Eight-year-old Tyler Doherty is a winsome kid who delights in playing soccer, loves his family, and seemingly has a lot to look forward to in life. However, there’s one big obstacle in his way: he’s very ill with a rare form of brain cancer. Wondering if he’ll ever play soccer again, concerned about his mother’s constant sadness, and worrying about whether his classmates will look down on him because of his bald head, Tyler decides to take his problems directly to the Lord. He does this by writing letters addressed to GOD and giving them to his local mailman. Not coincidentally, substitute mailman Brady Mc Daniels gets assigned to the route serving the Dohertys’ house. Brady too has many difficulties: because of his alcohol problem, he has lost his wife and son and lives in a shabby one-room hovel. Other mailmen complain about his job performance. His boss at the post office, (a man of faith), however, says, “We’re sticking with him. I think there’s something in him worth saving.”
This is the gist of a fairly new movie titled Letters to God, co-directed by David Nixon, who produced the pictures Facing the Giants and Fireproof. Letters has much to recommend it, though I do have some reservations, which I’ll outline below.
Back to Tyler and Brady: When mailman Brady is informed that he will have to deal with the issue of Tyler’s letters, he decides to take them to a local church. After all, he assumes, the church is where God lives, and someone there will know what to do with them. The church pastor, however, will have none of this and insists that Brady get to know Tyler. Brady does this, albeit reluctantly, and the result is awe-inspiring: not only is Tyler helped and comforted, but so are his family members. The family situation is grim: Tyler’s older brother Ben is angry at Tyler because of the attention he gets and the way the family dynamic has changed because of his illness. Tyler’s mother, having recently lost her husband, is having a crisis in faith; she’s angry at God for taking away Tyler’s father and afraid He might take away Tyler as well. Mailman Brady’s transforming faith journey is the core of the film. In his transformation he affects just about everyone, including Tyler’s mother, his brother, his best friend, and the school bully.
Accolades:
Letters to God is solidly a Christian movie, theologically sound and inspiring. It’s the most emotional picture I’ve seen in a while so I’d recommend you have a handkerchief handy when watching it. It deals admirably with the issue of families facing serious illness – especially cancer. The actors are appealing.
Reservations:
While Letters does an admirable job from a theological standpoint, it suffers in my opinion from a lack of dramatic tension and the idealization of many of its characters. The school bully is not mean enough. Tyler’s best friend, a girl named Sam, seems too nice and supportive. Brady’s co-workers come around rather too easily, and there’s never any doubt about the outcome of Brady’s journey. One wishes for more of a struggle – a la Fireproof and To Save a Life.
Nonetheless: Letters to God is well worth seeing. It’s probably in your church DVD library, so you should be able to find it easily. If not, try Netflix.
Film Rating: PG
My Rating: 2 3/4 stars
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