Well, everyone, today, we reach the milestone of 750 reviews. Now, I do have a confession to make. As many of you can tell, I’m not usually one to review newer releases when it comes to milestones of my reviews, like the 550th one, my 600th one, so on, and so forth. So why is that the case this time around, you may be wondering? Well, before I answer that, I will confess that originally, I planned to review an older film, like usual. However, because of hearing how great this film was from a pastor at my church, who briefly spoke about this film, and recommended, and also because the timing was perfect, I figured I’d review today’s review, and save the other one that I planned for a different milestone review instead. So now, let’s discuss a faith-based film that was released a couple weeks, on the same day as Disney’s Tron: Ares, the one, and only Soul On Fire, which was made by Sony, and Affirm Films.
Plot: The film chronicles the early life, and adult life of author John O’Leary (Joel Courtney). From when he was a kid, and had a major life-changing accident that involved, the movie then shows all the struggles that he had to overcome, and how his faith God helped him to do so.
Wow, first of all, I’m glad that the pastor at my church recommended this film. Second, Soul On Fire serves as proof as to why more people need to go, and support faith-based while they are in theaters. Quite honestly, I am one of hopefully quite a few people that is heartbroken to see movies like Light Of The World, The Senior, and now Soul On Fire not perform all that well at the box-office. Is this because of there being a lack of advertisement for films like these, are especially Christians not into recent films like these for some reason, or is it a combination of these, along with maybe other reasons? Well, you got me! With all of that, Soul On Fire is definitely worth seeing for quite a few reasons. For one, the script is phenomenal. There is a line that is repeated a few times throughout this film that is probably one of the most memorable lines in the entire movie. I won’t say what it is for those of you that haven’t seen Soul On Fire yet. However, after you see this film, let’s just say that my hope, and prayer, is that it’s a line that will touch you, and speak to each one of you deeply. Next, not only is this a faith-based film, but, especially since it’s based on a true story, the movie does well with depicting the realities of life really well. Next, there is the acting. Oh man, the acting is really great, especially Dennis being played by Joel Courtney, or Jack Buck by William H. Macy. Oh, and did I forget to mention that John Corbett, whose works include playing Ian Miller in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, plays Dennis, John’s father, in this movie? Hopefully, that right there would help give people more incentive to see this movie, especially for those who saw My Fat Greek Wedding a long time ago, and enjoyed it. Additionally, the characters were well done. In fact, having each of the characters well developed helped put more heart into this film. The script was also really great. But one of the major highlights of this film was how John was willing to fight to stay alive, regardless of how much pain he was going through, how much time it took for him to heal from the fire accident that he was in, and especially how much he was willing to trust in God no matter what circumstances he had to go through. Truly, after seeing this movie, we can definitely learn some valuable lessons from John O’Leary. Finally, Soul On Fire does help teach the audience valuable lessons, from learning the reminder to trust God at all times, having the courage to share faith with others, and not letting mistakes, or hurts of the past, define us. It’s also worth noting that seeing that films like Soul On Fire, Soul Surfer, and last year’s Reagan, were all directed by the same director, Sean McNamara. Now, don’t get me wrong. Faith-based films, especially more recent ones, and ones that have been made for almost 20+ years, are good to one degree, or another, be it Facing The Giants, Courageous, War Room, you name it. However, the way that Sean McNamara seems to help craft faith-based films, he seems to have a way of crafting them in a way that seems really enriching, and engaging, Soul Surfer, Reagan, and Soul On Fire being among them.
And that’s my review for Soul On Fire. Truly, I think that it’s saddening to know that films like Tron: Ares, and some horror films teased this month are the ones getting even a little more popularity, while films like Soul On Fire are getting somewhat buried in the ground so to speak. Seeing as that seems to be the case, I do hope that in the fairly near future, movies like Soul On Fire will have more people watching either while it’s in theaters, or when it comes out On Demand. If you haven’t seen Soul On Fire yet, please do so ASAP. You’ll be glad that you did afterwards. Let’s really hope movies like Soul On Fire serve as proof as to why more faith-based films need to be supported by us, the audience! Seriously! So again, see this hopefully in theaters first, if you can!
Final Rating: 10/10
Matthew’s Animated & Live-Action Movie Reviews 