Rated PG for thematic material
Directed by David Nixon and Patrick Doughtie (First feature film)
Starring Ralph Waite, Bailee Madison, Robyn Lively and Maree Cheatham
Dear God, am I a terrible person for saying this is a terrible movie?
Tyler Doherty is an extraordinary eight-year-old boy armed with strong faith and courage as he faces his daily battle against cancer. Surrounded by a loving family and community, Tyler’s prayers take the form of letters he sends to his ultimate pen pal, God, on a daily basis. These letters find their way into the hands of Tyler’s postman, Brady, who is at a crossroads in his life searching for meaning. Brady at first is confused over what to do, but his decision ultimately is a testament to the power of Tyler’s shining spirit, bravery and grace. Inspired by a true story, Letters to God delivers a message of hope, faith and courage that others can apply to their own personal struggles regardless of what they may face in their everyday lives.
Several years ago a cousin of mine was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease. He was in really bad shape but throughout the process he maintained a healthy positive attitude. He even got to the place where he was joking about his hair loss, his weight gain and physical weakness. One time he punched me in the arm and when I hit him back he said, “Oh that’s real nice, picking on a cancer patient”. Well I feel a lot like that right now. How can I “pick” on a movie about a little boy with cancer who writes letters to God asking questions like “Why am I sick?”
But here’s the truth; this is not a quality movie. The acting is horrific, the directing is shoddy and the cast is amateur at best. What the film does do is pull every trick in the book to make you cry…and they do that a lot.
Then there are the intolerable attempts at humor. The mailman’s first day (getting chased by a dog, getting caught in a hose and finally getting puked on) and a kid gets his face pushed into mashed potatoes…and the potatoes stay there even while he is sitting in the principal’s office. None of that is funny.
Finally I wanted to say that I wish film makers would take a page from the people who made To Save a Life. Now that was a powerful movie with an amazing message without all the cheesy “preaching” and “let’s pray” scenes. But I guess all those churches who said they would not show To Save a Life because of the cursing and drinking scenes will love this one.
Even though I may feel a twinge of guilt I have to go with a Coaster. Actually I don’t feel guilty.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
This is a very family friendly, faith-based film. There is nothing offensive in this one.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
Q: What was the theme (or the message) of this movie?
A: This movie wrestles with the age-old question: Where is God when life hurts? All of the characters, especially Tyler and Brady, have to come to grips with how God runs His universe.
Q: What can we—as serious Christ-followers—take away from this movie?
A: We have to realize that there are storms in life. Sometimes, God miraculously calms the storms for us; other times, He doesn’t. Sometimes God heals people of cancer, sometimes He doesn’t. We will probably never understand why God chooses to do some of the things He does. But what we can understand is that God is TOTALLY trustworthy in all of life’s situations.
Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: When life takes a turn for the worse, we absolutely have to turn to God. If we don’t, we’ll almost surely be overwhelmed. But if we learn to trust God – even in the midst of difficult conversations, we can grow closer to Him and be blessed in spite of our difficulties.
It happened to Abraham when he was asked to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22).
It happened to Job when he lost everything (Job 1-2).
It happened to the disciples when they were literally in a storm (Mark 4).
It can happen to us, too, but only if we totally trust God.
