Kahlil Gibran’s popular 1923 book consists of prose poetry essays and this ambitious animated adaptation has several short, poetic segments touching on the nature of love, freedom, work etc. Each one was designed by a seasoned animator/filmmaker under Roger Allers’s supervision, and the segments are held together by a frame story starring a poet deemed dangerous by his country’s autocratic rulers. Very uneven, with some mediocre comedy relief. The inspirational, inclusive message of Gibran’s poems are likely best experienced in their original form.
2015-U.S.-Canada-France-Ireland-Lebanon-Qatar. Animated. 84 min. Color. Written and directed by Roger Allers. Book: Kahlil Gibran. Voices of Liam Neeson (Mustafa), Salma Hayek (Kamila), John Krasinski (Halim), Alfred Molina, Quvenzhané Wallis, Frank Langella.
Trivia: Full title onscreen: Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet. Co-produced by Hayek. The animators include among others Bill Plympton, Nina Paley, Joann Sfar and Tomm Moore.
