AMISH GRACE

AMISH GRACE - 2010

RATED - PG for mature themes. Closer to G. The violence at the center of the film is only implied.  Nothing is shown.

RATINGS -  5 Amazon (5/5),  211 Netflix (4.2/5), 143 IMDB (7.1/10).

STARRING - Kimberly Williams-Paisley (Father of the Bride 1 & 2)

AWARDS - Highest rated original movie shown on Lifetime.

THEMES - Relationships, spirituality, justice.

STORY - Based on the true story of the murder of five innocent Amish school girls in 2006 in Lancaster County Pennsylvania. The main family in the story is fictional, however. Great acting and screenplay.  Emotional without being manipulative. Violent without showing any violence. Inspirational without being preachy. I have always been critical of faith-based films that are basically 'sermons disguised as films'. Faith-based films should be great stories where the message is an integral part of the story. This is one of those. At the heart of the story is a horrific crime. A lone gunman backs his pickup to a one room Amish school, walks in and proceeds to kill five young Amish girls and wound five others.  What happens after that is almost as unbelievable. Three Amish men, including the father of one of the victims, visit the home of the killer to offer forgiveness and help to the gunman's widow. But not everyone finds it easy to forgive.  Ida Graber (Paisley) isn't buying it. 'I will not betray my daughter by forgiving her killer'.  What follows is for the most part the struggle between two women, both mothers & wives, struggling with forgiveness and their husbands from two totally different perspectives. While we may all have a tendency to see the Amish as stoic and and almost mechanical or robotic in their faith, this is not at all what comes thru in the film. While raising (but not answering) some inconsistencies in their practices, we see them as real humans struggling to deal with this horrific crime against their community. One of the most powerful scenes is at the funeral for the gunman. This is a movie that will haunt you and stick with you as you consider (at least I did) how to live out a live of forgiving with even just the most mundane grievances. What could this mean for communities, our nation and our world if forgiveness were truly practiced.  I highly recommend this film. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 09/18.2010.

LINKS - IMDB, NETFLIX, AMAZON,  The Power of Forgiveness

THE SECRETS OF JONATHAN SPERRY

THE SECRETS OF JONATHAN SPERRY - 2008

RATED - PG for mild thematic elements. VERY family friendly.

RATINGS - 4 Amazon (5/5), 5,036 Netflix (3.7/5), 89 IMDB (6.1/10).

STARRING - Gavin MacLeod (The Love Boat) as Jonathan Sperry, Jansen Panettiere as Dustin.  Directed by Rich Christiano.

THEMES - Spirituality, relationships.

STORY - First of all, I love films where faith plays an important role in the story and where it fits into the movie but is not necessarily the center of the narrative. The latter tend to come across as sermons disguised as movies or books or whatever.  This film has too much of that.  The only thing missing was the altar call and I don't say that to be overly critical.  For being set in 1970 it still comes across as too much like Leave It To Beaver. The 'good' kids seems a little too good and the 'bad' dude seems a little too good, also.  In not wanting to offend the 'church' audience they sanitize it to the point it doesn't seem real.  The bullies I remember used language that offended and other gestures that conveyed less than holy thoughts.  Even good kids didn't always have it together or behave appropriately all the time. While the acting is pretty decent and it has warm fuzzies, it just doesn't come across as a realistic portrayal of the way life happens even to those whose faith is a priority in their life.  Is it a waste of time?  No, it has its merits and there are several meaningful lessons to be considered by viewers. Many will be inspired by the message of the film. There is nothing wrong with the movie, it's just that I would love to see people of faith concentrate on developing great stories where faith fits naturally into the story instead of developing a message and trying to fit it into a movie.  There is a difference and the difference is between a realisic portrayal of life and what we would like to imagine life to be like. This is a film that has a message but ultimately it will probably 'preach to the choir'. 

LINKS - IMDB/TRAILER

THE COLOR OF FREEDOM

THE COLOR OF FREEDOM - 2007

RATED - R for language. Several brief outbursts of obscenities including some sexual references. Some violence, although not graphic.

RATINGS - 3 Amazon (3.5/5), 30,967 Netflix (3.8/5), 2,413 IMDB (7.1/10).

AWARDS - 2007 Peace Film Award

STARRING - Joseph Fiennes as James Gregory and Dennis Haysbert as Nelson Mandela.

THEMES - Justice, forgiveness, racial reconciliation.

STORY - Based on the true story of James Gregory's life as a prison guard in the South African prison system. Because he speaks the language of Mandela, he is assigned to Robben Island where Mandela has been a political prisoner for 10 years already in 1968. Gregory's assignment is to monitor Mandela's mail and visitors and report any important information to his superiors. Initially, a racist in his views like other South Africans, Gregory slowly begins to see the human side of Mandela, especially when Mandela's son is killed in a car accident (murder), which may have been set up because of information Gregory provided his superiors. It's a fascinating story and a very well done movie. The acting and the script are top notch. It reminds me of the words of U.S. Olympic Champion Jesse Owens: "Let's go for a walk. If we walk long enough and talk long enough, we may begin to understand each other." That's what Gregory and Mandela did for almost 20 years. Forgiveness and reconciliation are possible. This story proves it. As relevant today as it was twenty years ago. Enjoy. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 02/28/2009.

LINKS - AMAZON, IMDB

THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS

THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS - 2007

RATED - NR

RATINGS - 3 Amazon (4.5/5), 59 Netflix (3.4/5)

THEMES - Forgiveness, spirituality, justice.

STORY - What does it mean to forgive someone? How do you go about forgiving? Does it mean that we forgo justice? Is forgiving simply a spiritual experience between an individual and God or does it play out on many different levels? These and other questions are addressed in this look at forgiveness by filmmaker Martin Doblmeier (Bonhoeffer). It looks at real life examples of forgiveness such as the Amish in the wake of the killing of five Amish schoolgirls that ripped their community. It shows the speech Elie Weisel made to the German Bundestadt challenging them to ask forgiveness of the Jewish people and then two months later, the speech made to the Israeli Knesset by the President of Germany asking forgiveness on behalf of Germany. It looks at forgiveness on many different levels including the physical level and how forgiveness (or lack of it) affects us physically and shows examples of forgiveness being taught in elementary schools as well as being offered in colleges. It shows three women who lost loved ones in 9/11 who travel to Lebanon to experience the Garden of Forgiveness established by the Lebanese and wonder why there is so much opposition to establishing a Garden of Forgiveness on the WTC site. While many might want to limit forgiveness to a theological discussion (and it certainly is a major if not THE major theological doctrine), this film shows the power of forgiveness beyond just the theological implications and how our world could be different if forgiveness were taken seriously and practiced by everyone. At the very least, this should be a wonderful conversation starter for those serious about studying forgiveness. Think of the political ramifications if candidates running for office would stand up and ask forgiveness of their opponents when they say something in error or intentionally malign them or if corporate leaders would ask forgiveness of shareholders for the mistakes they made in the name of corporate profits and greed. Perhaps, like most things, it works best if it starts from the individual and community level and works upward. That means it starts with you and me. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 03/30/2008.

LINKS - AMAZON