This is a thought-provoking and inspiring movie based on a true story. It will move you!
Miracles From Heaven follows the real life story of a young girl, Anna Beam and her family. Anna is diagnosed with a rare digestive track disease. Her family and in particular her mother, Christy Beam fight tirelessly to help find answers for Anna's condition until one day she is miraculously healed after falling from a tree.
This is a movie of faith and family that challenges you to find the miracles around you. Often times it is in hindsight we see the fingerprints of God on our situations. My favorite scene in the movie is when Christy Beam is explaining to her congregation and to the world about the miracle. There is a small montage of scenes that plays recounting all the places in the journey where a miracle happened.
Miracles aren't just in the form of healings and visits to heaven. The people we encounter, the opportunities we are given ... these are all miracles.Just look for them.
I enjoyed this movie. It is very moving - you will probably cry. The scenery is beautiful, the characters are well portrayed, giving a huge nod to Jennifer Garner's exceptional job of the role of mother, Christy Beam.
A few other characters helped make the movie a delight, including Kylie Rogers who plays the sick daughter, Anna. Queen Latifah joins the cast as Angela, a comic relief waitress the mother and daughter duo meet in Boston. But the most fun for me was the specialist, Dr. Nurvo, played by Eugenio Derbez - a similar character to Patch Adams, but much more family-friendly. All of the acting is superb, there are no weak links.
Overall, there are no surprises to the plot in this movie if you watched the trailer. However, knowing the ending did not deter from the dramatic tension and wonderfully portrayed issues of faith. This movie isn't preachy - there are no altar call scenes or tug at your heart "accept Jesus now' moments. Instead this movie plays into that all-encompassing question of why. Why does God allow beautiful, vibrant young girls suffer? Why is this happening?
The story is primarily the mother's journey from a strong faith to a choked out, barely breathing faith and back again. It is a journey worth watching.
From the family friendly side of things I would agree with the movie's PG rating. The themes tackled in the film are impactful for young viewers. In particular, there are scenes that talk about death and wanting to die. There are invasive medical scenes and a traumatic drawn out scene when a child falls into a hollowed out tree. As well, there is a young girl who dies in the film, even though it isn't seen or known till the end. Be prepared to talk to your young viewers about these topics. Check out Focus on the Family's plugged in (dot) com review for more specifics.
Also, there is a resource for parents, pastors to facilitate some discussion around the movie themes. There is a section part way through for parents who watch movie without their children but want to discuss it and also questions guided towards parents and kids who watch the movie together. An excellent family resource.
Check out the Miracles From Heaven website for purchase options, trailers and more!
I recommend this movie!
Let me know in the comments if you've seen it and what you thought.
"Movie has been provided courtesy of Sony Entertainment Canada and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."
