“Heaven is for Real” is based on the best-selling book of a boy’s near-death, life-changing experience. Director Randall Wallace follows-up his 2010 horse-racing drama, “Secretariat”, with another inspiring true story.
Greg Kinnear is excellent as Todd Burpo, a loving husband to wife Sonja (Kelly Reilly from “Flight”) and father to daughter Cassie and fun-loving four-year-old son Colton (played by first-time actor Connor Corum). Todd works several jobs in order to support his family, but is primarily a minister for a small-town Nebraska parish.
A few days after Todd is forced to deal with a few painful medical issues, Colton, out of the blue, comes down with a dangerously high temperature. Todd and Sonja take him to the local medical center, where he is forced to undergo emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix. The doctors don’t think Colton is going to survive the operation, but he miraculously does.
Soon, Colton begins to reveal to Todd that during the procedure, he went to Heaven, where he met Jesus, among others, and discovered just how beautiful Heaven is. Todd now must struggle to determine if and how he can believe what his son is telling him, whether these experiences actually happened. All the while Colton continues to amaze Todd and others with revelations about his incredible journey.
“Heaven is for Real” does take a little while to get going. The first half-hour is upbeat, setting a positive tone for how Colton sees his life. When the near-tragedy strikes, the film shifts focus to balance serious themes and spiritual messages. But the execution is handled so well that the story never gets preachy and will likely bring many to tears by the end.
There are hardly any moments in “Heaven is for Real” that come-off as cheesy or forced. Wallace does include a few scenes of Colton’s description of Heaven. Thankfully, the media aspect takes a back-seat to the more crucial problems of the family – both financial and spiritual. And all the performances are quite believable. Thomas Haden Church and Margo Martindale shine as parishioners who are having an uneasy time accepting Todd’s stance on Colton’s beliefs.
“Heaven is for Real” is rated PG for language and some heavy material. It’s suitable for kids 10 and up. Whether or not you believe that Heaven exists, it’s impossible to overlook the emotional impact this film provides. It’s powerful, thought-provoking and incredibly moving.
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “Heaven is for Real” gets a B+.