Customer Reviews

Home Beyond the Sun

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

OK, yes...this was done on the cheap. Some of the lines were forced, and the effort to infuse the story with Christian teachings is obvious and direct. BUT--what a heartwarming story. The kid with no chance gets the golden ring! The goodhearted Samaritan ultimately gets rewards even beyond what she hoped for.

As for plausibility, yes China is advancing economically, and, in some areas, the official Communist stance against religion has relaxed. However, Churches and Christians are still required to register with the government, and doing so means accepting monitoring, editing of sermons, and in many cases, restricted opportunities. And there are still areas of China where local authorities choose to persecute Christians (yes, Tibetan Buddhists too, Falun Gong too, etc.) quite strenuously. So, while the film (produced in 2004) had the fill of a late 1970s/early 1980s China, it would be naive to suggest that persecution does not happen in the Middle Kingdom in varying levels.

Bottom-line: Those with a soft spot for sweet, faith-affirming stories will be able to overlook the uneven acting and occasional plot-dialogue deficiencies and enjoy this film. Others have fairly granted fewer stars.

Beware. This is a heartwarming story with a strong Christian message. That is the strong point of the movie. Some people will find that a "turn-off". I didn't. I found the story very uplifting, despite its "preachy" tone. The acting is a weakpoint. Some performances were credible; others seemed amateurish. A low-budget film with a wholesome message.

I recently watched Home Beyond The Sun with my 14-year-old daughter.

The numerous critical reviews motivated me to refute some of their criticism in order to encourage some more people to try the movie. In response to some of the criticism of the portrayed adoption process, my interpretation was that there was extensive paperwork done by the American adoption agent who had a long career of helping American families adopt from China. Although the movie didn't show all the background work (because that is not what the movie was about & I am thankful as that would've been incredibly boring), the movie gave the impression that there was a great deal of work done over a one year process. My understanding when I looked into adopting from China a few years ago is that it is preferred for one or both of the adoptive parents to accompany the child from China to America, BUT, it is possible to hire someone, like the adoption agent, to accompany the child on behalf of the parents.

It is unfortunate that some reviewers missed out on a wonderful story because they were so caught up in the details that would not have added to the story. The film portrayed that Christians are persecuted in China, which is true, and that the Chinese government, at some point in history, treated female children very differently than we do in America. They did not need to film the whole actual long drawn out process of adoption and every piece of paper required. No one is interested in that. It is sad that the critical reviewers missed out on a wonderful story because they were overly critical of the movie making.

I would reccommend this movie to Christian families with older children, something they can watch as a family that introduces some of the different beliefs and values between China and America. However, I would recommend parents preview it, especially the opening scenes, before watching it with their children.

I do not recommend this movie to people trying to find a perfectly detailed movie about the adoption process and laws of China.

Although the acting isn't always great, the story of the film is awesome. A refreshing and uplifting movie the whole family can watch together without fear of things coming up that you wouldn't want your kids to hear or see. Also re-enforces wholesome moral values. I highly recommend it.

This movie is called Home Beyond the Sun. I highly recommed basing it off the story line and that it is based on real events.

My only issue I had was the constant use of "Real" family in replacement of biological family. The movie was made back in 2002 but I would of thought a movie on this subject would have not used real as a way to discrible the biological family. Last time I checked I was real and I am my adopted kids real father I'm just not their biological father.

The Camera use and acting was average at best but the story makes up for these things.

If you like a surprise ending and a tear or two possibly being shed have a look.

I really enjoyed this movie I bought from Amazon....It is a great family movie....no bad words or offensive scenes. Great Christian Entertainment. I highly recommend this movie.

This is a very well acted family movie. We first saw it on a christian tv channel and knew we had to buy it for our library.It has a surprise ending that will touch the hardest heart. It is a movie you will want to see over and over.

While the acting and direction are good, the production is not. This movie looks like it was shot with a home video camera (although the soundtrack was OK). Worst is the script. My 8 year old loved it, but it got only scorn from those over 11 in my house. Implausible even if it did reflect reality in China, which it does not. There is a real danger that because it so blatantly mis-represents the reality of orphans, Christians, and the Chinese government, that some will conclude that the well-documented persecution of Christians is also a fairy tale. I cringe to think there are people who might believe this movie represents reality. (...)

This movie says on its cover "inspired by a true story." This is not the case, it concludes with the standard tag line of "any similarity to real persons is coincidental..." I enjoy watching Christian films, and I did enjoy watching this one, with its positive moral values. I liked the positive view it gives of adoption. I may even add it to my collection (I watched it as a rental). However, the production values were low, and the acting wasn't very good. The plot details were not very true to reality in China. The Chinese do face terrible persecution, but this story was not very believable. Some of the situations in the movie are a bit confusing. Hopefully the makers of this film will get better at their trade.

Any claims that this film is based on a true story are indeed a stretch. There are too many aspects of this film that are misleading concerning adoption from China (or any other country for that matter).

According to the movie's own timeline, the story begins in 1996 with the murder in China of the mother of an illegal (ie unapproved) baby. The film then fast forwards and primarily takes place in the year 2004.

Given the year this story supposedly took place, there were so many problems with the script vs. reality, that my wife and I lost track, but here are some of the most over-the-top scenes:

1) The idea that any American would be allowed to work in a Chinese orphange without having to first jump through a million communist government hoops. (OK, maybe it's not that difficult. But given the way the government is constantly spying on this particular American throughout the film, it's pretty amazing they let her get away with it.)

2) Said American is then permitted to come and go with one of the orphans at will, even going so far as having her sleep overnight in her apartment.

3) The possesion of a Bible by a foreigner is perfectly legal provided it is not used to promote Christianity to Chinese residents. Yet, in the movie, the American is threatened by the police simply for having one in her backpack.

4) The bribe, er, "donation" demanded by the "evil" orphanage director. As we who have been there all know, the fees are set in stone, and the orpanage director does not drive the process, the CCAA does. The fees are not at all negotiable, and even the gifts we give are not mandatory.

5) The "signature" that was withheld by the "evil" director suggests that her personal approval was all that was needed to adopt. But what really puts it over the top is the scene where the local police officer provides his own signature instead, as he sits in his car outside the airport!

6) No mention is made of all the other required paperwork and signatures on the Chinese side and very little is said about the US paperwork either (no homestudy, no dossier, no wait time). Indeed the entire Chinese set of paperwork appears to consist of one badly mangled piece of paper.

7) Since when can you adopt from China without at least one of the parents actually traveling?

8) What happened to the mandatory trip to Guangzhou?

9) How is it that a plane ticket suddenly exists for the little Chinese girl when, just the day before, the American believed she would have to return home alone?

10) How is it that there is apparently no security fence around the airport? And why does the police officer dump them in the field instead of driving them to the door? And how does an American waltz through airport checkpoints with a child who has no US consulate papers and no passport?

... and these are just the things that come to mind as I write this! It seemed like every few minutes my wife and I would look at each other and say, "oh come ON!"

HBtS begins with a warning that you can't show it in your church without special approval! Quite honestly, it's so far removed from reality that I would be embarrassed to show it in my church, for fear that my friends would get the wrong idea about adoption and religion in China.

HBtS also suffers from some pretty awful acting: The little girl is actually better than all the adults, and the "evil" orphanage director deserves a "razzie" for the worst acting I have seen since ... well, maybe ever.

Am I glad we watched it? Sure. Anything about China interests me. Would I recommned it? Not if you have to spend any money.

I don't know how faithful this movie is to the "true story" upon which it was supposedly based (not very, I'm guessing). As such, it might be of interest strictly for its entertainment value. But if you're looking for a commentary on adoption or religious persecution in China, you'll be sorely disappointed.