Editorial: Can Kingdom overcome?

OPINION: It looks as if it will take divine intervention to get the biblical film epic Kingdom Come off the ground, but heck, it is almost Christmas, and miracles do sometimes happen.

Kingdom Come set out with huge ambitions and a budget to match. New Zealand was to be the setting for the story of Christianity from the "very beginning of time to the final days, focusing on the timeless drama of Jesus" according to its publicity.

Lake Benmore was to stand in as the Sea of Galilee and the Waitaki District Council consented to a large ancient town being built on the shores on a good portion of the Falstone camping ground's land.

A portion of the camping ground has been built into a lavish set, with a number of campers displaced to make way for Hollywood in the High Country.

Since the set was built in 2008 the project has had more false starts than a primary school athletics day.

Some $45 million has been spent and, in the latest twist, the High Court this week gave the film's backers three months to find the money to get the project going.

Kiwi producer and director Dean Wright is attempting to move heaven and earth to find the $100 million needed to get Kingdom Come back on the road.

The film's creditors are showing saint-like patience. Eleven of them, who are owed $5 million, have all agreed to give production company South Vineyard a chance to find the money before they pull the plug on the company.

Kingdom Come, according to its backers, was a victim of the vicious tailspin the film industry was caught in after the financial crisis of 2008.

Film funding is a precarious business at the best of times, and Kingdom Come needed money at the worst of times.

So what does all this mean for Falstone campers? They face another summer of sharing their favourite spot with a deserted biblical town surrounded by wire fencing.

The presence of the set means visitors to Falstone are capped at 500 but there is a small upside for campers. The set brings with it a 24 hour security presence which means their boats and caravans also get a measure of protection, for free.

Picking winners in the film business is tricky but it is worth bearing in mind that the Bible can be big at the box office.

The last Biblical blockbuster, Mel Gibson's 2004 Passion of the Christ, was reported to cost about $62 million to make and earned over $1 billion at cinemas around the world.

Getting Kingdom Come off the ground has to be the preferable outcome. If the company is liquidated the set will be left to languish until someone – more than likely the Waitaki District Council – can find the $100,000 needed to dismantle it.

But if the film finally gets made the blessings brought by Kingdom Come will be heaven sent.

- © Fairfax NZ News