Rated PG for thematic material involving slavery, and some mild language.
Directed by Michael Apted (Coal Miner’s Daughter, Nell, The World is Not Enough…)
Starring Ioan Gruffudd, Albert Finney…
There’s been a lot of hype about Amazing Grace lately. I’ve had numerous people imploring me to see the film. Email after email, “You’ve gotta see this film.” So I finally caved and saw it.
Not bad. Worth renting for sure.
Maybe it was all the hype that raised my expectations as if the film was the next Glory or Places in the Heart. Sorry, no dice. But it was a good film.
The story is about the idealist William Wilberforce who maneuvers his way through Parliament in 19th century England, endeavoring to end the British transatlantic slave trade. The script was good and the performances were indeed at par. My favorite was Albert Finney. (Has he ever been below par?)
My wife liked the film more than I did, but she loves any film where women carry parasols and men drive buggies (Emma, Pride and Prejudice, etc.). I, on the other hand, thought some of the best films of this past year were 300 and I Am Legend. So consider the source.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
No hesitation. The film was completely clean. Although it was a very dialogue driven movie and most young kids wouldn’t have the attention span to sit through it.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
- What are some of the messages or themes you observed in this movie?
- How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
- How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
