By Feature Editor: Hannah Snyder
There are so many words to describe the newly released film, Heaven is for Real. It was one of those movies that as soon as I saw the previews months ago I was excited for it to hit theaters. The remarkable story impacted viewers in many different ways. I found myself often laughing, even crying, and left the theater curious as to what the reality behind it all was.
The PG movie is based on the bestselling book, Heaven is for Real, written by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent. When reading the title you would probably think it would be your typical, religious-based book convincing people why heaven has to be real. However, after seeing the movie I have learned that it’s so much more than that.
In the early scenes of the movie, four-year-old Colton Burpo (Connor Corum) had to undergo an emergency surgery to prevent his appendix from rupturing. Post surgery was more than just a typical recovery though. Colton shares his remarkable story of what actually happened while he was under anesthesia.
Colton did much more than imagine vivid, unrealistic dreams while unconscious – he took his very own trip to heaven. When he awoke he explained to his parents Todd (Greg Kinnear) and Sonja Burpo (Kelly Reilly) that he was able to see them in the waiting room and that he had visited heaven, spent time with angels, and was able to visit Jesus himself.
At first, the Burpo family is unsure of what to believe. How could you not be? I wouldn’t believe my son if he told me he had visited heaven either. While Colton was in heaven, he learned things he had never known before and knew about incidents that happened before he was even born. For example, he was able to meet an angel who was very familiar with his family. How? That angel was his great-grandfather who he had never met. The film plot follows Todd, a church minister, telling his son’s extraordinary encounter with the unknown.
The movie was very emotional from the first scene to the very last. And I really can’t say it wasn’t a good movie, because it sure was. However, it had a weak, pointless storyline. Once Colton woke up from his surgery nothing else exciting happened.
The entire movie was following Todd around town explaining to everyone Colton’s story. This process was fun to watch because I was interested to see what would happen, but I would never be able to watch it a second time and still feel the excitement. I wish there was some type of antagonist that tried to prove Colton’s story couldn’t be true. Although, how much can you expect from a movie based on a true story?
I also think the film was poorly constructed. I found myself confused about what was happening in each scene because the changes happen very quickly. One minute they would be talking about heaven, and the next the family would be in church praying. It was difficult to stay with the pace of the movie without thinking, “What are they talking about now?”
While driving home from the theater I couldn’t help but wonder about this little boy’s story. He was able to visit a place millions, if not billions of people question. And who knows – maybe the entire story was fake and Colton could have just been an innocent child using his imagination. Who’s saying the father didn’t add in details to make it sound more realistic? Regardless, Heaven is for Real left me confused, curious, and very hopeful.
