This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Don't Quit Your Day Job.
Plot Overview
ICOI is a biopic hanging from two hooks, one
societal and one personal. Mentioned is what's commonly known among
Christians, that one Captain John Newton was a British slave trader
who gave it up—and championed emancipation—after
his conversion to Christianity. He penned the well known hymn,
“Amazing
Grace” that sets the tenor of this movie.
The film being set firmly in the Bible
Belt, the Southerners will undoubtedly be familiar with Noah's
alcohol episode of Genesis 9 in which two of his three sons covered
for him, but the third, the youngest, disrespected him (“You
have to talk to me with respect.”) Ham had put himself in
jeopardy according to, (Prov. 30:17) “The eye that mocketh at
his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley
shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.”
There's a parity of eye loss and
servitude given in, (Exodus 21:26) “And if a man
smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it
perish; he shall let him go free for his eye's sake.” Ham and
his line—represented by Canaan in his lineage—could be
given servitude rather than mutilation. This generational slavery
got passed along to Ham's son Cush—in Hebrew Cush means black—and ends
up being the condition of the blacks on Newton's ship.
The second
hook is iconic along the lines of author Scott O'Connor: “his
visit with César Chávez in the San Joaquin Valley,
the famous photo, the two men sitting side by side in a
soybean field” (74). Here in this movie, high schooler
Bart Millard (J. Michael Finley) is a diva discovered playing lead
in the show “Oklahoma” with a background
cornfield, singing “The corn is as high as an elephant's
eye.” The Indians fertilized their maize with fishes, a lot
of work for a limited yield. Modern abundant yields result from
genetic improvements and mechanization. In Virginia where
my forefathers settled, they raised tobacco with slaves for
this labor-intensive crop. Cotton was worse. Couldn't have
been done with market wages. Bart's dad (Dennis Quaid) having
barely recovered from a brain injury—that the movie doesn't
mention—castigates his son severely for his dreamy attitude
rather than inhabiting the reality that puts food on the table. It
is not an I Have a Dream world; it wasn't for Noah, and it
wasn't back when, and it isn't for us. Overcoming that
prejudice, albeit involuntarily under the auspices of Glee Club
director, negress Miss Fincher (Priscilla C. Shirer,) is what
this movie is all about.
Ideology
Bart surprisingly succeeds with but the basics. (Prov. 30:24) “There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:”
(Prov.
30:25) “The ants are a people not strong, yet they
prepare their meat in the summer.” The first key to success
is to start work early, in the summer of life. We see Bart at age
11 blowing up a storm (“Mercy me, you've been out here all
day”) with a leaf blower at his grandmother's place. He'll
return the next day (“I'll see you tomorrow”) for more
tasks. With his pay he hits a junk store to buy stuff to sculpt
according to his whims. He does drawings in his spare time. When he
gets to high school, he'll help his dad fix up their jeep.
(Prov. 30:26) “The conies are but a
feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.” There
they are protected. The second key is the all important location.
Immediately upon graduation Bart hits the road as an itinerant
musician, going a separate way from his college bound
girlfriend since the sixth grade Shannon (Madeline Carroll,)
which broke her heart. He was in no position to support a family,
and all she could do was pray for him.
(Prov.
30:27) “The locusts have no king, yet go they forth
all of them by bands.” The third key is to develop an
informal support network. Bart ingratiated himself into the
ragtag MercyMe band traveling by bus on a shoestring budget.
They were a hit in seventh grade venues and at youth camps. Through
persistence Bart was able to attract a manager Scott Brickell
(Trace Adkins) who got them an audience with record labels in Memphis.
(Prov.
30:28) “The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is
in kings' palaces.” The palace gets swept regularly, but the
spider will put up a new web. Bart struck out with the record
companies who didn't think he was good enough, at least not yet. He
needed to go home, do some heart work, and then try again.
Production Values
“” (2018) was
directed by Jon Erwin and Andrew Erwin. It was written by Bart
Millard, Jon Erwin and Brent Mccorkle. It stars ex-Broadway
thespian J. Michael Finley, Dennis Quaid, Madeline Carroll, Trace
Adkins and Cloris Leachman. Amy Grant looked good on stage and off.
Carroll playing the love interest worked as eye candy and dramatic
influence, but she was not given a romance proper role—nobody
had that. The actor performers diddled around and played music. The
kid played football—ouch. Quaid was credible as a demented
dad who found redemption.
MPA rated it PG for thematic elements
including some violence. The music was good, especially for gentle
tastes. An illustrated epilogue at the end explains what happened
to everyone. Although some Bibles were shown and mentioned, no
scripture was quoted. The necessary gospel presentation was
addressed to the onscreen audience, so the seated theater viewers
won't feel singled out. Runtime is 1 hour 50 minutes.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
I liked the featured, titular song, but not enough for repeated listenings. I pretty much stick with old material and other genres. The movie was a righteous drama but not a toe-tapper. It gives a good background for many Christians' favored number.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Decent action scenes. Suitability for children: Suitable for children with guidance. Special effects: Average special effects. Video Occasion: Good for Christian Groups. Suspense: A few suspenseful moments. Overall movie rating: Three and a half stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Software.
Drunken Noah scene depicted in a Civil War vintage woodcut, made after a drawing by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (German painter, 1794–1872) from his archive, published in 1877, and more recently by iStock.com/Getty Images. Used under license.
O'Connor, Scott. Untouchable. Copyright © 2011 by Scott O'Connor. Blue Ash, OH: Tyrus Books, 2011. Print.
bibles.n7nz.org