Ordinary Angels review by Bobby Blakey
Alan Ritchson has currently been kicking ass and solving mysteries with his hit series Reacher, but his latest film Ordinary Angels teams him up with Hilary Swank for a different kind of story. The film from Do You Believe? and The Case of Christ director Jon Gun costars Nancy Travis, Drew Powell, Tamala Jones and Amy Acker. Could this true story bring something inspirational to audiences or will it get lost in the snowstorm forever?
Ordinary Angels follows Sharon, a fierce but struggling hairdresser in small-town Kentucky who discovers a renewed sense of purpose when she meets Ed, a widower working hard to make ends meet for his two daughters. With his youngest daughter waiting for a liver transplant, Sharon sets her mind to helping the family and will move mountains to do it. What unfolds is the inspiring tale of faith, everyday miracles, and ordinary angels.
I must admit a lot of times I tend to avoid films that focus on faith or agendas because they tend to get bogged down trying to force stuff down the throat. This one felt like it was going to be something more straight forward and I am happy I gave it the chance as it is really good. The story follows two trajectories with the man and his family dealing with loss and multiple life stresses while a woman is trying to find her own way to redemption and purpose with both of their lives crashing together.
The story is deep and heartfelt with both Swank and Ritchson bringing so much depth to their characters and a perfect dysfunctional connection that you can’t help but get invested. Swank fully embraces the flaws and southern vibe of Sharon and despite her shortcomings makes her into someone you
want to root for. We are witnessing her redemption of things we don’t even fully know yet as the story progresses while never derailing the main story of this family.
Ritchson has done a lot of stuff throughout his career, but a lot of it has been focused on the action, his sized and muscles which I am all in for, but here he gets to strip down the power and show the vulnerability of this man just trying to make it through the day with his family. He is the real star power in this film to me as he brings all the emotions you need from happiness to anger to hope to desperation and everything else you can imagine. HE fully embodies this father and does it with pure performance. I think unintentionally his visually strong presence helps as well because it adds to the depth of struggle as it does no good. There is a higher calling needed and help that plays out in the film.
Yes, there is a underlying message of faith and struggles with it along with redemption, but it never felt forced. Instead, it felt organic and more like we are just seeing these people find new ways to gather what they have lost and pick up the pieces to move forward. I enjoyed this film way more than I expected and hope that it finds the audience it deserves as a truly uplifting good film. The final act some might find far-fetched, but they smartly brought in the actual news footage of it taking place further strengthening the already inspiring story and bringing it home in a good way.
Grab your copy of this uplifting film available now onBlu-ray and DVD from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
