Nazarene (Bruce Marchiano), who knows all of their secrets and possesses the answers to all of their problems—if only they would trust him. It is a miraculous Encounter that will leave them all changed.”

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9 Life-changing Lessons From The Encounter 1

Written by Sean Paul Murphy and Timothy Ratajczak,  and directed by David A. R. Wnile,  The Encounter Part One is one of the most refreshing Christian moviess I have watched in a long time that touched on real life situations people face, and how God takes a tough decision to allow certain things to come their way so that they might be saved.

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Powerful lessons. I’ve watched the movie before and it was great.

I watched the movie and I enjoyed it. But av to admit dese lessons never occurred to me… Tnx for sharing… U r genius

Thanks Dora, glad I did share it. Kindly always grab a message from each movie you watch.

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The encounter.

2010 Directed by David A.R. White

When five strangers with nothing in common come together at a remote roadside eatery, they place their orders with the diner's omniscient owner, who seems to know everything about them ... and is eerily reminiscent of Jesus Christ.

Bruce Marchiano Jaci Velasquez Steve Borden Jessica Belkin David A.R. White Kass Connors Madison Gibney Jamie Nieto Danah Davis Williams Elizabeth Ince

Director Director

David A.R. White

Producers Producers

David A.R. White Andrea Logan White Sean Paul Murphy Timothy Ratajczak Bradley Dorsey Russell Wolfe Elizabeth Hatcher-Travis Byron Jones Brittany Yost Michael Scott

Writers Writers

Sean Paul Murphy Timothy Ratajczak Jason Cusick Michael Scott Steve Taylor

Casting Casting

Billy DaMota

Editor Editor

Sean Paul Murphy

Cinematography Cinematography

Darren Rydstrom

Assistant Directors Asst. Directors

Thomas Zellen Marc Davies

Executive Producers Exec. Producers

Jay Allen Richardson Tom Saab Leonard Samia Carl G.M. Nelson Joanna Reiad Matthew Reiad Timothy Reiad

Lighting Lighting

Taavi Lehtimaki

Production Design Production Design

Steve Ochoa Mona Nahm

Composers Composers

Matt Gates Ido Waksman

Sound Sound

Greg Miller Randy Lawson

Costume Design Costume Design

Cami Nemanich

Makeup Makeup

Andie Michaels Amber Rae

Pure Flix Entertainment God & Country Productions Mission Pictures International

Alternative Titles

O caminho para a eternidade, A találkozás - The Encounter, O Caminho Para a Eternidade, Spotkanie, A találkozás, El Encuentro, O Caminho para a Eternidade

Drama Family

Faith and religion Faith and spiritual journeys Religious faith, sin, and forgiveness Show All…

Releases by Date

03 may 2010, 26 jul 2012, releases by country.

• Theatrical livre

85 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Zā ½ 1

My boyfriend can no longer hold mother! over my head after making me watch this.

Review by valerie ★½

watched this in class with my friend ... holy shit i wish i could meet jesus in the diner too

Review by Emilio ★★★½

What if Jesus appeared to you in person?

That's the question that The Encounter asks us and this film is actually one of the better Christian films. Some of the acting is a little on the rough side, but the story, which takes place in a contained setting (a diner during a rainstorm) manages to be quite claustrophobic, but I have a soft spot for films that (mostly) take place in one location.

Obviously, films like 12 Angry Men and Reservoir Dogs mastered that trope and by no means am I saying that this low-budget movie is anywhere near the heights set by those classic films. But, what I really like is that I was drawn into the film and thought it did a good job telling this story.

Review by YourFaceNAHalf ★★

This movie was pretty terrible. Acting was not the greatest, and I wanted to up and leave for the last half hour. There was a twist, though, so that’s that, I guess. Don’t really even feel like talking about this. It was bad.

Review by Nick Morrow ★★★★★

“My wife just left me. Thanks a lot, Jesus!”

Watched with online Bible study

Review by Alyx Rosas ★★★★★

This movie made me realize how easily I would be drawn into a cult by a charismatic leader.

Review by Rem Lezar

Jesus runs a diner and gives me real anxiety as he takes/declares his customers' dinner orders and then takes no further steps to get the food made. As someone who worked in the service industry for years, I think this alone is a real feat––I can't think of any other movie that I've seen that makes me feel like this. The shortest any of the orders takes is 35 minutes in actual runtime, which seems to be pretty close to "real" movie time but is possibly even longer. And that's just for a burger and a salad! At a diner for christ's sake.

Anyway, a good chunk of the movie is Jesus trying to convince his 6 patrons that he…

Review by ComeOutAndPlay_ ½

Look, I know pureflix films weren't known for their subtlety, but this one really took the cake.....

Review by Amalia

Need to rewatch soon

Review by Nate Miller ½

I will say this actually isn’t a bad idea for a movie but this movie was BAD. 

I don’t identify as a Christian myself but I’ve seen some really good Christian movies like Breakthough and Jesus Revolution. This though is god awful. (No pun intended) 

So Jesus was kind of a dick in this movies like he didn’t come of as genuine he came off as a judging know it all. Also one part was a shameless plug for Christian film festivals run by a specific person. Last why do these movies always kill the people who don’t believe in such awful ways? Between this and God’s Not Dead it’s just so hateful to see someone he killed because they…

Review by agatha ½

at some point i would ask jesus why he was taking so long to serve the food i ordered 1h ago like damn i’m hungry

Review by Justus ★★★

Officer DeVille? You know, D-E-V-I.... 😳

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Dove Review

What would you do if you found yourself in a diner and the proprietor told you he was Jesus? This story brings five people face to face with our Lord. He tells each one of them about their life, what He wants for them, and what they need to do. But do they believe and are they truly listening? Because what people want is not always what they need or what God wants for them.

This is an intriguing faith-filled story that will make every Christian stop and think about his or her own life. Filled with lessons for everyone, this is an inspirational story that will encourage those that may have fallen on hard times to examine the true condition of their lives. It also lets them know that the devil is always waiting on the sidelines to step in and have them follow him instead of the One that has all the answers. We are honored to award this film the Dove “Family-Approved” Seal for ages 12 and over due to the mature themes. It is quite a film.

Dove Rating Details

Woman hits man; man grabs another man; scene with young girl holding a gun to her head; discussion regarding a robbery where a man cut a girl; man gets into an accident.

A couple shares a kiss; discussion of implied past incest between young girl and step father.

H-as a place; all reference to Jesus, Christ and God is in reverence.

Woman discusses stealing pills; woman discusses mother being an addict.

Discussion regarding suicide; couple getting a divorce; greed; running away from home.

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Product Description

Dove Family Approved, awarded 4 out of 5 Doves and recommended for ages 12 and over.

"A Riveting, thought-provoking movie" --Tom Saab, CFFA "Straight Forward Must See Movie" --Christian Movies Direct

Product details

• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ NR (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.29 x 0.56 x 7.53 inches; 1.6 ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 893261001394
• Director ‏ : ‎ David A.R. White
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ Color, NTSC, Multiple Formats, Widescreen
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 25 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ May 3, 2011
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Steve Sting Borden, Bruce Marchiano, Jaci Velasquez
• Studio ‏ : ‎ Pure Flix Entertainment
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004RUEXVQ
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• #65 in Faith & Spirituality (Movies & TV)
• #2,561 in Drama DVDs

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The Christian Movies

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The Encounter

https://youtu.be/paMCMnjWLRE

• Description

The Encounter – Stranded in the middle of nowhere, five strangers find themselves marooned in a small deserted roadside diner. An arrogant businessman, (Steve “Sting” Borden), a lonely single woman, (Jaci Velasquez), a couple on the verge of divorce, and a youthful runaway, all come face to face with the dinner owner who serves them more than temporal nourishment. It is an inspirational and intriguing faith-filled family drama about these five people who are brought face to face with Jesus and encouraged to examine the true condition of their lives.

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The Encounter

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The Encounter (2010)

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When five strangers with nothing in common come together at a remote roadside eatery, they place their orders with the diner's omniscient owner, who seems to know everything about them ... and is eerily reminiscent of Jesus Christ.

David A.R. White

Michael Scott

Steve Taylor

Jason Cusick

Timothy Ratajczak

Sean Paul Murphy

Top Billed Cast

Bruce Marchiano

Jaci Velasquez

Steve Borden

Jessica Belkin

Kass Connors

Officer Deville/Devil

Madison Gibney

Jamie Nieto

Danah Davis Williams

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Original Language English

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Riz Ahmed kicks off his performance in this new film co-written and directed by Michael Pearce in high trauma mode. In a motel room in which the wallpaper seems to be sweating itself off, he kills gnarly looking bugs, conducts arcane research, sprays himself down with insect repellent. Who can blame him? A montage during the opening credits has shown us an alien invasion commandeered by mutated versions of our invertebrate buddies. Ahmed’s character, Malik, is one of the few left on earth uninfected by the now-parasitical creatures who are taking control of the human population.

It stands to reason, especially in movie terms, that Malik has to protect his family, right? But his family isn’t the unit he wants it to be. His two sons, Jay and Bobby, 10 and less-than-ten respectively, live on a farm with their mom Piya and her new partner Dylan. Jay and Bobby can’t stand Dylan. Jay in particular is captivated by his real dad’s letters, which refer to his secret missions as a world-saving soldier.

So when Malik comes into the boys’ bedroom in the wee small hours of the morning and proposes a race to see which of them can make it to Malik’s car first, they’re eager to participate. Malik is briefly relieved to have forcibly taken custody of his kids. The better to protect them from the alien threat.

But let’s hold on a moment. Even if Malik is doing the right thing, even if he’s truly a hero, his erratic behavior is so ticcy, so jumpy, so impulsive, so flecked with hatefulness, that it doesn’t just raise a red flag. The guy’s a whole damn color guard.

For a while Pearce does a very clever balancing act, taking everyday unpleasantries and grotesqueries of life and exaggerating them just so. Jay, who himself enjoys drawing sci-fi monsters, proves especially susceptible to Malik’s visions—even before Malik has fully articulated them to his older kid. As car issues and other troubles crop up, Malik grows more unraveled, and soon the forces of the law, who’ve taken on Malik’s kind parole officer as an adjunct, are pursuing the trio.

Ahmed’s performance has a lot of skill and conviction fueling it. And the rest of the cast is splendid. Lucian-River Chauhan and Aditya Geddada , who play Jay and Bobby, are way above-average child actors. Rory Cochrane is marvelously terse as a pessimistic fed, and Octavia Spencer has warmth to spare as Malik’s only friend.

But Pearce eventually overplays his hand. A sequence in which Malik knocks out a shotgun-toting ‘Murican who just happens to be a dead ringer for Steve Bannon is only the beginning of a bad patch. The MAGA man’s MAGA son gets out their automatic weapons and go a-huntin’, and the movie’s sociopolitical waters are roiled and muddied. And the film finally devolves into a species of hostage porn, with Ahmed’s character so stretched that he brings to mind the unfortunate adage about how just because you’re mentally ill it doesn’t mean you’re not being a you-know-what. And of course you know that your exasperation is being summoned for the sole purpose of forcing you to put that emotional toothpaste back in the tube. It’s dishonest, showy filmmaking. 

Now playing in select theaters and available on Amazon Prime on December 10th.

Glenn Kenny

Glenn Kenny was the chief film critic of Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence. He has written for a host of other publications and resides in Brooklyn. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

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Film Credits

Encounter (2021)

Rated R for language and some violence.

108 minutes

Riz Ahmed as Malik Khan

Octavia Spencer as Hattie

Lucian-River Mirage Chauhan as Jay Kahn

Rory Cochrane as Shepard West

Aditya Geddada as Bobby

Janina Gavankar as Piya

Keith Szarabajka as Grant

Shane McRae as Lance

Antonio Jaramillo as Raul

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• Maya Maffioli

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The Encounter

Several life scenarios play out as Jesus steps in to help each situation and bring people together. Several life scenarios play out as Jesus steps in to help each situation and bring people together. Several life scenarios play out as Jesus steps in to help each situation and bring people together.

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• Trivia This short-lived TV series is based on the storyline created for "The Encounter" (2010) and sequel "The Encounter" (2012). There's a Facebook fan page for "The Encounter." The final TV series episode #10 Maximum Mike is generally regarded as the #1 fan favorite among those on the Facebook group. Bruce Marchiano portrays a similar role in "Allison's Choice" (2015).
• Connections Follows The Encounter (2010)

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When five strangers with nothing in common come together at a remote roadside eatery, they place their orders with the diner's omniscient owner, who seems to know everything about them ... and is eerily reminiscent of Jesus Christ.

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‘Encounter’ Review: The Scenic Route

A volatile veteran attempts to rescue his sons from a perceived alien threat in this confused cross between sci-fi thriller and family drama.

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By Jeannette Catsoulis

At the beginning of “Encounter,” the sophomore feature from the British director Michael Pearce, something bright and blazing crash-lands in the night and a swarm of microorganisms appears to colonize an earthly host. This body-snatching setup could not be more familiar. It could also be a feint.

Using the tropes of the alien-invasion thriller to tell another, more complicated story, Pearce and his co-writer, Joe Barton, make exactly half of a good movie. For a while, it’s enough to watch Malik (an electric Riz Ahmed), a stressed-out former Marine, interact with his two young sons (Aditya Geddada and Lucian-River Chauhan) as they drive full-tilt from Oregon to Nevada. Believing he is saving the boys from an extraterrestrial threat, Malik has kidnapped them from the home of his ex-wife and her new partner. His destination is a bunker where, he explains to the children, scientists are secretly working to repel the microbial invaders.

To the boys, this is initially a welcome adventure; but as Malik’s behavior becomes more volatile and unnerving — and we learn more of his history — his sons grow anxious and the movie grows too fond of its ambiguities. Malik’s trauma is clear, his invisible wounds as evident as the parasites he sees crawling in the eye of a California state trooper. Yet, after setting up a potentially powerful study of damage and delusion, Pearce ( whose 2018 feature debut, “Beast, ” signaled an unusual talent) remains torn between science fiction and psychological fact. And despite Benjamin Kracun’s sometimes haunting visuals — a decaying mining community in the Nevada desert; a drone shot of government vehicles gathering with insectoid purpose — the movie finally has nowhere to run but out of steam.

Encounter Rated R for men with guns and creepy-crawlies with agendas. Running time: 1 hour 48 minutes. In theaters and on Amazon Prime Video .

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As “Sex and the City” became more widely available on Netflix, younger viewers have watched it with a critical eye . But its longtime millennial and Gen X fans can’t quit.

Hoa Xuande had only one Hollywood credit when he was chosen to lead “The Sympathizer,” the starry HBO adaptation of a prize-winning novel. He needed all the encouragement he could get .

Even before his new film “Civil War” was released, the writer-director Alex Garland faced controversy over his vision of a divided America  with Texas and California as allies.

Theda Hammel’s directorial debut, “Stress Positions,” a comedy about millennials weathering the early days of the pandemic , will ask audiences to return to a time that many people would rather forget.

If you are overwhelmed by the endless options, don’t despair — we put together the best offerings   on Netflix , Max , Disney+ , Amazon Prime  and Hulu  to make choosing your next binge a little easier.

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