God Bless the Broken Road parents guide

God Bless the Broken Road Parent Guide

The movie’s biggest weakness is its predictability.

Overall B+

Military widow Amber Hill walks "the broken road" of grief as she tries to raise her daughter alone. Where will she find help and hope to light her way?

Release date September 7, 2018

Violence B-
Sexual Content A
Profanity A
Substance Use A

Why is God Bless the Broken Road rated PG? The MPAA rated God Bless the Broken Road PG for thematic elements and some combat action

Run Time: 111 minutes

Official Movie Site

Parent Movie Review

Amber Hill (Lindsay Pulsipher) is barely treading water. The death of her husband (Darren Hill) in Afghanistan has left her with a daughter, Bree (Makenzie Moss), a house she can no longer afford, mother-in-law problems, crushing grief, and shattered faith in God.

Cody Jackson (Andrew W. Walker) is a slow learner. The stock car driver keeps on crashing cars. Cody is so obsessed with speed that he refuses to listen to cooler heads telling him to decelerate in the turns so he can accelerate in the straightway. His exasperated manager sends him to Amber’s small Kentucky town to train with local garage owner and racing expert, Joe Carter (Gary Grubbs).

Will Amber heal from her husband’s death? Will she recover her faith in a loving God? Will Cody finally listen to good advice and stop wrecking cars? And will Amber and Cody be able to help each other?

God Bless the Broken Road would be a better movie if the answer to any of these questions were in doubt. The movie’s biggest weakness is its predictability: there is very little uncertainty about how the story is going to turn out.

That being said, viewers looking for a family-friendly movie that extols the virtues of Christianity and American patriotism will find little to complain about here. The film has a strong didactic message about the power of faith and prayer for oneself and others and it provides numerous examples of kind, caring church members who reach out to support the young widow and her daughter. Positive messages about community, compassion and forgiveness are the highlights of this picture.

The only potential content issues center around the ambush in which Darren Hill (Liam Matthews) is killed. Firearms and rocket propelled grenades are used in this scene and American soldiers are wounded and killed. The violence is highly sanitized, though, and no blood or graphic injuries are visible.

Families looking for a faith-promoting evangelical Christian production will likely enjoy this release. But those with different belief systems will likely not find the same satisfaction walking the “broken road”.

Directed by Harold Cronk. Starring Lindsay Pulsipher, Andrew W. Walker, Makenzie Moss, Kim Delaney. Running time: 111 minutes. Theatrical release September 7, 2018. Updated

Watch the trailer for God Bless the Broken Road

God Bless the Broken Road
Rating & Content Info

Why is God Bless the Broken Road rated PG? God Bless the Broken Road is rated PG by the MPAA for thematic elements and some combat action

Violence: American soldiers in Afghanistan are involved in combat. Firearms and rocket propelled grenades are used. Soldiers are wounded and one is killed. No blood is shown. A character gets angry and throws his crash helmet. Another character gets angry and punches a car. A child stands up to playground bullies and runs towards him. A punch is heard but not shown. Family members argue and say hurtful things to one another. A stock car crashes at high speed and is wreathed in smoke. The driver is not injured.

Sexual Content: A woman kisses a man on the cheek.

Profanity: None noted.

Alcohol / Drug Use: None noted.

 

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God Bless the Broken Road Parents' Guide

Amber loses her faith in God when her husband is killed. Hardship and loss can often test the faith and resilience of people, even those with strong religious convictions. Why do you think bad things happen to good people?  How do we respond when we feel like we don’t deserve the adversity in our lives?

News About "God Bless the Broken Road"

“God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you.” So goes the chorus of the country music classic, first recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1994. Its message of love giving meaning to life’s hard times kept the song in the country music pantheon, and Rascal Flatts’ cover scored a Grammy Award in 2005. The movie incorporates the message of the hit song into the story of Amber Hill, played by Lindsay Pulsipher, a military spouse who has lost her husband in Afghanistan. Struggling to raise their daughter, she walks “the broken road”. This release is the latest Christian film directed by Harold Cronk. Recent directorial projects of his include the God’s Not Dead series and Unbroken: Path to Redemption, which also releases in 2018.

Home Video

The most recent home video release of God Bless the Broken Road movie is December 4, 2018. Here are some details…

Related home video titles:

Dear John tells the story of a couple whose relationship is tested by his military commitments.

A young widow struggles to move forward after her husband’s death In P.S. I Love You.

Down in the Delta tells the story of a single mom’s struggles and the strength found in extended family.