Megan Judge

Judge 1

Mrs. Hope
English LPS
9 November 2015
Analysis of a Movie
There is an abundance of movies/ documentaries that use religion as a major theme. One
of these includes Heaven is for Real. Based on a true story, this film portrays a little boys trip to
heaven; it dwells on how a family deals with it and how they handle other peoples reactions to
it. Throughout the entire movie Christianity is evident, and it greatly influences the characters
involved.
Heaven is for Real centers on Christianity throughout the entire movie. The very first
scene is a group of women singing religious hymns. Additionally, in the beginning of the movie
the Pastor (Coltons dad) prays for the sick to ensure that God will help them through death and
forgive them for their sins. Both of these scenes express Christian beliefs, and the devotion the
characters show to God. Further into the movie the audience sees Coltons family attending
church. Since his father is the pastor, Colton is able to speak to the people in the church; he talks
about his own personal experiences and connects them to the Bible, God, and Jesus, saying that
people should incorporate religion into their daily lives. Furthermore, during the movie Colton
gets severely sick and is close to death. Immediately his parents beg family and friends to pray
since they believe God can perform miracles (such as saving their son). After reviving Colton
shares with his family that he ventured into heaven, which is where Christians believe good souls
go to in the afterlife. The movie ends with the Pastor sharing his sons experiences of heaven,
and how he believes heaven is real. The entire movie embraces the Christian belief that there is
one divine God, he can perform miracles, Christians should pray, and heaven exists.

Judge 2
The concept of heaven greatly influences the characters in the movie. Although Colton
claims to visit heaven, he is not the only one influenced by this experience. The pastor decides to
reach out to God, and he questions whether he believes in heaven or not. He does this because
his son claimed he went to heaven without ever actually dying; the pastor is confused by this and
looks for answers in God. Additionally, Coltons story gains great attention. Many people who
believe come to the town to see Coltons dad preach. However, some get disturbed by it, and
question the story. At the end of the movie the Pastor goes in front of the congregation and
decides to stop second guessing himself; he announces that he believes his sons story. He tries to
persuade others to believe in God and what Colton saw, influencing them to have faith.
All in all, Heaven is for Real displays Christianity, and its influence on people. In the
movie, Coltons experience didnt just affect him, it affected those around him, and many that
heard of his story. However, the character that was most affected was Coltons dad, because he
was confused whether he should believe his son or not. In the end, he takes it on faith. Overall,
Christianity is a key theme in making this an interesting and heartwarming movie.