Review of Miracles from Heaven (2016) by Jeff B — 06 Apr 2016

Heaven help audiences who don't enjoy being hit over the head like a Whack-A-Mole with a movie's moral because - for all of the good graces of its cast and intentions - the better-than-most but nonetheless hopelessly syrupy Bible-thumper known as Miracles from Heaven accomplices just this. If you believe in Miracles, stick with a certain sports drama about ice hockey at the 1980 Winter Olympics called, well, Miracle. This tidy bar of soap, however, forcefeeds the issue at hand, which gets empathy from a loyal flock but ingratiates the flocking rest. Sure, this movie has a target audience: stringent Christians. They came to the cinema as believers and would inarguably leave the cinema believers even if they were inexorably locked in and shown a Faces of Death marathon instead. What about other moviegoers? There are many faith-ful moviegoers, the writer of this review included. Why do faith-based movies have to be so on-the-nose when life just isn't so cut-n-dry? But the family at the center always does nicey nice activities together, says nicey nice things all of the time, and makes nicey nice friends like Queen Latifah very easily.

In this PG-rated drama based on the book by Christy Beam, a young girl suffering from a rare digestive disorder finds herself miraculously cured after surviving a terrible accident.

Even when life lobs hardball issues like crippling financial woes at them, these plot points get handled in a softball manner--not in a "don't sweat the small stuff and it's all small stuff" kind of way either but by addressing them and then not dealing with them at all. Life presents us with difficult challenges, as does our belief systems. Illustrated Bible Stories work for many when they are young and eat Play-Doh but offering them the live action equivalent as adults seems kind of demeaning. When one character says, "I've been a doctor for 25 years (and have) never seen anything like it," he's very wrong. EVERY faith based movie seems to pan out similarly to this. Admittedly, this one rings a tad truer thanks to the players. Jennifer Garner throws her all into the goings-on but, as well meaning as they are, an Illustrated Bible Story is an Illustrated Bible Story.

Bottom line: Beginning to See the Blight.