Break Away, an Inspirational Christian Movie

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Note ~ I was sent a copy of Break Away, an inspirational Christian movie to facilitate a review for Word Films through Blogger Gateway.

 

As most readers on the blog know, our family enjoys to watch family friendly movies.  Thankfully, there are more being made by smaller production houses to fill a need.  Break Away, an inspirational Christian movie, is the latest one we’ve been privileged to review. 

 

About Break Away, an Inspirational Christian Movie

 

Francois is a hard-working husband and dad that gets laid off from his job. None of his efforts to get another job succeed, and he is forced to use what he has, including an old bicycle, in order to provide for his family. With the help of his “black sheep” brother, a bicycle shop owner and a pro-cyclist, Francois makes some life-changing discoveries about his life, career and faith in God.
Although a fictional story, BREAK AWAY, was inspired by true events around the recession that left people without work. The message brings hope and offers practical and Biblical solutions in a very entertaining way.

Break Away releases onto DVD on April 23, 2013 with a suggested retail price of $19.95.  Originally released in Afrikaans as Baroudeur, this edition is primarily in English with occasional subtitles.

 

 

My Thoughts on Break Away, an Inspirational Christian Movie

 

For this review, I watched the film with the older boys and my mother.  The boys were not overly impressed by this film, although R did enjoy the final race scene when Francois is the underdog.  I’m going to assume that they are young enough that they don’t fully appreciate the challenge faced by a middle aged man who’s livelihood goes poof over night.  My mom and I could fully appreciate the struggles (emotional, spiritual, and even physical) that one would face when needing to find a way to support a family.

 

An aspect of this film that I really loved was seeing just how beautiful Cape Town, South Africa is.  The cinematography for this film did an excellent job in capturing the diverse terrain around the area which included waterside scenes, lush green hill sides, and somewhat arid looking farmland.

 

I also loved how the characters in the film each expressed their faith as well as their humanity in the story line.  Francois and his family are Christian while Eli, the bike shop owner who becomes a family friend, is Jewish.  While they all have faith in God, they also struggle with aspects of our humanity that make it difficult to fully trust in His plan for us.  And, we can often jump to conclusions without all the facts or knowing the motivation behind someone’s actions.  Francois chose to not tell his wife about being unemployed until she returns from the grocery store having been denied her transaction.  He did that to spare her pain with the assumption of being able to find a similar job in short order.  However, the economy made that impossible even with his excellent track record and she felt a violation of trust in their relationship.

 

Part of the story line which hit home for me is that beyond trusting God to meet our needs, we need to really discern what our true needs are compared to our wants.  Society is all about the stuff and how much you can acquire.  However, Francois learns that having more time with his family and giving up the trappings of society leads to a more fulfilling life than working in the rat race and maximizing earnings. 

 

I should say that one thing which jumped out for my 12 year old also struck me as a bit odd.  It was that Francois wife, even upon learning that their finances are obliterated and her husband has been unable to find work, still stays a ‘stay at home’ mom rather than busting her own but to help the family finances.  I wonder if it is partly a cultural difference as many of my friends here in America have had to return to the workforce to help make ends meet when a spouse experienced this kind of set back.  I’m all for trusting God and firmly believe that a mother at home is an ideal with young children, but also do not see where both parties in a marriage can not work if it is needed.

 

If you are looking for an inspirational Christian movie which tackles the difficulties faced in our ‘new economy’, then definitely check this out.  Just keep in mind that it is not going to be at the same level of performance and production as the major film projects in the movie theaters.  But, all in all, it is a good selection.