From his mother's songs to his clash with Goliath, David's journey from humble shepherd to anointed king tests the limits of faith, courage, and love-culminating in a battle for the soul of a kingdom. (from IMDb)

Angel Studios is on a roll. After the pleasant surprise that was The King of Kings earlier this year, they return with a feature animated film about one of the Bible's biggest faith heroes, David. The movie, simply titled David, is based on the books 1st and 2nd Samuel, and shows David's rise to power as king. The first half of the film is largely dedicated to David's youth and fight against Goliath, while the latter half is distinctly much darker and focuses on his struggles with King Saul's jealousy and attempts to kill him.

With young David being the focus of the first half, he's shown as a spirited kid who loves God and takes his job as a shepherd very seriously. When we meet him, he's literally fighting off a lion to protect his flock, and it's shortly after that that he's anointed to be a future king of Israel by the prophet Samuel. Brandon Engman voices the young David with much exhuberance and enthusiasm. And when he sings, it's just as lively, but there seems to be a distinct use of autotune that's distracting. A lot of the first half of the film feels "Disney-fied," as some may call it, and it feels more aimed at the younger audiences.

But much like Simba getting older and the vibe of The Lion King changing when it happens, David grows up halfway through the movie to when he's a young man, and at this point, CCM worship leader Phil Wickham takes over all vocal duties -- and for the better. Wickham is not only excellent at voicing the older David, but he's got a fantastic singing voice, and it really helps these songs a lot. Heck, Lauren Daigle voices Rebecca and gets to lend her pipes to some of the songs, too. All that said, I wasn't feeling much of Engman's David or the first half of the film, but the latter half really clicked for me.

Angel's animation is also quite good. It's got a style that seems all their own, even if it makes telling real-life stories a little weird. It's hard not to watch a story like David's and think "Yeah, I doubt they actually broke into song here" or "I'm sure this was way more bleak here than is being shown." Bible stories have been adapted for young audiences for decades, and this is a good adaptation; as an adult viewer though, it's easy to pick up on just how serious and somber a story it actually is underneath the animated family-friendly presentation.

I'd say the biggest thematic takeaway that hit me while watching David is the faithfulness of God's followers through their respective storms. All of us have our own struggles - ones that feel big and weighty to us, but when you look at the world news, can feel so petty and miniscule in comparison. But the fact remains - our storms are still storms in our lives, and it's inspiring to see David be wrongfully accused and forsaken, but never turn his back on God. And that's exactly why God considered him a man after His own heart. So despite the Disney feel of the opening of the movie (I even got VeggieTales vibes during the Goliath scene), or the big CCM-y song numbers, there's a lot of heart in David that makes it one that should be inspirational to every soul that chases after God. Many of us aren't facing battles as big as what David faced (literally and figuratively), but there's a lot to learn from the sheer act of perseverance and not giving up when things not only don't look good, but don't go our way.

Content-wise, a good portion of the film feels like a kids movie, but things get dark fast once David is older. Scenes are literally overcast and dark when David is on the run from Saul and his men, and then the battles with the Philistines and Amalekites that follow are pretty intense (even without showing anything). The filmmakers do a really good job implying things to keep it from being the bloodbath it was in real life, but that doesn't still make it not weighty in subject matter. As you can imagine, there's no profanity or sexual content or substance use -- the main content to be sensitive to is the violence. And even most of the violence is subdued in a way that gets the message across while not being too heavyhanded. There are some creepy or scary moments that involve the Amalekites, specifically when Saul is recalling them and acting fearful of them - and a leader that wears a bovine skull over their face and sometimes has fire in their eyes. I'd definitely consider it nightmare fuel for littler viewers.

Overall, David is a good family-friendly telling of the beloved Bible story. Some of the music is really good, specifically when Wickham has the mic, but some of it just doesn't quite work either. But given that it's meant to be a musical telling of the Bible tale, it works as it is. While I certainly wouldn't say it's for everyone, it's nevertheless an inspiring tale that should encourage believers to persevere and remember that - even when things are dark and seem hopeless - God is still for us and will never leave us. And that's a story worth telling.