Today’s Prayer Focus
MOVIE REVIEW

Upside

Reviewed by: Brian C. Johnson
CONTRIBUTOR

Moral Rating: Good
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience: Family Teens Adults
Genre: Christian Drama
Length: 1 hr. 46 min.
Year of Release: 2010
USA Release: DVD: October 5, 2010
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Relevant Issues
Copyright, Provident Films (Sony)

Blindness in the Bible

Faith

Truth

Goodness of God

Hope

Pain and suffering

Why does God allow innocent people to suffer? Answer

What about the issue of suffering? Doesn’t this prove that there is no God and that we are on our own? Answer

Does God feel our pain? Answer

ORIGIN OF BAD—How did bad things come about? Answer

Did God make the world the way it is now? What kind of world would you create? Answer

God

How can we know there’s a God? Answer

What if the cosmos is all that there is? Answer

If God made everything, who made God? Answer

Teen issues
Teen Qs™—Christian Answers for teenagers
Teens! Have questions? Find answers in our popular TeenQs section. Get answers to your questions about life, dating and much more.
Eternal salvation
Is Jesus Christ the answer to your questions?
Discover the good news that Jesus Christ offers
Paradise or Pain? Why is the world the way it is?
Why is the world the way it is? If God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and loving, would He really create a world like this? (filled with oppression, suffering, death and cruelty) Answer
Click here to watch THE HOPE on-line!
Discover God’s promise for all people—told beautifully and clearly from the beginning. Discover The HOPE! Watch it on Christian Answers—full-length motion picture.
Are you going to Heaven?
Are you going to Heaven? Are you SURE you know the answer this extremely important question? Or have you made some common wrong assumptions? Find out now!

Are you good enough to get to Heaven? Answer

Featuring Kenny Alfonso (Dr. Hampton), Caroline Bentley (Lynn), Randall Bentley (Solomon White), Eric Bradley (Harvard Man), Chris Burns (Waiter / Apparition), Chrissy Chambers (College Girl #2), Deborah Childs (Barbara), Annie Cook (Nurse), Kay Copeland (Cindee), Jeremy Harrison (Craig Parker), Megan Hayes (Anna), Blair Jasin (Cody), Susanna Lewis (Candice), Melissa Ponzio (Dr. Leinman), Robert Pralgo (Cornell Recruiter), Leah Sims (Wren Woods), Keith Sistrunk (Recruiter #3), Taylor St. Clair (Mrs. Buck), Kathie Swenn (Karen White), Leandra Terrazzano (Girl #1), Stacey Turner (Valerie), Slaton Waldo (Coach Myhand), Donna Wong (Jennifer)
Director Kenneth Horstmann
Producer Spyplane Films, Adam Callner, Donnie Coe, Pam Copeland, Andrew Grein, Kenneth Horstmann, Wayne Morgan, Robin Thornton, Jamie Vosseller, Casey Wallace, George Wallace
Distributor Provident Films (Sony)

“It’s all how you look at it.”

Sometimes in life, things happen that seemingly flip your world upside down! For high school senior Solomon White (Randall Bentley), this could never be more true when a head injury causes his vision to be flipped; he is only able to see images upside down. With college scouts vying for his attention, an ex-girlfriend who won’t leave him alone, a sour relationship with his mother, and a teacher with very high expectations, Solomon feels his life spinning out of control.

As he tries to set his world aright, Solomon meets a blind girl who teaches him about finding your way in the darkness and about true faith in God.

“Upside” provides the viewer with the ultimate question, “What would you do?” Sadly, it offers little else. The film suffers from all the ills of most Christian films: bad acting, low budget, poor storytelling, and a general lack of umph.

Solomon is on a journey that most adolescents (and some adults) find themselves—trying to find a sense of self and a firm foundation upon which to build a future, but as we have come to know, there are no easy answers along the way.

During his search, Solomon does begin a relationship with Christ after he witnesses a miracle while attending church with a friend. He finds some clarity through prayer and a brave teacher who loses her job for sharing the gospel during school hours.

The central theme of the film can be summed up in a reading of Jeremiah 29:11,

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Violence: None / Profanity: None / Sex/Nudity: None

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.

Learn how to be more effective in evangelismStumped about how to share your faith in Christ with others? Our EffectiveEvangelism.com site assists Christians in effectively reaching out to others with love and truth. Learn about the worldview of the people you meet, ways to share the gospel, read stories submitted by site users, and more.


Viewer CommentsSend your comments
Positive—Excellent, excellent movie…. In the era of thin story lines, gratuitous sex, violence and non-stop special effects, I found this movie a refreshing change… I particularly enjoyed the highly developed dialog and characters with superb casting. The story was deep and thought-provoking. We came away from the movie knowing that we benefited from its content and felt happy / energized by it.

It was so fun to be able to watch a movie that the whole family enjoyed without any objectionable content. Our nine year-old boy, who plays lacrosse, enjoyed the sports-action segments and my wife and thirteen year-old daughter, enjoyed the romantic elements. It’s a classic movie and fantastic sound-track, on par with “Fireproof” and “Facing the Giants.”

It’s so good, that I encourage everyone to not walk, but, run-out and get this movie TODAY…. Go!… Now!
My Ratings: Moral rating: Excellent! / Moviemaking quality: 5
Ralph Hemphill, age 50 (USA)