I rate this film as just above awful. To those that approve of this film, they rationalize by stating that there is no real way to know if the Bible is more accurate than this film. If that is the case, then the whole point of worship is a waste of time (if you don't even trust the Bible to convey the stories accurately). There are a number of films that cover the same period with much closer accuracy. There is the film called "Jacob" with Mathew Modine that is superb, including each important detail from the Bible (the only authentic source) and it even manages to show the dream of "Jacob's Latter" in a scene that seems to me as completely possible as authentic. The acting of each character is absolutely superb whereas this film deviates so much that one would not possibly understand much of the story if they rely on this film. It is sad because it not only suffered from too much "compression" (which is some times a legitimate decision) but it replaces the actual Biblical dialogue with its own similar but very misleading telling of the stories. There is a series of 5 films produced by TNT that is infinitely superior and can be purchased as a set. Please do not ever use this film as a primary source for understanding these books from the Bible. The script was obviously written by a non-believer with the idea that the Bible can't be trusted anyway, so why not take liberties like so many other American adaptations? The end result is at times blasphemous.