Connor Corum plays 4-year-old Colton in his very first acting role in the upcoming 'Heaven Is for Real.' (Sony Pictures)
'Heaven Is for Real' Shows a Vision of the Afterlife
The real-life tale of a child's remarkable trip to heaven and back has spent years on the best-sellers' list. Millions have read the bright yellow book Heaven Is for Real, and now the film adaptation arrives in theaters in time for Easter weekend.
Sony pictures tapped screenwriter and film director Randall Wallace to bring the best-seller to the big screen.
In a recent interview with CBN News, Wallace discussed the challenges of creating a movie that explored vision of the afterlife.
Vision of the Afterlife
"I think nervous is probably a good term. It was certainly in that field between nervous and sheer terror," Wallace said.
The film is based on a story from the Burpos, an ordinary Nebraska family that faced extraordinary circumstances. Their 4-year-old son Colton nearly died and had to undergo emergency surgery. Colton then awoke with undeniable visions of a trip to heaven.
Before entering the film industry, Wallace financed a year of seminary by teaching karate.
"The seminary training was wonderful for me in this in that I studied religion. I grew up in tent revivals and you always think about heaven in those contexts. And the great thing about that is heaven is presented as something glorious," he told CBN News.
That glorious presentation of heaven comes from a 4-year-old.
Playing Pastor Dad
Connor Corum plays 4-year-old Colton in his very first acting role. Oscar-nominated actor Greg Kinnear plays Colton's dad, Todd.
Kinnear described Todd's character to CBN News.
"Well, he is passionate. He clearly has a strong faith and a strong conviction about what he believes and a great love of his children," Kinnear said. "And I think those were the things for me to really try to translate as strongly to the audience as possible."
Todd Burpo is also a firefighter, pastor and a man struggling to understand what his son experienced and what to do about it. That struggle helped him write the book that has sold more than 10 million copies.
Kinnear wasn't familiar with the book before taking on the role.
"Turning it into a screenplay would be not easy to do," he recalled thinking.
"It is a tough thing to pull off so that it doesn't feel like a two-hour sermon," Wallace said. "That is, tell you a story, an honest story. And I thought he did an amazing job at doing that."
I found Todd Burpo's NY Times best-selling book, "Heaven Is For Real," to be a very down-to-earth account of his son, Colton's experiences while lingering between this life and Heaven, and how he—as a pastor—reconciled what his son described with his own beliefs. (Graphic: "Heaven Is For Real" official movie poster)
Todd Burpo is the pastor of a small-town church in America's heartland, where he lives with his wife Sonja; daughter, Cassie and son, Colton, who was just 3 at the time. A sudden and severe illness lands Colton in the hospital, and as he hovers between life and death, his family and church friends cry out to God on his behalf.
Under the direction of Randall Wallace (think "Braveheart"), the story of Colton describing his time in "Heaven" was expertly told, and in a very heartfelt, human way, in which we can all relate.
However, the more Colton shares about his time spent with Jesus, and the others he met during his experience; the more those who hear it are changed by what it means to each of them.
But on the other hand, how does one portray Heaven with special effects and have it not feel somewhat hokey? I do like the way they kept Jesus' face somewhat silhouetted until the very end, when child-prodigy artist Akiane's "Jesus" portrait is revealed. (That was the only picture of the Lord that Colton said was accurate.)
On the whole, I would highly recommend "Heaven Is For Real," especially if you read and loved the book—but even if you didn't. Above all, it's the great love of God that is communicated through this film. (Photo: The 'real' Burpo family)
