The Ultimate Family Movie

My husband and I had heard many good things about this movie. When it happened to come to a theater in our town we went to go see it. Needless to say, we bought it as soon as it came out on DVD. We have enjoyed sharing it with friends and family. It is really a wonderful film with a great message.

The story begins when Red, wealthy father, grandfather and beloved friend, passed away. At the reading of his will we are introduced to his kids and grandkids; all of whom are very spoiled, selfish and ungrateful acting. Each is told of their inheritance and then asked to leave the room. The last one to be in the room is Jason, grandson of Red. What is his inheritance? It involves tasks or missions, twelve of them to be precise. Each task is laid out and explained by Red himself via a video that he had recorded prior to his death. Each task he calls a gift. Each gift is designed to teach Jason a valuable life lesson and if completed correctly will lead to what Red calls “the ultimate gift.” Before Jason can get this “ultimate gift” he must learn and receive each of the prior gifts which include: “the gift of work,” “the gift of friendship,” “the gift of family,” etc…

Jason chooses to accept this inheritance and begins completing, one by one, the tasks laid out before him by his Grandfather. With each task completed Jason learns a new lesson. These lessons begin to transform Jason from the selfish, embittered young man he was into a giving, caring, strong man who knows and understands the true meanings of life. Along his journey he learns the value of working hard. He feels the hardship of losing everything. He discovers how to put others before himself. He finds true friends, true love and realizes the worth of family. Once more he comes to understand how to be responsible and determines the actual substance of prosperity.

In the end, it seems, Jason has received the most valuable inheritance of all. One that will last a lifetime, and if handled correctly, can be passed down from generation to generation.

The lessons taught to Jason in this film provide food for though for viewer young and old alike. Not only is the story absolutely wonderful and thought provoking, but the movie is very entertaining. The acting, in my opinion, was very good. There is a little of everything in there for everybody. There are moments of seriousness and most definitely some sad times, but there are also some very funny parts (everyone in the theater laughed out loud). There is romance, love and even some action. You will laugh, cry and even sit on the edge of your seat at times.

The move is rated PG for thematic elements, some violence and language. There are a couple of scenes that imply Jason’s lack of integrity and moral before his change of heart and mind. There is a scene that shows an airplane crash site (no blood or body shown). Lastly Jason is taken hostage at one point and we see him imprisoned, threatened, held at gunpoint and shot at. Also another man that was captured with him is shown after being beat up (not overly bloody or graphic though). The langue is all very mild and only involves one use of the word "h---" as an expletive. The people that capture Jason are drug dealers and we seem them drink hard liquor. Later they are passed out drunk around the campfire.

The minor indiscretions of the movie, thus the PG rating, were very inoffensive to me. I recommend it to families and really believe that it is a great story with an awesome message. One note (spoiler) in the end Jason is given $100 million dollars. He uses this to build a family unit for families with kids who are critically ill. I have heard that some people have viewed this as being the “agenda” of the movie… That everyone needs to do likewise with his or her money. I personally did not feel this way. Even if this was the “agenda” in my opinion, who cares! The movie/story was really super awesome and not worth missing.

Actors in this movie include Drew Fuller, Bill Cobbs, Abigail Breslin (Academy Award Nominee), Brian Dennehy and James Garner (Also Academy Award Nominee). The story is based on the best-selling novel “The Ultimate Gift” by Jim Stovall. The film won the 2006 Heartland Film Festival’s Crystal Heart Award. It also received the Dove Foundation’s seal of approval for families.

The movie runtime is 117 minutes. 117 minutes that you will not regret spending watching this movie.