SOUL SURFER

SOUL SURFER
rated PG

ART--->**
HEART->****
MIND-->*
FUN--->**1/2

SOUL SURFER tells the true story of Bethany Hamilton, a promising young surfer who lives with her family in Hawaii. Bethany’s skills are getting noticed by sponsors, and she has high hopes of becoming a professional surfer. But all that stopped in an instant when she was attacked by a shark that bit off her left arm, leaving her fighting for her life.

Struggling to find her place after this tragedy, Bethany seeks God for meaning and guidance. With the help of her family, friends, and church she discovers new opportunities to help others and give hope to people around the world.

Bethany’s story is inspirational and amazing in its own right, so when the movie was announced I was really hoping that the Hollywood machine wouldn’t gloss over it. Her entire life is centered around her faith, and there’s more than a little tendency for studios to scrub their product free of any pesky references to Jesus Christ, unless swearing is involved.

Thankfully, this time the filmmakers got it right. There are plenty of similarities to THE BLIND SIDE that could be made here: a young person at a disadvantage, a loving Christian family who helps them overcome it, a rousing underdog sports story. But whereas THE BLIND SIDE centered on Sandra Bullock's indelible performance as Leigh Anne Tuohy (and we the audience were cheering spectators for Michael Oher), what makes SOUL SURFER different is the focus it places on Bethany, and how we go through it all with her.

This is an intensely personal story, and AnnaSophia Robb's performance conveys Bethany’s struggles intimately. She is helped by a wonderful supporting cast, with Helen Hunt and Dennis Quaid portraying her strong and caring parents. Her brothers and friends are believable enough, and the surf culture in Hawaii is well represented. Carrie Underwood’s youth leader is the only character in the film who needed to show more of an emotional connection. Her words of wisdom seem a little rote, but she’s in the movie primarily for marquee value.

All the characters’ Christian faith is shown as truly part of their lives, not condensed down to a few trite atta-boys and bland sermonizing. These are real people living out there faith, with pain, doubt, and struggles. But they have a solid hope that God will see them through.

The surfing scenes make it feel like you are in the water with Bethany, riding the waves and the currents. And seeing these young women compete in such a gnarly competition makes you thrilled and proud of all of them.

All in all, SOUL SURFER is a wonderful movie that anyone can enjoy, with a positive message of faith truly lived out in the life of this young woman. Bethany went through an incredible ordeal and came out the other side changed forever, yet still being true to how God made her. When was the last time you actually cheered at the end of a movie? Can't remember? Then go see this film.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

PS.

I have two minor qualms:

I know it’s the pivotal event in this story, and I know that it actually happened in real life, but they could have chosen not to show the shark biting her arm off. They might have tried the JAWS approach: show a fin, the buildup, the reaction and then the injury. I don’t know how much was gained by actually seeing it. I pray that today's desensitized audiences don’t laugh at this, because it did really happen.

They should have used voice-over sparingly. The events of the film speak for themselves, so the movie doesn’t need much help getting that message across.

(Again, these are small quibbles, so don’t let them discourage you from seeing this fine film.)