Life With Dog from Mill Creek Entertainment : A TOS Crew Review

Life With Dog from Mill Creek Entertainment

Life With Dog from Mill Creek Entertainment is a family friendly movie. We all cuddled up to watch together, one of my favorite ways to connect with my kiddos.

This movie is available at Walmart stores starting June 4, 2019, or online at Amazon.  When you purchase the DVD, you get a code from Mill Creek Entertainment that allows you to get instant digital access to your title, this gives you the ability to watch it on your other digital devices as well.

Mill Creek Entertainment offers a huge selection of contemporary and classic films and television series, documentary series and popular kids programming, as well as independent films, Latino cinema, early learning and fitness.

Life With Dog - "Hope comes in many forms", is it's tag line.  This 106 minute film is centered around Joe Bigler as he grieves the loss of his wife.   Wow - I  was caught right away, having just lost my husband two months ago.

Joe, played by Corbin Bernsen, is angry.  The film alternates his present reality with "conversations" from his deceased wife Alice, played by Marilu Henner.  It's a movie you need to pay attention to, as the story keeps developing and unfolding.

Joe has isolated himself, until a stray dog arrives and refuses to leave.  Joe's daughter, Zoey, played by Chelsey Crisp, introduces the faith aspect of this film.  She has had a rough time, with her husband leaving her alone to be a single parent.  She is worried about her father. She encourages him to remember what she and Alice believe. She brings her pastor to speak with Joe.

As Joe becomes more bitter and angry about Alice's death, we see him act on his emotions by threatening the bank and others of a conspiracy to murder Alice to try to take his home.  He wants to have someone to blame for Alice's death.

Through this, Dog, what Joe names the stray, stays with him.  Eventually,  we see Joe having the opportunity to confront the young man responsible for Alice's death.  By this point in the film, I was not sure what Joe would do.  He chooses to forgive, because of the influence of Alice and her faith.




All in all, we weren't that impressed with the film.  I would definitely NOT recommend it for your younger children because of the topics.  Since my children, who had just lost their father, were watching it as a family movie night - it did give us some important discussions on the different ways people grieve, and what types of behaviors are unacceptable, no matter how much your heart is hurting.

The quality of the film was excellent, technically.  Great actors, great acting.  I just felt that the story line was confusing, and the characters underdeveloped.  The dog was the least understood character, which is disappointing with a title like "Life with Dog". The ending left us asking, what really happened?

On the positive side, there are few films that can capture the attention of my pre-teens, teens and adults.  This movie did.


Find Mill Creek Entertainment on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MillCreekEnt
Twitter: https://twitter.com/millcreekent
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/millcreekent

Hashtags: #hsreviews #MovieNight #ChristianMovies #FamilyMovie

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Princess Cut from Watchman Pictures: A TOS Crew Review

Princess Cut from Watchman Pictures

It's so hard to find well-done movies that the entire family can watch.  We have recently gotten to enjoy a family movie night with Princess Cut from Watchman Pictures.  

This full-length, approx. 90 minutes, film is one the entire family can watch.  It is about a young woman named Grace that is part of a Christian family, and is dreaming about "Mr. Right".  We follow Grace as she discovers that true love is worth waiting for.

My testers were my girls, ages 8-15.  We love to curl up together on our big bed and watch "chick flicks" together.  This movie fit what we were looking for perfectly.

We watched as Grace moved through several relationships - getting surprised by a boyfriend (not the way she wanted...don't want to be a spoiler!), starting a new relationship heading in the wrong way, and eventually finding love in the way God designed.

Throughout this movie, the Biblical perspective on subjects like purity, dating, friendships, family relationships and listening to God are introduced within the context of the story.  This is an excellent way to introduce these topics with your children too!  The movie sparked many good conversations afterward.

We enjoyed watching together.  The movie is well done, and the actors are great.  There are some comedic scenes - my testers could totally relate to irritating brothers!  There are a few more "dramatic" scenes, including a barnyard fight.  Nothing I was uncomfortable with my girls watching.

We loved that it ended on a happy ending, and that God was glorified throughout this film. Check it out for your next movie night!

Find Princess Cut  on Social Media:

• Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/PrincessCutMovie 
• Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PrincessCutFilm      Tag:   @PrincessCutFilm     
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/princesscutfilm/pins/
• Instagram:  http://instagram.com/paulmungernc          Tag:   @paulmungernc   
• Google+:  https://plus.google.com/+Princesscutmovie   
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/PrincessCutMovie/videos   

Hashtags: #hsreviews, #PrincessCut, #romanticdrama, #Christianfilm, #awardwinning


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Trust Fund & Love Was Near from Mapelle Films: A TOS Crew Review

Trust Fund & Love Was Near from Mapelle Films
I have four daughters, and one of our favorite things is to snuggle up together and watch a good "chick flick" together.  But, it's tricky to find something we can all watch, that's also appropriate with a good message.  We were delighted to get the chance to preview - Trust Fund - a movie with the coordinating book Love Was Near from Mapelle Films.
A exciting bonus, is that the producer - Isaac Alongi, was homeschooled!  It's wonderful to see the fruits of homeschooling showing in adults. He credits the freedom to explore his passions while being homeschooled one of his favorite parts.  I hope ALL our children will thrive from their years spent homeschooling like he has.

This film is a contemporary telling of the Prodigal Son story from the Bible.  Although the film never mentions God directly, it uses the story to illustrate the point, much like Jesus did. The main character is Reese Donahue- played by Jessica Rothe.  She is the younger daughter of the story. She is a free-thinking, expressive young writer who is ready to enjoy life.  
Without giving away too much of the plot, she leaves home and makes poor choices along the way.  Her father welcomes her back home, throws the party, and the older sister objects (I'm not giving away the plot...it's already in the Bible!) 
The film does offer a Study Guide, which you can download. It offers Scripture and some great questions for encouraging discussion with your children, after watching the movie.

We also got the chance to look at Love Was Near, 225 page, softcover book that gives more insight to the story of the film.  It's like a peek into Reese's thoughts and journal, with places for the reader to journal along.  My 14 year old read it.  She liked seeing the pictures from the movie included.  Many of the questions pertained to experiences she hasn't had yet...like "Have you been in a relationship, or are you thinking of someone now, that you aren't sure you're seeing or thinking about clearly?"  A very good family discussion question... "If you inherited 5 million dollars, what would you do?"  The book is a great way to intentionally discuss the themes of the movie.
Which brings me to our opinion of the movie.  We enjoyed our time together watching it, but it left us with lots of questions.  There are numerous sub-plots and we got lost every now and then (could be us!).  My testers are 13 and 14, on the young side, and found it hard to relate to the main character. She's extremely rich - and her world is so very different.  She has an inappropriate relationship with the Italian boyfriend (never shown explicitly on screen, but suggested heavily), but comes back to get  the  American boyfriend in the end. We never see the "why" behind what the father does.  We wish it had explained how his faith motivated him to forgiveness. 

All in all - it was an entertaining movie.  I would recommend it for OLDER teens/young adults.  Check out the trailer here.   I fully support more movies with a Christian message, produced by homeschoolers!

Find  Mapelle Films on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrustFundMovie/ Tag: @TrustFundMovie
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TrustFundMovie Tag: @TrustFundMovie
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/trustfundmovie/pins/ Tag: @trustfundmovie
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trustfundmovie/ Tag: @trustfundmovie

Hashtags: #hsreviews , #trustfundmovie. #family. #movienight, #moviereview, #familynight, #familyfun

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Do You Believe? from FishFlix.com : A TOS Crew Review

Do You Believe? from FishFlix.com

FishFlix.com is an online, Christian movie retailer. Their mission: "We believe that media and entertainment are gifts from God that help us spread his message with creativity and excellence." With family friendly selections in everything from apologetics to music videos, you will want to check them out!

Do You Believe? impacting movie about the power of the Cross.  It's from the same people that brought us "God's Not Dead".  Check out some of the actors & actresses:  Sean Astin, Mira Sorvino, Lee Majors, Cybil Shepherd, Ted McGinley and Brian Bosworth.  This movie is 119 minutes long, and rated PG-13.

Family movie nights are a highlight for the Bentz Test Laboratory.  But, finding something that a majority of family will enjoy, and will be appropriate can sometimes present a challenge.
Do You Believe? is a great choice for your next movie night!  (PG-13 rating for some rather intense police scenes).  This movie follows a dozen people's life stories from very different backgrounds:  a pastor, a gang member, a homeless mother and daughter, a nurse, a couple who have lost their daughter.   Their lives all come together in surprising ways to discover the power of the Cross.  It opens with a question from a street preacher that challenges one of the main characters, a pastor,  with the simple question:
“Do You Believe in the Cross of Christ?" "What are you going to do about it?"
I don't like reading reviews that spoil the surprise and spill out the entire movie...so, I won't do that!  But, let me assure you - this movie keeps you on the edge of your seat.  The characters will draw you into their stories.  You will be surprised, you will laugh, you will cry.  You will be moved! 
 This movie prompts some great family discussions as well.  We were all talking about how our belief will influence our actions, and change our lives...from the inside out.   
My testers all agree that this is one of our favorite movies.  This is a well-done movie, it's professionally produced.  Best of all, it uses the best "entertainment" has to offer to bring us a movie that both entertains and encourages us.  I am delighted to know that Christian filmmakers are turning their talents into something that we can use to combat culture!
This is one of those movies that sticks with you long after you are done watching.  The question will challenge you to examine yourself...“Do You Believe?"
If you like this movie as much as we did, you can get a DVD based study & guide too.  A bonus is a Special Features section on the DVD with actor interviews.
Don't miss this one!

Other titles reviewed by the Crew: 
Faith of Our Fathers
 Little Boy
When Calls the Heart, Heart of the Family
Living Waters: Intelligent Design in the Oceans of the Earth

Find FishFlix.com on Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fishflix
Twitter: https://twitter.com/christiandvd
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/fishflix/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Fishflix/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/familychristianmovie


See what other members of the Crew thought here