AFA Staff
AFA Journal staff reviews movies, books and other resources
July-August 2011 – Field of Vision
A new title in the Family Movie Night series aired June 11 on NBC. It is produced by Walmart and Procter and Gamble, and it continues to merit high marks for family-friendly television fare.
Field of Vision features the McFarland family. Tyler is quarterback of his high school football team – with hopes of a state championship. Everything goes smoothly until Cory, a somber, introverted foster child, transfers to the school. Cory is a football player, but Tyler’s teammates mistreat him in various ways to keep him from the team.
Coach tells Tyler, team captain: “Put out the word: This stops!”
When Tyler discovers that two of his best friends are the cause of Cory’s troubles, he is faced with a tough decision: protect his friends, or identify the troublemakers.
Tyler’s young sister Lucy comes into possession of a magical antique camera that becomes an interesting device to move the plot forward. The camera enables her (and Tyler) to envision things that have happened in the past.
There are no language problems and no graphic violence (just football). Cheerleaders wear typical, short-skirted uniforms but are only shown briefly and usually in the background.
Review by Randall Murphree
Clancy
Clancy, about nine years old, faces the daunting task of taking care of her alcoholic mother in Clancy, a release from Kelly’s Filmworks. Though her mom routinely abuses Clancy both physically and emotionally, Clancy loves her and prays faithfully for her. Clancy misinterprets a neighbor’s observation that, if social services would remove her from the home, her mother might get the help she needs. So Clancy runs away from home and finds an unlikely confidant in Nic, a homeless man.The two become the best of friends.
Meanwhile, a corrupt mayor is running for reelection and learns that his police chief (a partner in crime) knows where Clancy is. The mayor grabs onto Clancy’s situation and wants to keep her in hiding until he can stage a heroic rescue that will boost his election chances.
The story line is engaging and well developed. There is no objectionable language, and although there is mild violence (and visual evidence of it) against Clancy, the scenes are not gratuitous. Still, the heavy themes of child abuse, death and alcoholism warrant a caution for parents of young children.
Review by Randall Murphree
A Letter to Dad CAUTION
Based on a true story, A Letter to Dad is the poignant story of Dan, a boy who grows up to be a man filled with pain, loss and bitterness. When he was small, life was good. He saw his dad as his hero and he felt secure in his family’s love. Then, his parents divorced and his world turned upside down.
Through his growing up years, Dan struggles to cope with his pain through seeking to please both his parents, making excuses for them, drinking and risky behavior but inside he is dying. Through his mom’s encouragement Dan starts attending church and comes to faith in Christ. But, he never deals with the pain of his dad’s aloofness and absence in his childhood.
A Letter to Dad is a story of family, pain, love and redemption, and it shows how deeply God desires for fathers and sons to have close, healthy relationships.
This story is not suited for young audiences. It would be appropriate for teens and would be a great discussion starter for families. There are a few cautions: there is drinking, some implied drug use, driving while intoxicated, drag racing with an arrest, cutting school and one scene with brief smoking.
Review by Debbie Fischer
Redemption Ride CAUTION
Colter Reese is a former world class bicycle racing champion in Redemption Ride, a story of forgiveness, love and second chances. Before his last competitive race Colter tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. He became angry with God and retreated into isolation from his hometown.
As the story begins, Colter’s son, Jonah, requests that his dad ride his bike to visit Jonah in the hospital. Jonah has a terminal disease. Unknown to Colter, Jonah and his grandfather have cooked up a fictitious race for Colter to bike. They tell him there is a cash prize that would cover a fictitious surgery for Jonah. The real purpose of the race is to draw Colter back to the Lord.
The story line moves slowly with extended scenes of biking, music and beautiful scenery. Colter travels on a thousand mile journey with four destination points. At each point he must find a hidden cache. Each cache includes a message of redemption through Christ.
There are a couple of delightful scenes with Jonah and his hospital roommate, a younger boy who steals the scenes with his endearing chatter and innocent inquisitive spirit. His reading of the Scriptures is very touching.
Redemption through Christ is clearly the message, but a few cautions should be noted. Redemption is better suited for older youth and adults due to its slow pace. Also, there are scenes with smoking, consumption of prescription performance-enhancing drugs, and some inappropriate flirting.
Review by Debbie Fischer
The Mighty Macs CAUTION
Cathy Rush, former high school basketball star, becomes basketball coach at Immaculata, a small Catholic girl’s college, in 1971. Before the season ended, Rush had taken the rag-tag, constantly losing team to the first-ever national women’s basketball championship game. It’s a great story based on fact, thus making it all the more appealing.
However, a number of negative elements mar the movie’s potential to inspire. For example, Coach Rush and a nun (her assistant coach) let a strange man buy them a beer at the bar. and they clearly enjoy flirting with him. The nun tells him her husband is a carpenter and that, yes, he’s good with his hands. In the context the double entendre is obvious. In another scene, the nun/coach lies to mother superior to protect Coach Rush. Finally, Rush dons a nun’s habit to wear to the national tournament so she can get either free or reduced air fare. These scenes are played for humor, but there is never an implication that lies and deceit are out of order as long as they help one achieve the desired results.
Review by Randall Murphree
The Bible Explorer Series
Have you ever daydreamed about becoming an archaeologist searching the Holy Land for the lost locations and artifacts described in the Bible? If so, The Bible Explorer Series will transport you into that mysterious world. Archaeologist Bob Cornuke has traveled the world to uncover the mysteries of The Ark of the Covenant, Noah’s Ark and Mt. Sinai.
Cornuke’s investigative methods begin with intense study of the Bible, using it as his “road map” to adventure.He presents intriguing evidence for the possible locations of these mysteries.
The Search for The Ark of the Covenant transports the viewer from Jerusalem, up the Nile River, to a possible resting place in a remote highland monastery in Ethiopia.
In The Search for Noah’s Ark Cornuke researches biblical testimony, eyewitness testimony, and other factors to seek out the final resting place of the ark.
Larry Williams joins Cornuke in the quest to find the actual location of Mt. Sinai in The Search for Mt. Sinai. They discover many important relics and landmarks described in the biblical account of the Israelite’s journey.
This series would lend itself perfectly for use in family viewing as well as Sunday school or a Bible study group discussion. The evidence presented is a useful addition to the debate of the locations of these mysteries and gives remarkable evidence that the Bible is historically accurate. Cornuke strongly challenges the viewers to search the Scriptures to find “the treasures in the Word of God and make the most important discovery of all – a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Review by Debbie Fisher
