O Céu é de Verdade

This was a powerful and emotional movie. It's sad that so many hate-filled, lost and hopeless individuals left reviews simply because they are angry at life and are hollow and empty inside. The message of this movie would do them good. God is Hope and there is something beyond this life. So, quit being depressed and angry at the world and look at the bigger picture and accept God's love. Look into it it's everything...

Much more interesting than the film -- as a film -- is how cynical we have become as moviegoers. I'm as guilty as everyone else. But the film is so slowly paced (as Don Rickles likes to remark, "as exciting as a fly crawling up a drape") the mind wanders. It can't help it. But if there is nothing on screen to mesmerize it, it wanders. And the first place the mind wanders, while watching HEAVEN IS FOR REAL, is to a very cynical place (definitely NOT heaven) where it starts to wonder how such an unspectacular production merited such a big-name cast and director ... and such lavish cinematography .. and such a major studio...?

And as the mind continues to wander (because what is on-screen is still not that mesmerizing) it goes to an even darker place (yep, still not Heaven) and wonders if the real money and clout behind the production was the religious right ... and if the audience was intended to be the same market...?

Folks I don't have the answers. I can't tell you if the writer of the story really went to heaven or if the producers of this film had an agenda. I can tell you that, if you really really really lower your expectations, and allow for the slower pace, it's not bad. Not great, but not bad. There is a scene where the sister of the main character punches out two boys in the playground for poking fun at her brother. It is short and fast and by itself worth the price of admission.

Not heaven. But not bad either.

I liked very much this film. Not only for story itself but about the honest fist of questions about faith.

A pastor pressed by not the most hapy financial situation, having few jobs but not exactly being paid in money.

His little boy, near death, has a special experience/ a trip in Heaven.

The suspicious attitude of comunity and the truths revealed by four years old boy.

Prince of Peace by Akiane Kramarik as useful piece of film.

Being admirer of Margo Martindale and greg Kinnear, obvious I am profound subjective about this film. And the young Connor Corum is just adorable. Sure, I do not ignore the fair critics against Heaven Is for Real.

But it is a religious film, for very precise target, in essence.

In same measure, the chain of questions suggested to viewer is the significant aspect of film. So, just pretty nice.

I'm very spiritual but not very religious. This movie does an excellent job of sharing important information about the very real issues that near death experiences (NDEs) bring up. All the NDE stories have certain similarities and a judgmental God is not part of them at all. Religion doesn't matter either. All that matters is love for one another. IMO.

Those last few sentences were preacher than this whole movie -- which is a very good thing. It is very tough to tell a spiritual story without being preachy, but this movie does it very well.

If you have the slightest interest, you will enjoy this movie. Is it perfect? No, nothing is, but this movie is pretty good.

8 out of 10 stars. Acting is good too. Kudos to all involved in the production.

Epilogue: There's an odd phenomena happening with any movie that is religious or potentially religious, like this film. They get a lot of 1-star ratings. I'm certain these come from zealots. Mostly, I suspect they are militant atheists who think belief in God is the root of all of mankind's problems. I'm talking about the disciples of Richard Dawkins here. I'll bet serious money that most of the 1-star reviewers never saw the movie.

With a movie like this one there is another potential source of 1-star reviews, fundamentalists who like their religious ideas literal and straight from the bible. Those folks will not like this movie at all. Real spirituality is complicated.

I saw this movie on opening night and there were only four of us in the theater (which was just fine with me). I will start by saying that I am a Christian, was excited to see this movie, and really like Greg Kinnear. Although I liked the story, I was not impressed with the movie overall. The acting was not great, and it was somewhat slow. Again, I like the story they were trying to tell, it just did not grip me nor did any of the characters pull me in. It does make one think about death and heaven and what happens when we leave this earth. I thought it was a very interesting story and am glad it made it to the big screen, but I also think they could have taken this so much further than they did. Please see for yourself though, do not let this review make you hesitate to watch on the big screen or rental at home when it comes out.