So, a Christian movie is not always about Biblical accuracy. I am a fan of Mr. Bernsen so I gave him a break. His emotions and anger were really strong! After all, these are the real reactions of a man who is not a believer, his wife was. He is trying to come to terms with her sudden death. Next, the dog was the star of the movie...how did they get this cute dog's reactions to seem so human? The plot was not so believable, but it's not supposed to be, a man who doesn't have faith in God forgiving the man responsible for his wife's death and then letting go of his own anger...I liked the movie. I am not a movie 'expert' but liked the movie.

I believe this movie was to have a message if redemption, forgiveness and so on. I was quite distracted by the music which often made me feel throughout the movie, that something really significant was about to happen, but it didn't ever seem to for some reason. Even at the pivotal moments when I was waiting for everything to come together, things didn't feel significant for me. The dog, though adorable, distracted and confused me. At first, his mouth looked like he had blood all around it. He later looked more or less intermittently dirty. As the movie progressed, I expected a greater revelation about why he showed up. I guess his purpose was to bring owner and protagonist together for their moment. Somehow, the dog's presence seemed anti-climatic and I felt the story, unresolved ...Perhaps, this is part of the message, that humans do have a difficult time with forgiveness..that as hard as we try, we still struggle to do our part when God does His so well. (I surely have found that to be true). I guess I wanted more closure..Why did the dog never bark? What was it about the dog that won over the protagonist as they didn't really interact or share much affection. The protagonists never seems to learn from his bouts of anger, even though he had no bullets in the gun. He was painfully difficult to like. By the end, I'd hoped I would like him more, but the conversation at the end with the young man helped a little. I'd have hoped that the older man would impart greater wisdom in the younger in letting him see where being out of control could ruin his life. The protagonist never really deeply reflected in his role in the incident. It was only while in jail that he was willing to be accountable, but to only himself, but even that, not really. He placed all the blame on the young man..I enjoyed the movie, just the same.

Yes, the character of Joe (Corbin Bernson) is cynical beyond belief. Safe to say, many of us have encountered someone like Joe. They were negative about everything and so draining to be around. It seemed impossible to bring a smile to their face. He's definitely off putting, but this movie has a powerful message and it's worth sticking with to the end. After losing his wife, Alice (Marilu Henner), in a bicycle accident, his mental health starts declining. He spends his days sitting in the living room with the blinds closed, even when it's sunny outside, and he's stopped shaving. When his daughter comes to his house she expresses her immense concern for his psychological well-being, but he doesn't see anything wrong with how he's living. It also doesn't help that he's short-tempered just by nature. He's going down a path of despair, until he encounters a stray dog who won't leave him alone. Over time, the dog becomes part of his life. Throughout the movie, the audience is able to see the dog change Joe's pessimistic outlook. The actors and actresses gave such compelling performances. It's a brilliant movie about forgiveness. Awesome choice for a family movie night.