Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot

Inspired by a powerful true story, Sound of Hope tells the tale of a small-town pastor’s wife igniting a fire in the hearts of their rural church community in Possum Trot, East Texas. Theirs is a mission to embrace the unwanted children in the foster system, the damaged young souls who have been thrown away. Against all odds, this modest village in the middle of nowhere adopts 77 of the most broken children and proves that with God’s love and a lot of prayer, the battle for America’s most vulnerable can be won.

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot – Review

Some people in this world have harrowing tales of courage and bravery, and some whose selflessness and trust in Christ glorify the Lord so profoundly that their stories inspire generations. Possum Trot’s people are truly God’s children, and their good works surely please Him greatly.

After the disappointment that was the mishandled Sight, Angel Studios has redeemed itself with another powerful movie about the soaring heights of human compassion. Sound of Hope succeeds not only in subject matter but on all cinematic fronts. Every actor gives a present and natural performance while delivering economic and organic dialogue filtered through the relatable experiences of the character’s extraordinary times.

The result is that Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot is a grounded story that stays out of its own way. The filmmakers clearly understood the inherent power of this real-life drama, and they let it unfold like beautiful music, allowing it to envelope the listener with rousing peaks of optimism and the desperate isolation of fear and doubt only to soothe audience’s wounds with the depth of God’s love and the power of giving over to his will.

While it’s not without its flaws, for instance, the early narration is largely unneeded and a little heavy-handed, the flaws are nothing in comparison to what the filmmakers get right.

Sound of Hope will reaffirm your faith and move you to tears of sorrow and joy. More importantly, it will move some to action. Whereas Sound of Freedom taught us that God’s children are not for sale, Sound of Hope teaches that God’s love can change the world.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Zilch

• Woke free, and it feels so good.

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Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film

The greatest story ever told has returned to the silver screen, but this time with a unique distinction. A Deaf Missions Film presents Jesus’s Ministry and Passion entirely in American Sign Language (ASL), making it the only religious film—and the only film of any kind—to do so. Created by deaf people for deaf people, it is truly a film of a mission with a mission.

Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film Review

Making a quality movie with quality people on both sides of the camera is already a daunting enough task. One need only look at the sad state of American cinema to see how shallow the talent pool has become. Combine that with finding an entire cast that is fluent in American Sign Language, and you would need a miracle to demonstrate even base-level competence. Fortunately, this film surpasses that lowly metric, and Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film exceeds expectations.

Bolstered by chronicling the most important event in human history since the creation of the universe, the cast and crew’s obvious love for the source material, and their clear devotion to the cause of bringing the Word to the hearing impaired, Jesus brings its own special beauty to Christ’s story, despite any weaknesses that it might have.

The performances range from a handful of not-so-greats to a majority of not-too-bads, with Ryan Schlecht playing Caiaphas arguably giving the film’s best performance. Schlecht’s focus is fairly strong throughout, and the role of Caiaphas naturally lends itself to film-friendly theatrics. Playing Jesus, Gideon Firl infuses our savior with a refreshing sweetness not generally portrayed in other big-screen adaptations of our Savior, the one exception perhaps being the chair scene in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ.

Jesus’ production value outstrips what was no doubt a very modest budget. Costumes seem appropriate, if maybe a little too new-looking, and locations and sets are perfectly adequate.  The filmmakers took advantage of some computer-enhanced establishing shots that do a fine job conveying the land’s scope and its important locales, even if their artificial nature is apparent.

Unlike The Greatest Story Ever Told or King of Kings, which tells of Jesus’ life from beginning to end to beginning, or The Passion, which focuses on Jesus’ final days on Earth, Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film focuses mainly on Jesus’ ministry, playing all of the hits from healing the sick to raising the dead. It’s an understandable choice given the filmmakers’ goal of spreading the Word to a niche market that hasn’t been exposed to it. Still, it lacks an emotional throughline that a more focused story would have conveyed and subsequently feels like a series of short plays rather than one long narrative. That said, those well-versed in the source material will appreciate the various tales, and each one is so significant to the rest of history, Western civilization, and our own personal stories that I have no doubt many and more deaf viewers will be moved to partner with Christ while hearing believers like myself will find themselves moved by the love and sacrifice made on our unworthy behalfs.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Prove To Me That You’re No Fool, Walk Across My Swimming Pool

• No

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The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Located near Cameroon’s coast lies a port under Nazi control on the island of Fernando Po (now known as Bioko). This port serves as the primary supply hub for Der Führer’s mid-Atlantic fleet of U-boats, which have been enforcing a blockade on Great Britain and preventing American aid from reaching the country.

With Britain on the cusp of collapse, Gus March-Phillips and his band of borderline psychopaths are secretly recruited by Winston Churchill to clandestinely attack the port and cripple their supply chain and, by extension, the Nazi U-Boat fleet.

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare Review

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is an entertaining film filled with interesting characters played by actors who drip charisma, which is what largely holds the film together. Henry Cavill plays Gus March-Phillips and is arguably the most charming man alive. Certainly, he’s the most charming actor working in Hollywood today, and his effervescent enthusiasm can’t help but be contagious.

In every scene that he’s in, it’s plain that both he and his castmates are having a blast, and it’s this, more than anything, that will put a smile on your face even as they repeatedly and efficiently butcher Nazi after cabbage-eating Nazi.

Unfortunately, as much fun as the film’s action might be, its full potential is hampered by what often feels like the obligatory and almost rhythmic interruptions of a rather uninteresting subplot led by Eiza González’s Marjorie Stewart. Stewart, another of Churchill’s agents, is to be the honeypot that gains access to the Nazi garrison’s leader and, thereby, information vital to March-Phillips’ mission. However, she doesn’t learn anything from him that couldn’t have been gleaned from men of much lower rank and importance or even by rifling through an office drawer.

Moreover, despite his always chilling portrayal of an evil German, Til Schweiger‘s Heinrich Luhr is as generic and unnecessary a villain as they come. Stereotypically evil to the point of emotional irrelevancy, Luhr and his troops never truly give the sense of impending danger that Ritchie and team were ostensibly going for.

That’s not entirely Schweiger’s fault, nor is it completely the fault of González’s somewhat wooden performance. Instead, most of the blame lies with Ungentlemanly Warfare’s writers and director. Stewart’s storyline is boring and feels entirely contrived, which is fitting since it is also the most fictionalized part of the film. In real life Stewart did some admin work in London and was nowhere near Fernando Po.

Then there is Ritchie’s sloppy pacing. Every time the film begins to find a groove with Phillips and his men delivering bloody justice to a group of disposable Nazis, the film jarringly interrupts with Stewart’s B-plot. The problem is that Phillips et al. spend most of the movie on a boat trying to get to where they are going, and Stewart’s story actually was contrived to give the audience something “interesting” to watch while they wait. It is not.

Finally, Guy’s insistence on such a strong focus on the secondary story robs audiences of the needed time to properly develop a deeper connection with Phillips and his men. By all accounts, the real Phillips was a man’s man of such natural bold charisma that not only was James Bond largely based on him, but months after his untimely death, his entire commando team of 55 men disbanded. Were the audience given more time and reason to connect with him and his group, it would have lent an emotional bond that would have elevated the action beyond simple fun.

With all of that said, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is mostly entertaining, and even its lesser moments don’t drag. Despite its warts, the good is almost good enough for us to mark it as Worth it. You probably won’t feel cheated if you buy a ticket to watch it, but lower your expectations a bit for maximum enjoyment.

P.S. It’s become fairly common in modern movies to overlay a classic song on top of brutal action as an intentionally jarring juxtaposition. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it feels forced. In this movie, there is a rendition of Bobby Darin’s Mack The Knife that is absolutely atrocious. Its vocals are fine, but the sound mixing and the song are all wrong. Mack The Knife has written into it several instances of vocal ornamentation to add flair. However, this sudden change of rhythm does not fit the movie’s score, which is laid over Mack The Knife’s original instrumentation.

It seems small, but it takes place at the movie’s climax and is really bad. Just because the song was originally from a German penny opera and mentions tugboats is not sufficient cause to put it where it doesn’t belong.

P.P.S. Boby Darin’s version of the song (the one that the movie uses) wasn’t recorded until almost 20 years after the events in the movie.

Role Models

With A Caveat

• I am not saying that men should model themselves after bloodthirsty killers. I am saying that the portrayal of strong and capable men of bold resolve taking care of business and that learning to be a leader of men is both valuable and fulfilling.
  • Cavill’s March-Phillips embodies a man that other men want to be, and women want to be with.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Ain’t No Damsels Around Here

• While Marjorie Stewart was a real person who worked for the actual SOE and became an actress afterward, it is unclear if she was a spy, and I can find nothing to corroborate that she was a marksman. Furthermore, she was almost certainly not directly involved with Operation Postmaster (the operation portrayed in the film) whatsoever.
  • Given that this only comes up during the establishing scene and one other single action, it would appear that the character’s status as a marksman had only two purposes.
    • The marketing materials.
    • Because we couldn’t have her really needed to be rescued by a man, could we?

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Land of Bad

When his Spec Ops team is ambushed, Air Force Sergeant JJ Kinney’s only hope of survival lies with drone pilots thousands of miles away to guide him through 48 hours of hell.

Falling somewhere between SISU’s relentless and over-the-top action and Guy Ritchie’s The Covenanent’s grounded depiction of combat, Land of Bad is a surprisingly engaging action war thriller. It may not add much new to the genre, but it manages to deliver what genre fans want: compelling and realistic men depicting visceral heroism while unironically exploring universal themes of duty and survival under impossible conditions.

Its limited cast does its duty by giving equally natural performances that expertly hook the audience and provide them with a raw connection to the film’s stakes. Hemsworth, who gets the lion’s share of the film’s focus, proves that he has what it takes to be a serious action star. Were it not for every other aspect of the show, his turn as Sergeant Kinney would be more than enough to give Witcher fans hope. Admittedly, though, there are one or two very brief moments in which his intensity isn’t quite commensurate with that of the scene’s.

The rest of the cast is brimming with enough charisma to work quickly within the constraints of their relatively brief screen time to infuse a richness to their characters that lesser performers would have missed. This is especially true for the once-svelte star of Gladiator, Russell Crowe. Crowe proves that his talent is as expansive as his waistline by infusing a character that could have easily been omitted with heart and purpose. He delivers a magnetic performance for an otherwise cutting room floor subplot.

Land of Bad isn’t a perfect movie. Its plot has been recycled from countless other films, and it overlooks some basic details (especially toward the end). Still, for those few things it gets wrong, it more than makes up for with its primal stakes, perfect pacing, and some first-rate cinematography.

It’s been a while since I left the cinema with a smile on my face. I’m happy to mark Land of Bad as Worth it.

Role Models

• The self-sacrificing, no-quit, complete-the-mission attitude that exemplifies the best of U.S. soldiers is on full display and honors those who have sacrificed much for more.

WOKE ELEMENTS

None

The post Land of Bad first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

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Leo

Leo, the reptile (tuatara are not lizards), and his best buddy Squirtle, the turtle, have spent their entire existence confined behind glass as class pets for a fourth-grade classroom. When Leo discovers his days are numbered, he hatches a plan to break free and pursue the life he’s always yearned for. However, an unexpected twist occurs with the arrival of an old-school substitute teacher. Instead of escaping, Leo is made a class project and given to a different child to be cared for every night.

As he befriends the students, he becomes a source of support as each navigates the challenges in their lives. In turn, the students and he form a unique bond that transcends the confines of the classroom, and Leo begins to understand how much more fulfilling a life of serving others can be than the prospect of a life serving oneself.

Leo is pretty light on over-arcing narrative and is instead mostly a series of mini-episodes linked together by transitional moments spent in the classroom where Leo (Adam Sandler) and Squirtle (Bill Burr) exchange some playful banter before our titular reptile is whisked off for another evening of bonding and problem-solving.

As a rule, it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes an Adam Sandler film funny (which I do… most of the time). They often offer marginal performances and obvious juvenile gags. But, what seems to be the common denominator, is heart.

Even through a lizard-shaped digital avatar who talks like he has a mouth full of cotton, Sandler is able to project a sense of genuine concern for children who are suffering through the modern trials being foisted upon them by progressive narcissistic parents. His soft and slow delivery manages to endear the audience, making it impossible for those with a soul to not root for him.

The Hills Are Alive – Music in Leo

Longtime fans of Sandler remember his rise to prominence with musical characters like Opera Man on Saturday Night Live, and on his R-rated (maybe NC-17) 1993 comedy album “They’re All Gonna Laugh At You!” Suffice it to say that music has played a pivotal role in his career.

Leo’s music (of which there is a considerable amount) fits perfectly with the rest of the program. That is to say, it’s mostly simple and unassuming and, in true Sandler fashion, often feels like sections of lyrics only exist because they rhyme, rather than because they make the most sense.

Yet, somehow patently false lyrics like “..the kids who are most popular are the ones who want to know what other kids think,” work. Again, it’s because Leo’s design is as cute as Sandler’s delivery.

Final Thoughts

Leo benefits from easy banter between Sandler and Burr, addressing simple and universally identifiable themes, and great pacing. It’s not quite a must-see for parents, but it’s cute and sweet, and there are worse family movies to enjoy together.

ROLE MODELS IN LEO

Even though Leo’s early motivation is selfish, he quickly learns the value of helping others and his priorities shift to a genuine desire to do so. Throughout, he is thoughtful and kind.

INAPPROPRIATE ELEMENTS FOR CHILDREN IN LEO

It’s the third one

• The Lord’s name is taken in vain multiple times in the first 20 minutes.

Anatomy of a dirty joke

• There’s an early joke in which Bill Burr’s character alludes to Leo’s penis.
• There’s an early site gag in which Squirtle removes his shell and is seen to be wearing a jock strap.
  • His butt cheeks are visible
  • He has a tramp-stamp

WOKE ELEMENTS

There’s a lot of diversity on display, but it makes sense for a metropolitan school. Furthermore, while all of the men are problematic in some way, so are all of the women, and the children. Their faults and foibles exist as a commentary against modern parenting and educational techniques.

So we dinged it a few points for the aforementioned inappropriate stuff that didn’t need to be in a show that is otherwise appropriate for little kids.

The post Leo first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

The Shift

A mysterious figure tries to recruit grieving father, Kevin Garner, to help him sow chaos throughout the multiverse. When Kevin refuses, he finds himself stranded in a dystopian world that is not his own. Never giving up hope that God will lead him home, Kevin uses his time to spread The Word to a people in bondage and misery.

Starring Neal McDonough (Yellowstone) and Sean Astin (The Lord of The Rings), The Shift is an audacious undertaking, especially for a Christian movie studio best known for a series about the life and teachings of Christ and a biographical film about child sex slavery. With The Shift, Angel Studios has reimagined the story of Job as a multi-verse-spanning sci-fi thriller, and the seriousness of their desire to compete against secular fare from the “big guys” is apparent in every frame.

With his barely restrained menace and piercing stare, McDonough shines as The Benefactor. Fans of McDonough know that he’s no stranger to playing the villain, and he brings his 30+ years of experience to bear in The Shift, providing audiences with a nuanced if sinister evildoer seething with dark ambition.

The film’s lead is the relatively unknown Kristoffer Polaha, who some may recognize from his small roles in Jurassic World and as “Handsome Man” in Wonder Woman 1984. Pholaha infuses Kevin with a sincerity and heart that keeps the audience rooting for him throughout, but more than that, we see in him the Godly and stalwart Christian that each of us hopes we would be were we to find ourselves in similar straits and through his tribulations, we glimpse the promise of God.

Written and directed by Brock Keasley, whose feature-length resume includes The Shift, The Shift, and The Shift, The Shift gets a lot right. There are scenes of nail-biting suspense and moments that Christians (especially) who have felt the seductive call of decadent temptation will find incredibly poignant as Kevin is offered all that he wants and more for seemingly so little in return. This, along with the strength of its leads, carries The Shift, even through some of its more repetitive moments.

With all that it gets right, The Shift is tantalizingly close to crossing that barrier from “Christian film” to mainstream offering that is incidentally Christian, and being able to see the finish line makes the fact that it doesn’t quite cross it that much more frustrating. It’s always a gamble for a film’s writer to direct it. Understandably, they can get too close to the material and have blinders on as to what should be cut or smoothed out, and The Shift suffers from this, giving us some cumbersome dialogue and overtly convenient moments.

Based solely on Keasley’s thin pedigree and the weight of his dual roles, that the film is only occasionally problematic rather than a total dumpster fire is a testament to his potential as a filmmaker. However, it does falter in some key areas. The story is peppered with well-meaning subplots designed to elicit sympathy for Kevin, but they are unneeded and serve to fill time instead of narrative buckets. The result of this lack of focus is a film with interesting yet underdeveloped characters and an interesting yet underdeveloped plot.

Even though The Shift is imperfect, and the script would have benefitted from one more draft, it’s still Worth it. Not only is it crucially important that we support films such as this, but for all its flaws, The Shift is a stirring sci-fi thriller that holds a mirror up to the faithful and asks them, “Who are you, and how deeply does your faith run.”

ROLE MODELS IN THE SHIFT

Kevin is a model of Christian faith. Even though he has every excuse known to secular man to hate God, he chooses to serve Him and lean on him in his darkest hours. He does so, not in the hopes of rewards but to honor the creator of all things.

WOKE ELEMENTS

None.

The post The Shift first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

Chip Chilla

Chip Chilla is a delightful cartoon series about a homeschool family of chinchillas and the adventures they have while teaching and learning valuable lessons. Harkening back to a time when children’s stories were as much about teaching practical and wholesome life lessons as they were entertainment, Chip Chilla is entertaining enough to have my two-year-old son (who only ever wants to watch Paw Patrol and classic Justice Friends cartoons) asking for more.

Whereas many of today’s offerings for small children fall into one of two categories: bright colors and loud noises with no substance or redeeming qualities or bright colors and loud noises with a heaping side of Woke indoctrination, Chip Chilla separates and elevates itself in virtually every respect.

It’s on par with any of the current mainstream two-dimensional animated children’s programs in both production quality and design. Its color palette is rich without being overbearing, and its animation is smooth and pleasing to the eye instead of seizure-inducing. It’s very reminiscent of the popular children’s cartoon Bluey, except you don’t have to worry that the next episode is the one in which Disney will squeeze its “not-so-secret gay agenda” down your child’s throat.

In the 24+ hours since Bentkey’s public release, a few aspersions have been cast at Chip Chilla. Specifically, that it is too reminiscent of Bluey. However, for those critics, we have but two words: Berenstain Bears. For as long as there have been ideas, there have been those who hold similar ones. What matters is what’s done with them.

What most sets Chip Chilla apart from other conservative-leaning cartoons of its type are the writing and voice talents. Often, conservative, especially religious, cartoons will suffer significantly from the shallow talent pool available to them. That said, Bentkey’s flagship toon features none other than recently uncloseted conservative-leaning (i.e., not insane) comedian Rob Schneider, as the titular character’s father, Chum Chum, as well as a host of talented, if unknown voice actor, and Chip Chilla’s vocals are as solid as its animation. Each performer breathes life into their respective character, and the animators are blessedly up to the challenge of giving that breath commensurate physicality.

Further differentiating itself from other mainstream offerings, and probably its most important distinction, are the lessons it teaches. Where Dora The Explorer treats your children like they will never have the capacity to wipe themselves clean, and countless cartoon series exist for no other purpose than to teach the alphabet, Chip Chilla acknowledges that boys learn differently than girls and that the application of science can be energetic and fun, or that you’re not always going to be the best at everything but you can be the best at something, and that hard work (rather than an unwarranted belief in oneself) is the key to achievement.

If we have one criticism of the show, it is that 8 minutes per episode isn’t enough. While there’s no arguing that it makes for a tightly woven program with no fat on it, it would be nice to see it paired with a sister program (e.g., Garfield and Friends).

ROLE MODELS IN CHIP CHILLA

Chip’s mom and dad are loving, thoughtful, and deeply engaged in their children’s lives. They also model traditional gender roles for their children, offering a level of stability that is sorely lacking in many modern homes.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Chip Chilla is the nega-woke.

The post Chip Chilla first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

The Blind

Based on the real-life events of Phil and Marsha (Miss Kay) Robertson, The Blind delves deep into their lives, starting with their childhood and concluding with Phil’s descent into darkness and life-saving salvation.

Redemption stories are the ultimate underdog tale, and that is one of The Blind’s strongest assets. However, it’s certainly not its only one. It’s a beautifully shot film and cinematographer Chris Stacey should be applauded for his efforts. He provides some exquisitely framed moments and does an excellent job of visual storytelling without getting in the narrative’s way by over-stylizing, which is a particular triumph when one considers his limited experience (The Blind is his 3rd feature-length film).

Offering audiences the film’s standout performance, Amela Eva gives a fantastic turn as the adult Miss Kay. Eva remains present and fully invested in her character throughout, delivering both well-scripted and the occasional but noteworthy clunky line with grace and sincerity.

Not far behind Amela, is Aron von Andrian who plays adult Phil. von Andrian, an English native, has numerous excellent moments throughout The Blind. At his strongest during Phil’s spiral into debauchery, which is the bulk of the film,  there is never a moment in which von Andrian does not appear fully invested in Robertson.

von Andrian’s commitment and obvious skill make it all the more frustrating when he has to deliver some of the film’s clunkiest and most artificial-sounding dialogue. There aren’t many instances of it, but when it occurs, Laurence Olivier‘s prodigious talent wouldn’t have been sufficient to rescue it. Furthermore, von Andrian isn’t aided by some horrendously fake-looking beards and beard dye jobs or his native accent.

There are definitely a smattering of  Walking Dead “Coral” moments.

As engrossing as most of the film can be, there are a regrettable number of scenes in which the viewers are ripped away from their investment in the film’s reality to return to the duck blind in which von Andrian’s Robertson is telling his life’s story to an old friend. These and the copious voiceover narration are the film’s least impressive aspects. Not only do the interjections serve to arrest the movie’s momentum but they eat up time that would have been better spent showing us more of Phil’s journey and robs us of the full emotional impact of his miraculous transformation.

Furthermore, much like the moral of the story, that salvation isn’t complex but necessary, Robertson’s story isn’t complex and doesn’t require a narrator’s help for the audience to grasp the significance of its beats. It’s unfortunate that director Andrew Hyatt doesn’t seem to trust himself enough to show instead of say because when he’s on, he’s on. With these infrequent interruptions notwithstanding, Hyatt keeps things moving along at a crisp pace and tells a touching and heartfelt story.

Even though The Blind isn’t perfect, its story of redemption and perseverance in the face of personal demons and human frailty is one worth watching, and much like another surprisingly engaging and overtly Christian movie from earlier this year, Jesus Revolution, The Blind is a massive step forward in the quality of these types of films. We are happy to declare that The Blind is Worth it.

The Blind Role Models

While the film provides a number of examples of people in Phil and Kay Robertson’s lives who are worthy of emulation it’s the two themselves who are the standout role models. Kay’s willingness to forgive the deepest of betrayals is a testament to God’s love and forgiveness of us.

Moreover, while Phil’s early failings are far from behaviors worthy of duplication, his humbling of himself before our Creator and his commitment to Him as well as his recommitment to his family are. Everyone falls. Not everyone gets back up.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Get outta here with that nonsense.

The post The Blind first appeared on Worth it or Woke.

A Million Miles Away

Born the son of migrant farmers in 1962 and not even learning English until the age of 12, A Million Miles Away tells the real-life story of José Hernández. Overcoming extreme poverty with hard work and dedication, as well as a devoted and self-sacrificing family, in 2009, Hernández achieved his lifelong goal and left Earth’s confines as a NASA astronaut.

A Million Miles Away is a familiar tale of perseverance and overcoming the odds to achieve one’s dreams. However, with a special mix of excellent and sometimes even inspired direction by Alejandra Márquez Abella and heartfelt performances by its cast, A Million Miles Away transcends what could have easily been a Hallmark schlock-fest. Instead, we are treated to a lovely tale that will fill you with the warm and fuzzies.

In a film without a single weak performance, the most surprising one is given by Michael Peña (Ant-Man) whose portrayal of Hernández is subtle and often touching. Aided by virtue of it being a real-life underdog story, his charisma and vulnerability are key to the film’s elevation from the mundane, making it impossible not to root for him. In one particularly stirring scene, Peña’s Hernández teeters on the edge of emasculation as he barely manages to hold on to his dignity while silently willing his wife to forgive and respect him.

It’s a common enough feeling for any man who has had to ask their family to make sacrifices so that he might gamble at success. It’s a mixture of guilt at missing ball games and first steps combined with the nearly fevered obsession with your goal and the rock in your stomach need for your wife’s respect. Peña nails it.

If the movie falters anywhere, it’s in its glossing over the cost of the sacrifices made by Hernández’s family as well as the “why” of his dream’s importance. Were it not for the craftsmanship exhibited by all, it would be easy for viewers to see Hernández as selfish.

After all, he was already a successful engineer who provided well for his family. His becoming an astronaut wouldn’t lift them out of poverty or set to rights some previously made wrong. It seems only natural that he should have a compelling reason to justify missing years of his family’s life. However, the film only grazes against this, relying on our investment in the character to blind us to the bigger picture, and it works.

With grounded and universal themes, crisp pacing, and economic dialogue delivered by solid performers and an invested and thoughtful director, A Million Miles Away is a feel-good movie that delivers on its promise.

Role Models in A Million Miles Away

There are numerous positive role models throughout the film  The obvious one is José Hernández whose determination and hard work helped him to achieve his lifelong dream. However, the love, support, and sacrifice made by his wife and parents are key to his success, firmly making them his equals in this department.

WOKE ELEMENTS

• Even though it could have been much worse, especially when you consider the real Hernández’s politics, there were a few obligatory moments of identity politics injected in.
  • There’s a brief conversation between Hernández and another minority astronaut in which she hits us with the, “do you know how important it is for people like us” to be represented routine. As though people of color are the only ones who have ever succeeded despite coming from nothing.
  • When listing the differences between himself and those who have been chosen for the space program, his wife mentions that most of them had been Caucasian. Well duh. Most of the applicants were Caucasian. And it’s not like Hernández was anywhere near the first minority in space. He wasn’t even one of the first 10 Latinos.

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