Riding the Waves with Faith
Soul Surfer tells the true story of a 13 year old surfing prodigy, Bethany Hamilton who, lost her arm to a vicious shark attack. The movie tells the story of her recovery and her determination to return to the ranks of the world’s top surfers. But this is also a story about how families and communities draw together in times of adversity.
In the movie, and in real life, the Hamilton family is close knit and connected by their love of music, by their zeal for surfing, and by their Christian faith. Over the course of the movie, Bethany, her family, friends and even her competitors all wrestle with the question of “Why does God let bad things happen to good people?” Bethany and her family draw upon their deep faith to find hope and meaning after her tragic accident. Each of her family and close friends goes through their own struggle to reconcile their own feelings about the shark attack, while also trying to support Bethany as she struggles to relearn how to do everyday tasks with only one arm.
Faith is presented, not as a solution to these challenges and questions in life, but as an ordinary part of life. Throughout the movie, we see the characters going to church, youth groups, and turning to God in prayer as a part of their normal daily lives. The movie also recounts a Bethany’s mission trip to hurricane ravaged Thailand, and how by teaching children there to surf she began to realize she could inspire others to hope and to overcome their own adversities. She also was surprised by letters from thousands of admirers who looked up to her as spokesperson and role model for other young people struggling with disabilities.
The surfing community is presented as an close-knit, caring and supportive community. Although competition among surfers is intense during sporting events, the entire community is seen celebrating holidays together and drawing together to aid Bethany and her family after her accident. A particularly poignant moment in the movie is when Bethany’s brother and father are called out in the middle of the night to confirm that a huge shark that has been caught by a group of neighbours is the shark that attacked her.
If Soul Surfer were merely a movie about a young athlete’s struggle to return to competition after a tragic accident, I would recommend it. But it is much more. It tells the story of how a person, a family and a community can draw together to love and support each other, bound by their faith. Soul Surfer is able to convey the message that faith can be the foundation of an individual’s and a family’s life, without coming across as a preachy or as a “message movie”. For me, this is the true strength of the movie. There are scenes in the film which may be frightening to younger children, but I saw it with my 10 year old daughter and I believe children 10 and up can enjoy this film with their families.
John Clem is discussing. 
Rismi, 
Fr. Jay Finelli, 
Lisa M Hendey and one other person are discussing. 
podmandan 11:13 pm on May 1, 2011 Permalink |
I listened to the first episode of the Hi-Line Podcast with Fr. Cory while I was on the train and it’s a really good podcast- informative and inspiring. Thanks for the review, Sean.n