Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Currently I'm approaching the autumn of my years and question the existence of an afterlife. Is there a place for our souls to continue after our brief stay on Earth? How are we judged? Do we get our memories erased and are sent back for another try? Or do we just cease totally in darkness? So many infinite questions. I recall a documentary called Beyond and Back made in the late 1970's showing real life experience entwined with near death experiences. The Subject just fascinates me which brings us to this review of the afterlife. Our story centers around a Nebraska Family (The Burpo's). Todd Burpo, (Greg Kinnear) Pastor, firefighter, Husband and Father of two children who lives on the Nebraska plains with his wife Sonja (Kelly Reilly). They live a busy but normal life. As for the Burpo's two children, the older sister Cassie(Lane Styles) typical wide-eyed girl filled with curiosity and our centerpiece the adorable three year old Colton played by Conner Corum. The Burpo's take a trip to the Denver zoo. Older sister Cassie is shown confidently petting a tarantula. Meanwhile timid Conner hides behind his Dad and wants no part of the petting experience. A short time later, the kids contract a stomach flu. Cassie and Colton recover but in Colton's case his fever returns and his temperature eclipses to 104 and is rushed to the hospital. At the hospital, the Burpo' wait and pray . You see Todd in the hospital chapel frustrated, pushing the chairs in disgust as to why their son fell ill? The result was an appendectomy and the surgery was successful. With Colton on the mend , financial strains on the household become burdensome . Todd juggling the Church and his other duties is consumed as subtle statements from the virgin lips of Colton have him astonished. Due to Christian accuracy I had a problem with Colton's depiction of his heavenly experience. For me personally why couldn't Colton meet Moses, Shoshone, Allah or any religious figure. Does this movie preach us to pray the Christian way? That was my only problem with the accounts by the boy. The movie had a suspense to it at times when Colton would reveal his experience in the afterlife. Fine supporting roles by Thomas Hayden Church and Margo Martindale. As for the appearance of the film as a whole . The cinematography extenuates the Nebraska landscape and the vibrant Heaven scenes are worth a look. I still question which denomination is on the other side?

Todd Burpo (Greg Kinnear) lives in Nebraska and is on the go, constantly. A pastor on Sundays, during the week he is a husband, father, garage door installer, and volunteer fire fighter. Even so, the bills are mounting, in part because economic times are bad. His lovely wife, Sonja (Kelly Reilly) is in charge most days of the couple's two children, older girl Cassie and younger son Colton (Colin Corum). On the days the household hosts choir practice, Todd and Colton have to escape outside to howl on their own! Sonja suggests a mini vacation to help them relax a bit and the family travels to Denver. Cassie is brave enough to hold the tarantula at the zoo but Colton can't summon the courage. Not long after, back home, Colton becomes extremely ill, with a high fever. When constant care doesn't improve things, they rush him to the emergency room. News is not good. His appendix has burst and an operation may not help. Sonja and Greg pray through their tears and anger and ask others to do the same. Thankfully, Colton survives and gets back to normal. However, the four year old startles his dad by mentioning that, when he was under the knife, he, Colton, left his body and met angels and, yes, Jesus. Not only that, he met the great grandfather he never knew. Todd doesn't believe it at first but doesn't know how to explain his son's statements, as the child is too young to make up some of the descriptions. So, did Colton truly get a glimpse of Heaven? This wonderful film is joyful and faith affirming. Based on a autobiographical book by Todd, the story is a heart grabbing experience for Christians everywhere. Kinnear, Reilly, young Corum, and all of the cast are great. Thomas Haden Church doesn't have as much to do as viewers would like but still charms while Margo Martindale is very effective as a confused churchgoer. The Nebraska scenery is enchanting, while costumes, script, and direction make the film a superior work. For real, go get this slice of Heaven on earth.

I expected 'Heaven is for Real' to be bad, but I didn't expect it to be as bad as it was. Writer/Director Randall Wallace who gained fame for writing 'Braveheart' over twenty years ago who moved on to direct such films as 'The Man in the Iron Mask', 'We Were Soldiers', 'Secretariat', and now 'Heaven is For Real'. It seems like his glory days from 'Braveheart' are long over, because this religious movie plays out like the cheesiest made-for-TV LifeTime movie that should only appeal to a small group of people. But as times have told, these religious-centered films tend to draw people in. But don't expect a very realistic and bloody movie like 'Passion of the Christ' or the recent 'Noah'.Instead, you will see a very cartoony version of what a child thinks heaven looks like, complete with winged angels, a toga wearing Jesus, and some of the corniest moments ever captured on camera. It's unfortunate, because this movie packs some really great actors such as Greg Kinnear, Thomas Hayden Church, and Kelly Reilly ('Flight'). I'd be willing to bet that 'Heaven is For Real' makes my 'Worst of 2014' list in December.For those of you who are unfamiliar with this "true story", like so many movies are made today, then I'll fill you in. Back in 2003, a small town pastor, Todd Burpo's (Kinnear) very young son named Colton (Connor Corum) had emergency surgery to take out his appendix or something like that. After Colton's surgery, the little kid began telling his parents that he visited heaven and saw Jesus on a rainbow colored horse, angels singing specifically to him, amongst other stereo typical things kids might think heaven looks like.Why this got so much attention in the news, spawned a book, and eventually this crappy movie, was that Colton began to tell his parents that he met his dad's grandfather, their mis-carried child, and saw God and Mary themselves, along with other interesting revelations. But how could Colton know about these things, since he wasn't born for these things to take place yet. This is more or less the basic story for 'Heaven is For Real'.Wallace focuses his movie on Todd, the boy's father, as he tries to make sense of all of this, while questioning his faith. Meanwhile, the news is going around town, and his church congregants are quick to turn on him and his family for actually believing or wanting to believe that his son is telling the truth. Make no mistake about it, Todd is very level headed and tries to figure things out from a scientific aspect as well as a religious aspect, but people in town and even his wife (Reilly) are tired of him trying to prove or disprove his son. The dialogue is just downright awful and cheesy with your stereotypical kiss scenes with the sun peaking through them, and even a few lines that will make you cringe and say, "Who talks like this?"At least Kinnear and Reilly do a very professional and great job with their performance and sell it as well as they can with the material they are given. And Thomas Hayden Church is a comedic genius, but is so underused here, that they could have filled his role with anybody in Hollywood. It was big missed opportunity. And Wallace seemed to want to film the movie from heaven, because there are more aerial shots in this movie than in a Michael Bay film. There was just no point to it. Sure the kid actors are cute and all but that can only go so far.I'd say the best part of the movie came from a scene where Colton's older sister was explaining to her parents that she punched two kids at school for making fun of Colton, to which her dad Todd was impressed and told her, 'I'll teach you to hit someone without hurting your knuckles." But the scene where it showed her hitting the other kids was so poorly executed, that you'd think you were watching an after- school special for three-year olds.The emphasis on Christianity is very heavy here. It's not overly preachy, but it's very 'on the nose'. I don't know if 'Heaven is For Real' could have ever been a good film no matter who was in it and who made it. All I know is that it could have been better than this. You can do yourself a favor and save yourself the money and see something else this weekend.

I just finished watching Heaven is For Real, which was directed by Randall Wallace. The actors from this movie include Greg Kinnear, Thomas Haden Church, Kelly Reilly, etc. This movie, briefly, is about a boy who went to heaven. When he told his father, the pastor, people started to think he was crazy. The movie is about belief, faith and a person's interpretation of heaven. Honestly I thought the movie was a little bit boring at times, but the end of the movie made me feel emotional and inspired. Overall, I thought the movie had a good message and I felt satisfied with the movie as a whole. I would recommend this movie to families or anyone who is looking for a spiritual type of movie to watch. This is a religious movie, so I think it is good that a person knows that before watching the movie. Finally, I would rate this movie a 6/10.