“Sometimes the heroes are on the sidelines” was the tagline that caught my attention as I picked up Abel’s Field to watch with my family. I love being able to pick up a good family movie to watch my kids and my family but there are truly rare.
Movie Synopsis: Left motherless by tragedy and abandoned by his father, high school senior Seth McArdle (Samuel Davis) faces enormous pressure as he strives to support his little sisters. At school, he endures the daily bullying of the football team. But fighting back only finds him singled out for punishment and assigned to an after-school work detail under the supervision of the reserved groundskeeper, Abel (SOUL SURFER’S Kevin Sorbo). Much to his surprise, Seth discovers that Abel may be the only one who truly understands his struggles. As dark times lure Seth toward desperate measures, the reluctant Abel may be the one person who can point him back toward the light.
My Opinion: Abel’s Field is a movie that goes below the surface of most movies. In order to grasp the whole film, I think you have to watch it at least twice. It is rich with meaning and can be quite heavy at times. The movie claims to be a family film but as it is rated PG you may want to use discretion in showing it to small children. The language was completely clean and there were no words that a parent has to watch for.
Here are a few things that we as parents found would keep us from showing this film to our smaller children:
1. Two scenes in a bar. One short scene where Abel refuses alcohol and another where Abel meets with the football coach. In the second scene, the football coach encourages Abel to drink and leaves quite drunk.
2. The grocery store clerk tries to seduce Abel in several scenes. One scene has her adjusting her bra as Abel leaves the store.
3. Two fight scenes between high school boys.
4. A scene were Abel shows great rage and throws Seth up against his trailer and begins to choke him.
Overall, I thought the movie was a well thought out drama of forgiveness and redemption. The story shows how God can take the toughest of situations and our worst choices and use them for His glory. God does not give up on us and Abel’s Field does a remarkable job of portraying this message.
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*Disclosure: I was provided a DVD free of charge for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the sponsor.
Hocus Pocus
we still love ‘the sound of music’ – an oldie but a goodie!