Forever My Girl Parent Guide

Usually when the small-town boy leaves, becomes famous, and returns home, he’s greeted with streamers, handshakes and kisses. Sadly, Liam Page (Alex Roe) didn’t understand the importance of first making a graceful departure from his tiny Georgia community. And nobody was more surprised with his sudden exit than Josie (Jessica Rothe), his grade school sweetheart who was about to walk down the aisle with him when she was informed her groom had gone AWOL.

Eight years later Liam Page is a household name. The country singer can’t show his face in public without causing a mob scene. Yet, despite this recognition and the accompanying wealth, he’s one sad guy. By day he drowns his sorrows with booze, and by night he routinely has security guards usher a select female concert goer up to his hotel room for a one-night-stand. During one of his drunken “daze” while playing in a city near his hometown, he catches news that an old friend has died in a car accident. That solemn moment motivates him to return home for the funeral.

Louisiana native, screenwriter and director, Bethany Ashton Wolf plays it safe in her first feature film. Using the book Forever My Girl by Heidi McLaughlin as her basis, she populates her production with locations, characters and plots similar to those found in movies based on Nicholas Sparks’ romance novels. (See Dear John, The Choice and The Longest Ride.) These include many convenient situations that allow characters to move through what should be months of decision making in just a couple weeks. We know Josie’s initial anger toward Liam will fade fast and it’s even less of a surprise to discover she has a seven-year-old daughter named Billy (Abby Ryder Fortson) who has never met her dad.

Thankfully, for Liam, his father (John Benjamin Hickey) is the town Pastor. This man of God knows how to give a good sermon on forgiveness. Considering the entire community would like to see this prodigal tied up and served for dinner, Pastor Brian’s words are food for the souls of both his parishioners and himself. With this support, Liam begins to work through some momentous issues (fear of commitment, love of drinking, etc.) and embraces the opportunity to be a dad.

Although Billy was the result of a pre-marital sexual relationship and we see Liam wake up with one of those aforementioned fans in his hotel room, there is no other sexual content in the film. Violence is limited to a few verbal spars, a punch and an injured hand. And mild profanities, terms of deity and name-calling are also infrequent.

Mid-January romances are rare in movie theaters and so are PG ratings. Although sentimental and predictable, this story may be just the ticket to please teens and adults looking for a little love to warm up their winter.

About author

Rod Gustafson

Rod Gustafson has worked in various media industries since 1977. He founded Parent Previews in 1993, and today continues to write and broadcast the reviews in newspapers, on radio and (of course) on the Internet. His efforts also include writing and researching media in all its forms and observing how it effects society and culture. He and his wife Donna have four children.