The Christmas Choir (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a good movie. It isn't just a mindless romance of a single parent at Christmastime--as so many Christmas movies are. There is a romance involved, it just isn't the whole story.
Peter is a workaholic accountant who has just been dumped by his fiancee. He meets a piano player in a bar who can sense he is down and invites him to "come home" with him. "Home" turns out to be a homeless shelter run by an outspoken nun who is trying to quit smoking. He spends the evening there, makes a donation and leaves, never expecting to return. But after seeing one of the homeless men the next day being pushed along for loitering, he returns to the shelter and helps serve dinner, much to Sister Agatha's surprise. But he wants to do more. On the way home he sees a group of carolers on the street receiving donations. He has an idea and returns immediately to the shelter to discuss it with Sister Agatha. He wants to form a choir as a way for the men to earn some money for Christmas, but there are obstacles along the way. He has to face Sister Agatha's doubts, the men's mistrust of his motives, their lack of training and discipline, his rocky relationship with his father and his own deteriorated personal life.
At first he sees himself as the one doing great things to help these men, but finally comes to see how much they have done to turn his life around. It is an uplifting movie that teaches a good lesson without heavy-handed preaching.
The romance is a gentle thread developing throughout the story. It is never suggestive or inappropriate.
Amazingly, this movie of a rougher side of life has no rough language. I think the term "brain-fart" is as bad as it gets, and we hear that only once. Alcohol abuse is dealt with as one choir member shows up to a performance drunk, violating the "cardinal rule". Peter is very angry, words are exchanged and he quits and walks out on the choir. He ends up drunk himself, which is ironic since in an earlier scene he had expressed his frustration with his own father's alcoholism. I can't think of anything else that might be objectionable to anyone. Things look bleak for a time, but are resolved nicely with an upbeat ending.
It is "based on" a true story, but take it with a grain of salt. The fine print at the end of the credits indicates that they have fictionalized events for dramatic effect. Still, I think it is a very good Christmas movie that isn't just light fluff--it actually has some meat to it. I would definitely recommend it. The whole family can watch it, though younger children may not grasp the message.

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Based on a true story, The Christmas Choir is the inspiring account of how one man can make a remarkable difference simply by giving of himself. Workaholic accountant Peter Andrews (Jason Gedrick) has overlooked Christmas, friends and even his fiancé for far too long. As a result, his life begins to fall apart. But a chance encounter with a homeless man named Bob (Tyrone Benskin) changes everything and inspires Peter to start a choir that eventually goes on to enormous success. With the help of the unconventional Sister Agatha (Rhea Perlman) and his newfound friends at the shelter, Peter learns that Christmas is not a season but a state of mind and that everyone deserves a second chance at life and love.

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The Power of Forgiveness (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)What does it mean to forgive someone? How do you go about forgiving? Does it mean that we forgo justice? Is forgiving simply a spiritual experience between an individual and God or does it play out on many different levels? These and other questions are addressed in this look at forgiveness by filmmaker Martin Doblmeier (Bonhoeffer). It looks at real life examples of forgiveness such as the Amish in the wake of the killing of five Amish schoolgirls that ripped their community. It shows the speech Elie Weisel made to the German Bundestadt challenging them to ask forgiveness of the Jewish people and then two months later, the speech made to the Israeli Knesset by the President of Germany asking forgiveness on behalf of Germany. It looks at forgiveness on many different levels including the physical level and how forgiveness (or lack of it) affects us physically and shows examples of forgiveness being taught in elementary schools as well as being offered in colleges. It shows three women who lost loved ones in 9/11 who travel to Lebanon to experience the Garden of Forgiveness established by the Lebanese and wonder why there is so much opposition to establishing a Garden of Forgiveness on the WTC site. While many might want to limit forgiveness to a theological discussion (and it certainly is a major if not THE major theological doctrine), this film shows the power of forgiveness beyond just the theological implications and how our world could be different if forgiveness were taken seriously and practiced by everyone. At the very least, this should be a wonderful conversation starter for those serious about studying forgiveness. Think of the political ramifications if candidates running for office would stand up and ask forgiveness of their opponents when they say something in error or intentionally malign them or if corporate leaders would ask forgiveness of shareholders for the mistakes they made in the name of corporate profits and greed. Perhaps, like most things, it works best if it starts from the individual and community level and works upward. That means it starts with you and me. [...]


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To forgive somone can be simple. But this simple act can have powerul consequences - and may lead to a personal and spiritual transformation. Recently, the study of forgiveness has come into its own. Researchers are examining the psychological and physical effects of forgiveness under an amazingly wide variety of conditions, ranging from petty insults to sexual assault to 9/11. Clinicians now help guide people to forgive transgressions and get on with their lives. From Ground Zero to Northern Ireland to the Amish countryside, THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS explores this important concept, and reveals how forgiveness can transform your life.

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Invictus (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Rugby has never been well publicized in the US. Soccer, although not a ranking sport, receives far more publicity. Therefore, it was knowledge-expanding and stirring to observe the underdog South Africa team's road to a 1995 Rugby cup victory.
The accompanying plot, of course, was the work of Nelson Mandela in using this victory and its team preparation to try to unify South Africa. From our own trip in 1994, when the country was just opening up, we had an idea that there was much unrest and volatility. The nation was still racially divided, although the Apartheid enforced by a distinct white minority had just ended.
Mandela has never received credit for the job he did in keeping South Africa's peace, while trying to encourage foreign investment. He saw that merely seizing white-owned businesses and infrastructure would only be looting of a fixed amount of wealth. No growth could result from the types of activities that were occurring in Zimbabwe and Mozambique, where white minorities had been ousted from power.
As the new President of South Africa, representing an overwhelming black majority, Mandela took a long term view of what was needed. He alienated a considerable portion of his own party to implement his program of racial reconciliation.
The movie provides an exceptional, well integrated blend of sports and far-seeing political strategy.
Some critics have heaped praise on Invictus, claiming that this represents director Clint Eastwood's work "at the top of his game." Other critics have carped about what they see as "trite" dialog. Perhaps if Mandela had been ranting against his racist predecessors and, even more, against the US, they would have enjoyed the dialog more. One critic claimed that too much artistic license was taken in portraying actual events of Mandela's interaction with the rugby team and its captain. These objections seem trivial.
Others have predicted that Morgan Freeman, in his role of Mandela, is a strong Oscar candidate. I hope that Invictus receives a potful of other rewards as well.
With all the negative, tragic outcomes of recent history and, of course, today's events, it was refreshing and stirring to see the rugby success of the South Africa team. More to the point, it represented a hopeful outcome for the nation as a whole.

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What does Nelson Mandela do after becoming president of South Africa? He rejects revenge, forgives oppressors who jailed him 27 years for his fight against apartheid and finds hope of national unity in an unlikely place: the rugby field. Clint Eastwood (named 2009's Best Director by the National Board of Review) directs an uplifting film about a team and a people inspired to greatness. Morgan Freeman (NBR's Best Actor Award winner and Oscar nominee for this role) is Mandela, who asks the national rugby team captain (Best Supporting Actor Oscar nominee Matt Damon) and his squad to do the impossible and win the World Cup. Prepare to be moved--and thrilled.

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What If God Were the Sun (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)Lacey Chabert and Gena Rowlands star in a story of love and loss when a young ER nurse planning an upcoming wedding finds her lack of faith shaken by disaster. Her father's sudden death - with her unknowingly in the next room - leads her to a grief that overshadows everything in her world until a terminally ill patient provides the key to understanding. A warm, rich story of faith emerges.


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Lacey Chabert and Gena Rowlands star in a poignant tale of faith, hope, love and loss, based in part on the novel by acclaimed medium John Edward.

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Home By Christmas (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)I've been looking for this movie for a long time and every season is unavailable by the time i get to it. I got lucky this time. I love this movie, is not a blockbuster,but it really touches your heart. If you are into Christmas movies this one is a must have...

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Julia Bedford is a dedicated homemaker living in a modestly affluent neighborhood with her successful husband and sixteen-year-old daughter. When Julia discovers that her husband is cheating on her, her world is rocked. In their pending divorce, with most of her husbands assets carefully hidden, Julia is left with nothing except her car and her barely realistic child support checks. After moving into a small apartment, Julia tries to make do while working a minimum wage job. Her daughter hates their new scaled-down life and convinces her father and his new girlfriend to let her live with him. When Julia finally hits rock bottom and finds herself living in their car, she decides to begin her comeback--and ultimately discovers whats really valuable in life. Starring Linda Hamilton.

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Holiday Switch (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)Have you ever thought that your life could have been so much better if only you had taken a different turn at some point?
Paula Ferguson runs into her old boyfriend at Christmas time. He's turned out to be a wealthy art dealer, living a life of luxury. At least that's the way it seems to the hard-working Paula, struggeling with debt, housework and family issues -- just like the rest of us. She makes a wish, and ends up transported into the alternate reality of her dreams. Of course, in the end, Paula would give just about anything to get back to her real world. But, this time, the wishing doesn't work!
Holiday Switch was very cleverly done, and is a step above lots of other Christmas movies about dreams being granted.

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Its a week before Christmas, and Paula (Nicole Eggert) is struggling with bills, life with her blue-collar husband Gary and her two daughters. So when Nick, her high school boyfriend, returns to town a wealthy art gallery owner, Paula begins to wonder where she would be if she had stayed with him and not Gary. When Paula makes a holiday wish to see what life would have been like had she made another choice, she is magically transported through her washer/dryer to a parallel life where she is Nicks wife. At first, this other life seems the answer to her dreams, as she shops and dines out with her newfound wealth. But she soon realizes that the grass is NOT always greener on the other side. Her relationship with Nick is in shambles, and she misses her real husband Gary and her two girls. When she sees Gary and her kids living a happy life with another woman, she wishes for just one more Christmas gift--to have back the life she didnt appreciate.

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An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving is one of Hallmark's better holiday movies. Not as "sweet" and predictable as most Hallmark movies; this one has some "bite" to it, and that makes it believable. All of the actors are excellent, giving their characters depth--even the youngest boy is very, very good. As always, Jacqueline Bisset is a pleasure to watch--she is always so compelling in any of her roles. To be believable as a grandmother is a feat in itself, for she doesn't seem old enough even now.
Having never read the Alcott story this is taken from, I have no idea how closely it stays to the short story, but it is a fine movie on its own. I definitely give it 5 stars!

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Inspired by a short story, Isabella Caldwell is a high-society woman in late-1800's New York. When Isabella's estranged daughter Mary becomes ill and is too proud to ask her mother for assistance, Mary's daughter, Tilly, takes it upon herself to contact her grandmother and plead for help. Isabella's arrival causes an upheaval in many lives, but may also lead to reconciliation within the family.

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