In Randall Wallace’s “Heaven Is For Real” a young boy, after a near-death experience, claims to have witnessed Heaven and had contact with Jesus Christ. When his father, Todd Burpo (Greg Kinnear) a preacher at a church announces to his congregation the experiences of his son Colton (Connor Corum) there is an uproar and negative reaction. The film is a story of the Burpo family’s journey through near-tragedy, social scorn, to the community’s love and admiration.
Part of the viewer’s investment in this film will be whether he or she does believe that heaven is, in fact, for real. I suppose not many atheists would go to a film with such a title as this, so the majority of audience members will be in the category of “believer”. There is a strong Christian message behind this film and it will appeal to that sort of viewer.
The success of this film is dependent on the performance of its principle cast members, mainly Colton (Corum) the young boy who as the vision of the afterlife. I think it is a success in this regard. The young actor is cute but not in a way that detracts from the enjoyment level of the movie. He is believable and sympathetic and is well cast. Greg Kinnear does a fine job as well as the man who has doubts about his son’s experience but gradually grows to believe and accept his story.
There is not a lot of depth to this film, however. It is a relatively straightforward retelling of a real-life experience. It is short on style and flash but it will appeal to viewers who are looking for a heart-warming, family story of a world that is scientifically unexplainable but is believed in by a large majority of North Americans. It won’t garner any nominations and will probably be forgotten in a few months but will appeal to a lot of people.
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