Heaven Is for Real (2014)
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A small-town pastor must navigate the profound implications of his young son's vivid claims of visiting heaven.
The story
Living in rural Imperial, Nebraska, Todd Burpo is a pastor who balances church leadership with coaching wrestling and working on garage doors. When his four-year-old son, Colton, falls critically ill with acute appendicitis, the family faces a harrowing medical emergency. After Colton undergoes successful surgery, he begins to describe extraordinary experiences, including meeting Jesus and seeing deceased relatives. Todd is thrust into a difficult dilemma as he struggles to determine the legitimacy of his son's claims while facing pressure from his congregation and the media to address the situation.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Todd Burpo, a pastor in rural Nebraska, lives a modest life with his wife Sonja and children. After a series of health setbacks for Todd, his son Colton falls ill with acute appendicitis. Following emergency surgery, Colton begins describing vivid experiences in heaven, including meeting Jesus, seeing a younger version of his great-grandfather, and meeting an unborn sister who died in a miscarriage. Todd is initially skeptical but faces increasing pressure from his church board and the media. He eventually decides to preach about his son's experiences at church, revealing his support for Colton. Following the sermon, Todd discovers a similar story of a Lithuanian girl online. The film concludes with a present-day photo of Colton and his family as Sonja reveals she is pregnant with their third child.
- First release year
- 2014
- Runtime (minutes)
- 99
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Randall Wallace
- Writers
- Randall Wallace · writer; Christopher Parker · co-writer
- Cast and characters
- Greg Kinnear · Todd Burpo; Kelly Reilly · Sonja Burpo; Connor Corum · Colton Burpo; Margo Martindale · Nancy Rawling; Thomas Haden Church · Jay Wilkins; Lane Styles · Cassie Burpo; Mike Mohrhardt · Jesus; Ali Tataryn · Angel
- Genres
- Christian drama; drama; independent
- Themes
- Faith; Parenting; Near-death experiences; Religion
- Tone and mood
- Dramatic; Inspirational
- Setting
- Rural Nebraska, present day
- Premise and plot tags
- Based on a book; True story; Christianity
- Source material / true-story basis
- Heaven Is for Real by Pastor Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 52% · review count: 87; Metacritic · score: 47/100 · scale: 100 · review count: 27
- Production trivia
- The film was shot in Selkirk, Manitoba.; It grossed $102 million against a $12 million budget.; It was released on Netflix in Australia in 2017.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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