“Based on the #1 New York Times best-selling book of the same name, HEAVEN IS FOR REAL brings to the screen the true story of a small-town father who must find the courage and conviction to share his son’s extraordinary, life-changing experience with the world. The film stars Academy Award nominee and Emmy award winning actor Greg Kinnear as Todd Burpo and co-stars Kelly Reilly as Sonja Burpo, the real-life couple whose son Colton (newcomer Connor Corum) claims to have visited Heaven during a near death experience. Colton recounts the details of his amazing journey with childlike innocence and speaks matter-of-factly about things that happened before his birth … things he couldn’t possibly know. Todd and his family are then challenged to examine the meaning from this remarkable event.” (c) Sony

I have not read the book Heaven Is For Real. I did know before going in that this movie had the potential to be a good, wholesome film. Although it does have a few corny moments, Heaven Is For Real would be a great movie for the family to watch together.

My favorite part of this movie were the performances by the cast. Greg Kinnear was great as Todd Burpo, the father of the son who claims he visited Heaven. You could tell that Mr. Kinnear definitely took the role seriously. He had a lot of passion in his role. My favorite was the little boy that played Colton Burpo. His name is Connor Corum. He is so cute! Every time that he smiled it pulled at your heartstrings. I loved seeing a childlike perspective of the world through his eyes. It was also fun to see Thomas Haden Church and Margo Martindale in small supporting roles as some of the members of the town in which the story takes place. Their characters were great in helping the storyline move along. Thomas Haden Church’s character also supplies a lot of the film’s comic relief.

Regardless of your faith or religious beliefs, this movie portrays the importance of love, family, and friends. I like that in the movie, they talk about how everyone has a different definition of what heaven is for them. Heaven is a personal thing. I did not feel that the movie pushed a certain belief on people. The filmmakers left it open for the people viewing the film to have their own feelings and interpretations.

I enjoyed Heaven Is For Real for its great message. It would be a great movie for the whole family to enjoy.