"I see it, so I believe it". Do you?
Todd Burpo (Greg Kinnear) is a pastor who works three different jobs. He has a great life with his wife Sonja (Kelly Reilly), and his two children Cassie and Colton (Connor Corum). One day, following vacation, Cassie and Colton get sick. Cassie gets well, but Colton's health declines rapidly. Taken to the hospital, he is diagnosed with a ruptured appendix and goes into surgery. Colton nearly dies, but is revived. A few months after the operation, Colton starts telling stories about sitting on Jesus' lap and seeing angels and other things. The news gets around quickly and all seem shocked and bewildered by his stories. Unfortunately though, people don't believe him. And sadly, neither do his parents. What will it take for these people to believe Colton's apparently real experiences?
For a major Hollywood production, Heaven is for Real does a good job sticking to the book. Not everything is obviously explored, but a lot of the main points get prime treatment, such as meeting one of Colton's siblings in Heaven, his Dad's grandfather, and other miraculous events such as the Jesus painting by the young painter. The screenplay cleverly mixes in drama and familial themes without ever pushing the envelope to overly-melodramatic heights. Personally, I found it awesome to see a non-dysfunctional, loving Christian family on screen.
The acting here is especially good. But the stand-out is Corum. I appreciated his personality, his innocence, and just how convincing he was as Colton. Kinnear does a terrific job as Todd, bringing heart and emotional sincerity to the multi-faceted personality of his character. The other strong actor here is Margo Martindale (Secretariat, Hannah Montana: The Movie), who delivers her lines extremely well as a skeptic who later is convinced by what she hears and believes. On the weak side, I go back and forth on if Reilly was the best choice for Sonja (considering her repertoire), but she does bring a sweet and loving personality to the character (its kinda difficult to tell that she's British). She also has a great, unique singing voice, which I found surprising. Thomas Haden Church does good in the few scenes he has, but he doesn't get enough to work with to really stand out.
The cinematography is beautiful. One thing I found interesting was that the film tried to show Connor's visions of Heaven a couple of times. While that can be a bit off-putting, I thought it was a great idea to try and visualize it. No one can ever visualize heaven correctly, but getting at least an idea of what Connor saw is enough to dispel those doubts. The music by Nick Glennie-Smith is great. There's a handful of humorous moments without getting too corny.
On the downside, there isn't much. The only slight complaint I have is that because this is a Hollywood production, Heaven is for Real unfortunately just about leaves out the prospect of how someone can get to Heaven. Instead of trying to convince others of Heaven's reality, the movie leaves the decision in the audience's hands, and let them decide whether or not they believe this is real or not. God's Not Dead expressed the fact that it is all about "free will" and whether or not we believe that God is real like Heaven, and if I can keep it in that perspective, it doesn't bother me at all. However, as the film grapples with Colton's visions and how someone has doubts over whether or not they believe it to be true, the fact that it doesn't show how people get there doesn't really solve the unbelief problem for those in the audience that are "on the fence" or skeptical about not just Heaven's existence, but religious faith as a whole.
Based on the book by the real Todd Burpo, Heaven is for Real was the talk of my family back a few years ago. I read some of the book and was really impressed. I was going through a time where I was far from God and not making wise choices with my life. The book would help me realize there is a God, who would help me eventually turn my back on my struggles and become closer to Him as a person and follower.
I'm not going to be preachy the whole way through here, because this is obviously a movie review. But I was more than impressed with what is seen here. The movie version of Heaven is for Real, while it may not drive the whole pie of the book's messages home, still manages to amaze. It delivers with a solid screenplay and terrific production values.
2014 has had a lot faith-based movies so far. I was impressed with Son of God's depiction of Jesus' story and even more impressed with God's Not Dead's great message. But I think I connect more with Heaven is for Real because of its family focus, as well as the messages of hope, faith and love that are behind it. Director Randall Wallace, who directed one of the best movies of recent memory (Secretariat), has given this eye-opening story a thoughtful, wholesome, and stunningly beautiful rendition on screen.
Score: 9.0/10
Content Problems Families Should Be Aware Of:
Language: One or two times, "oh my g--" is heard in the background out of shock.
Adult Content: Sonja wears occasional revealing clothes, and briefly whispers something suggestive in her husband's ear. They kiss several times and trade a few innuendos.
Violence: A scene where a trailer is on fire. Someone inhales too much smoke and apparently dies. Some medical scenes where it seems people are on the brink of death. Todd injures himself in a couple of scenes.
Alcohol/Drugs: None.
Other: Some hospital scenes may be mildly upsetting.
