Heaven is For Real

It’s been a rough year for Todd Burpo (Greg Kinnear, Little Miss Sunshine). A local pastor, volunteer firefighter, high school wrestling coach, garage door repairman, and all around Steve Rogers of his community is busy recovering from his own health issues when Colton (Connor Corum), his son, suffers a ruptured appendix. Todd and his wife, Sonja (Kelly Reilly, Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows, Flight) quickly call their friends to prayer as it looks like Colton won’t make it through surgery.

Colton pulls through, but the real complications start as Colton’s insistence that he journeyed to heaven during his operation challenges the faith of his father, his church, and his community.

“Heaven is for Real” is based off the New York Times bestseller of the same name written by real-life Todd Burpo about the near-death experience of his 4-year-old son. “Heaven is For Real” — opening with a title card saying it’s “based on a true story” — might have a hard time establishing a typical, mainstream audience, but it doesn’t seem too concerned with that.

It’s not geared toward hard-boiled city-types who aren’t interested in dabbling with heaven and the G-man. It’s centered on a devoutly Christian family and community, and will likely speak best to those who identify as such.

In terms of small-town Americana blurring the line between the known and unknown, the movie’s style falls somewhere between “Field of Dreams” and “The Sixth Sense.” For those who have had a crisis of their faith — or maybe even just a sense of faith at all — the movie will come off as an earnest and profound discussion of the afterlife. “Heaven is for Real” is at its best when it sensitively examines a devout community struggling to grapple with the unknowable.

But for those who don’t partake in Bible teachings, it may come off as a preachy, oddly-paced memoir adaptation. It’s not marketed toward those who are devout in their nonbelief. Sections of Burpo’s life that may play well in a novel end up muddling the overall arc of the plot, which is steadfastly set in establishing heaven as a real place — spoiler alert, although it is in the title. From an outsider’s perspective there’s something to be said for the tale of a family in the heart of a storm of conviction — it is at its core an exercise in validating religious belief.

While there isn’t much to be said for creativity on behalf of the filmmakers, there are plenty of nice establishing shots of Nebraska that paint the picture of rural life. But the divine scenery is only almost enough to offset the moralistic climax and doesn’t quite make up for the journey to get there.

The verdict:Will play well with those who have an interest in Sunday school teachings, otherwise go see a different Captain America movie.

Flight

After toying around with performance capture for the past decade (The Polar Express, Beowulf, A Christmas Carol) Robert Zemeckis returns to live action films as his canvas of choice.  Zemeckis has demonstrated his versatility as a director, from action-packed blockbusters such as Back to the Future to immense character studies Forrest Gump, Cast Away, and now Flight.    

Flight follows William “Whip” Whitaker (Denzel Washington), an extremely gifted but substance abusing pilot. When the plane starts to malfunction on one of his flights he pulls off a spectacularly miraculous emergency landing.  However, his heroism attracts the attention of not only the media, but of the lawyers smelling alcohol on his breath.    

This film is undoubtedly Denzel Washington’s vehicle. From start to finish Washington delivers an incredibly nuanced and bruising performance of an addict in denial; taking the audience along on every up and down in his journey.  Washington holds brute intensity in his eyes; framing a body so battered and scarred that only alcohol can provide an appropriate anesthesia.  The layers to Whip’s character are so natural you almost can’t believe it’s acting.

While Denzel is the focus of this movie, there’s quality acting all around. John Goodman (Argo, The Big Lebowski) is delightful as always as Whip’s drug dealer and best friend, Don Cheadle (Iron Man 2, Ocean’s 11, Hotel Rwanda) is underutilized as the ace lawyer, and Kelly Reily (Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows, Me and Orson Welles) sells her American accent and manages to keep up with Washington.
Unfortunately, the film climaxes about 30 minutes in.  The panic and turbulent anxiety of the crashing plane sequence is raw and gritty; a truly furious storm of film making.  This cut is such a  tour-de-force, that the rest of the film seems like the dust settling from the crash.  The narrative is disjointed and in some places and lags in others.  

However, the rather choppy screenplay is held together with Zemeckis’ technical proficiency, a painfully nostalgic soundtrack, and of course Denzel’s Oscar worthy performance.  It is these powerfully human aspects of the film that truly lets Flight soar to new heights.