Inspiration comes with a side helping of music in this biographical movie about Texas-born singer-songwriter Bart Millard and his composition of the title tune, which became the most-played Christian single in history and a staple in many church services. Millard, played as a young boy by Brody Rose and a young man by Broadway headliner J. Michael Finley, is abused by his angry, alcoholic father (Dennis Quaid). After a football injury in high school compels him to switch to choir, he takes the lead in the campus production of Oklahoma! and then runs off to seek a music career, leaving his hometown sweetheart behind. Millard joins a band, gains a manager (Trace Adkins), reconciles with his born-again, cancer-stricken dad and—after the latter’s death—writes the song about what heaven must be like. With support from stars like Amy Grant, the song becomes a smash hit, and the rest is history in Christian music circles. Will Millard also win back his erstwhile girlfriend? This is obviously a faith-based movie, although less heavy-handed than many and it benefits from Finley’s singing, while Quaid brings his typically broad emotional punch to the mix. So, even though this unquestionably preaches to the choir, it should be considered a strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)
I Can Only Imagine
Lionsgate, 110 min., PG, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray/DVD Combo: $39.99, June 12 Volume 33, Issue 4
I Can Only Imagine
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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