🎬 Movie Review: David

Written by: Fr. Noah Hanna priest at St. Mary Coptic orthodox Church, Dallas TX

The Movie “David” vs. the Bible – An Honest Take

I genuinely love that we are finally seeing high-quality productions of biblical stories in movies. For years we were hoping for this, and it’s refreshing to see Scripture brought to the big screen with excellence, music, and emotion.

I took the opportunity to watch David in the theater with my kids, and overall, it was an enjoyable experience. That said, if you’re planning to watch it as a family, it’s important to be prepared. Like many Hollywood-style adaptations, the movie adds, stretches, and reshapes parts of the biblical story to make it more dramatic. Some of these changes are minor, but others affect how characters and events are understood.

What follows is not criticism for the sake of criticism—it’s simply a heads-up for parents and readers of Scripture, so we can have healthy conversations with our children afterward and help them distinguish between the movie and the Bible.

1. Eliab’s jealousy toward David

In the Bible, Eliab’s anger toward David appears only once, during the confrontation with Goliath, and is not portrayed as long-term jealousy. The movie exaggerates this into an ongoing jealousy that lasts throughout the story and is only resolved at the very end, which has no biblical basis.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 17:28 (NKJV):

“Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was aroused against David…”

This is a single incident, likely motivated by wounded pride—not sustained rivalry. Scripture never presents Eliab as a continuing antagonist, nor does it describe a later reconciliation scene.

2. Saul building a statue for himself

The movie shows King Saul building a statue to glorify himself. There is no biblical record of Saul ever building a statue or monument for himself.

Biblical evidence:

• Scripture is silent on Saul erecting any statue.

• By contrast, Absalom explicitly builds a monument for himself: 2 Samuel 18:18

This scene appears to be borrowed symbolically from other kings but is not historically or biblically accurate for Saul.

3. A “battle of Ziklag” intended to get rid of David

The movie portrays a conflict at Ziklag as if it were orchestrated to eliminate David. In Scripture, the incident at Ziklag involved an Amalekite raid while David was away, not a battle initiated to get rid of him.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 30:1–5 — Amalekites raid Ziklag and take the women and children captive.

• No battle is staged against David, nor is Ziklag used as a trap.

The Bible emphasizes David’s distress, prayer, and pursuit, not political manipulation.

4. Jonathan aiming a weapon at David

In the movie, Jonathan is shown aiming at David and struggling internally before deciding to spare him. The Bible never portrays Jonathan as conflicted about David’s life. On the contrary, Jonathan consistently protects David and loves him from the beginning.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 18:1–4 — Jonathan’s soul is knit to David.

• 1 Samuel 19:1–7 — Jonathan warns David and defends him before Saul.

• 1 Samuel 20 — Jonathan risks his life to protect David.

There is no moment where Jonathan considers harming David.

5. Eliab physically restraining David to hand him over to Saul

The movie depicts Eliab physically restraining David in an attempt to deliver him to Saul, from which David narrowly escapes. There is no biblical record of such an event.

Biblical evidence:

• No passage in 1 Samuel 16–31 describes Eliab pursuing, restraining, or betraying David.

This scene falsely elevates Eliab into a recurring villain.

6. Saul going after David’s family

The movie shows Saul actively pursuing David’s family. In the Bible, David proactively places his parents in Moab for their protection, and Scripture never explicitly states that Saul went after David’s family.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 22:3–4:

“So David went from there to Mizpah of Moab… and he said to the king of Moab, ‘Please let my father and mother come here and stay with you…’”

The Bible implies preventive protection, not rescue from Saul’s pursuit.

7. Saul immediately rejecting David after the cave incident

In the movie, after David cuts Saul’s robe and speaks to him, Saul immediately turns against David again in the same scene. In the Bible, Saul temporarily relents and acknowledges David’s righteousness; his renewed hostility occurs later.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 24:16–22 — Saul weeps, blesses David, and departs.

• Saul’s later pursuit resumes in 1 Samuel 26, after time has passed.

The movie collapses time for drama, but misrepresents Saul’s moment of remorse.

8. Conversation between Jonathan and Achish

The movie invents a philosophical conversation between Jonathan and Achish about the Philistines losing regardless of the war’s outcome. This conversation does not exist in Scripture. In fact, Jonathan never meets Achish in the Bible.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 27–29 — David lives among the Philistines.

• 1 Samuel 29:4–11 — Achish sends David away; David does not fight.

Jonathan is not involved at all in this episode.

9. David being taken captive by the Amalekites

The movie suggests that David himself was taken captive by the Amalekites. In the Bible, David was not captured; only the women and children were taken while David was away.

Biblical evidence:

• 1 Samuel 30:2–5 — Captives are the families, not David.

• David returns, seeks the Lord, and rescues them.

This change undermines David’s role as a decisive leader.

10. David tearing his robe/rope at the end

The movie ends with David tearing his robe (or rope) as a symbolic gesture. Scripture records no such act connected to David’s calling or kingship.

Biblical evidence:

• Tearing garments appears elsewhere (grief, repentance), but not in this context.

• Saul tears Samuel’s robe (1 Samuel 15:27–28), which may have inspired the scene—but applying it to David is symbolically misleading.

Final thoughts

I’m thankful that our children can now see biblical stories portrayed with beauty and effort on the big screen. That is a blessing. But movies are still movies—and the Bible remains the source.

If you have watched David with your family, please go over these differences with them. Some details were added, some were softened, and others were reshaped to make the story feel more “Hollywood.”

Those conversations after the movie may actually become the most valuable part—opening the Bible together, comparing, and reminding our children that the real story is always richer, deeper, and truer than any screen adaptation.