Uma Vida de Esperança

Ordinary Angels is a pretty safe bet of a film. There's a dying girl. A stubborn and loving father doing his best in the face of adversity. An everyday hero who swoops in Erin Brockovich style and impacts their lives in unimaginable ways.

It makes for very inspiring, heart warming stuff that will be sure to have you reaching for the tissues at some point. It is very much marketed as a tearjerker film and it absolutely delivers on this front.

The filmmaking is probably overly cliche and doesn't really push the boat out too much. It also maybe overstays its welcome slightly with the runtime. These aren't huge issues as the narrative is really the driving force of the film, but these areas could have been tightened up.

The performance from Alan Ritchson is maybe one of the best elements of the film. He really sells it as the hard working father swimming against the tide to keep his family together. Hilary Swank is of course brilliant with a brilliantly written character. Any film with a dying child has the potential to be far too bleak, but her performance and character ensure this is never the case.

So although Ordinary Angels doesn't do anything particularly flash, it tells its story well with a couple of great performances to boot. The emotional core of the story is the real selling point, and this is executed very well making a watch well worth while.

This resent Amazon release is inspiring reflecting the best in human efforts. Community is essential. Most are unaware or ignorant of how important connection between people truly is. In recent studies many people were surveyed as to what they believe was most important in health. The vast majority responded that diet and exercise were primary reason for a healthy long life. Stats showed although these are important, human socialization is key to this. Not social media, email, Facebook or any other latest craze but physical contact with other people is paramount. It's who we are, a tactile species. Family, friends, co-workers and extended family is what keeps us going. This film typifies that human condition when a woman decided to intercede in a families loss and helps a dying child survive.

This is a very touching film with very few surprises (there's little doubt how it will all work out). I don't think anyone with a pulse will be able to distance themselves completely from its powerful emotional impact, which is made possible by excellent performances by Hilary Swank and. Alan Ritchson. They are really wonderful in their roles. Ritchson manages to convey all the enormous pain he feels while maintaining a tough, stolid demeanor. His love for his daughters feels completely genuine. Swank gives yet another terrific performance as a woman with many serious problems of her own trying to help this struggling family. It is the Capra-kind of movie designed to make you feel better about humanity and, thanks to truly fine work by the leads, it succeeds.

I was really looking froward to this movie when I saw the trailer - it didn't disappoint.

Troubled Sharon (Hillary Swank), while struggling with her own alcohol addiction, finds a new calling in her life to help a family: Ed (Alan Ritchson) is a widow with two girls, one of whom has a liver disease and not only are the medical bills up the roof, but the little girl also needs a liver transplant. Sharon is a big-mouthed, loud and cheerful woman, also pushy, and someone who doesn't take no for an answer. Her assertiveness and lack of ability to respect boundaries makes her succeed in all the activities, fundraisers and meetings she organises to help the family financially. It is also something that you kind of question, whether it was actually true: did this family just let her in their home so easily? Accept the money and let her look after the girls too, when she was a complete stranger? .

Hillary Swank and Alan Ritschon have great chemistry, the dialogues are funny, with some scenes pretty hilarious. Some parts are really hard to believe, but overall it is an enjoyable movie.

Hillary Swank is endearing, amusing, and heartbreaking in this based on reality tale. Alan Ritchson is much more convincing in this much more heartfelt portrayal than anything I have seen him in before. He really makes you feel for the character. Even little Emily Mitchel is believable as the child with a deadly illness that can only be cured by a donated organ.

The story is compelling, especially considering it's roots in actual events. It also manages to be a little surprising in spite of the last-minute-miracle-based-on-actual-events genre tropes. What really makes this movie work is the great acting, tight direction, and cinematography that gets you right into the middle of everything.

It's feel good entertainment at it's near best.