FORTY-SEVEN DAYS WITH JESUS

Here is the decision in full. This is a faith-based family drama with a very strong Christian, biblical worldview, and it earns its warmth. The first half is admittedly a little slow. But the second half builds into a moving, inspiring ending that promotes repentance, forgiveness, and living out one's Christian faith — and it lands.

The film gives you two stories at once: a workaholic father learning to stop neglecting his wife and children, and a grandfather telling the grandchildren the story of Jesus' last 47 days. A scene between Jesus and Peter ties the two together beautifully. Along the way there are three standout songs, two of which struck us as Oscar-worthy.

So if you want an accessible, encouraging Easter film your whole family can watch together, this is worth the trip. Just know it's an introduction, not a complete telling — a starting point for reading the Gospels together, not a substitute.

Joseph is a married father of two, hard at work on a movie about firefighters to honor his own father, a retired firefighter. But his wife, Juliana, is hurting — he's pouring himself into his work and neglecting her and the kids.

Things come to a head when the family takes an Easter vacation to visit Joseph's parents. While Joseph's producer keeps pulling him into calls and meetings, Joseph's father quietly begins telling the children the story of the last 47 days of Jesus — His betrayal, death, and resurrection. Two stories, one Easter week, and a father who has some deciding to do.

Three stars, and here's what they mean. The film asks for patience: the first half is slow, and it takes a while to find its footing. Stay with it. The second half builds steadily into a genuinely moving, inspiring ending, and the payoff is worth the wait.

The re-enacted Gospel scenes — running from the crowd greeting Jesus on a donkey on Palm Sunday to two of the resurrection appearances before the Apostles — are carried by music. Three songs stand out above the rest. Two of them, "Mirror of My Soul" and "Grateful for You," struck us as Oscar-worthy. The third, "Touch Me and See," depicts one of the most climactic moments in the Gospels. A well-crafted, heartfelt family film that rewards viewers who let it build.

This film wears its faith openly, and what it exalts is what Scripture exalts. It offers a general, child-friendly overview of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His ministry on Earth, focusing on His last 47 days before His ascension. It promotes repentance, forgiveness, love, patience, kindness, truth, and strength through Christ — including moral strength — and living out one's Christian faith.

The two storylines preach the same sermon from different angles. Joseph, the workaholic father, comes to realize that living out his Christian faith means not neglecting his wife and children. The re-enacted scene between Jesus and Peter — where Peter's denial meets Jesus' forgiveness — provides a beautiful counterpoint to Joseph's story. Betrayal and failure are real here; so is grace.

One honest note for parents: because the film condenses so much of the New Testament, it works best as an introduction rather than a complete account. It's up to you to see that your children get fuller exposure by reading and studying the Gospels together as they grow.

At its heart, this is a film about a man learning that love is proven in how we spend ourselves for others. Jesus said it plainly: "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).

This one asks for a little patience up front and repays it richly — a gentle, musical, deeply Christian Easter story about repentance, forgiveness, and a father learning to love well. Watch it as a family, then open the Gospels together and go deeper. Our answer is the same one we started with: worth the trip.