With her husband jailed for Wall Street-based fraud, Faith has to leave behind her luxury life in New York to return home to North Carolina and the widower father and dutiful older sister she left behind. Together, they have to deal with the buried emotions of sudden death of Faith’s mother years ago, and learn to be a family again. Like the Prodigal story, Heart of the Country is a tale of a father’s unconditional love. He simply wants a relationship with his children, and once that relationship is restored, he begins to create healing for his broken daughter. Her marriage has to be rebuilt, her belief in herself, and her peace with her mother’s death all come together through the quiet, selfless guidance of her loving father. The novel, written by Rene Gutteridge from the original screenplay by filmmaker John Ward, takes us from the glamour of Manhattan to the open beauty of the fields of rural Columbus County, North Carolina as the timeless tale of the Prodigal Son is reborn!
Reviews
Heart of the Country is one of these faith based films which tries to keep its Christian message subtle but it is there to see; an America that exists only in a film producer's, preacher or a Republican politician's mind.Faith (Jana Kramer) left her family in a small town in North Carolina for New York and ended up marrying to a wealthy socialite who worked in Wall Street. She has lived the high life but her husband has been busted for fraud and Faith returns home.It becomes clear that Faith has been distant with her dad (Gerald McRaney) and her sister but the film does not spell it out. I was not even sure if they have ever met Faith's husband.When Faith's dad gets cancer, she tries to get her husband to arrange a top New York doctor to see him. Faith's father meanwhile wants her to fight to save his marriage and goes to see his son in law to find out whether he still wants to be with Faith.The film has positive messages about marriage, forgiveness and redemption. It is just too sanitized and happy clappy for my liking. We are not made clear what Faith's issues were with her family but they would had good reason to be upset by the way they were treated by Faith who seems to have forgotten all about them until trouble came knocking on the door.
I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of acting, beautiful scenery, but even more so by the content of this movie. It is extremely refreshing to watch a romantic movie that values marriage. So many other romantic dramas or comedies that I have watched put all the emphasis on the "chemistry" between two characters. It is common to see relationships develop based on physical attraction and thus not surprising to commonly see characters leave their spouse for another "truer love". However, in this movie I was very pleased to see the characters work out a relationship even when it got downright hard... and even when temptation arises. I feel this movie paints a more realistic picture of what real life relationships are like. We often will make mistakes and disappoint and sometimes not even feel the "warm fuzzies" anymore... it takes grace and forgiveness and work to get that "music" back that was there in the beginning. This is the kind of romantic movie I would want my daughters to watch to balance the message that is the "norm" these days.
This heartfelt movie told a story of real life issues that occur during relationships in this century. The only thing that I wished would had happened is that she ended up with the doctor, Lee. Even though she didn't end up with Lee, there was no reason to dislike the movie. Her husband tried to win her back. The whole reason he was in his predicament was because Faith wanted him to go on his own, away from his father and brother. His brother gave her dad the chance to see the cancer specialist and he pleaded guilty for his wrongdoings. He wasn't a jerk. He tried to repair their relationship and in the end he did. This movie is a tearjerker that will leave you on the front of your seat till the ending.
First off, I had no idea that Jana Kramer was such a good actress. I knew she was a fantastic singer, but she should act in a lot more films. This is a classic coming home story. It is based off of a book. I haven't read the book, but after seeing the movie, I am really wanting to go and read it. It is a great story. One with laughs, tears and a lot of emotion. It is a great date movie or a movie to go see if you or anyone who likes country music, since you will enjoy seeing Jana Kramer on the screen as well. I would highly recommend seeing this movie. If you like the country girl types of movies or just in a mood for a romantic movie, this is the one to see.