Movie Review Soul Surfer

Soul Surfer (2011) 

Directed by Sean McNamara

Written by Sean McNamara, Douglas Schwartz, Michael Berk

Starring AnnaSophia Robb, Carrie Underwood, Helen Hunt, Dennis Quaid

Release Date April 8th, 2011

Published April 8th, 2011

Bethany Hamilton's story is one of courage and perseverance deeply rooted in faith. Bethany's story of becoming a teenage surf champion, losing her arm in a shark attack and coming back to be a surf champion again is remarkable and with so many compelling elements in place it should have easily translated to a moving big screen experience.

Yet, we have "Soul Surfer" , a facile, dull witted take on Bethany's remarkable story. Terrific actors like AnnaSophia Robb, Academy Award winner Helen Hunt and leading man Dennis Quaid wilting in the face of a script so wildly simpleminded that only an amateur actor could have made any of it seem remotely real.

Underwood succeeds where the real actors fail

In fact, one amateur actress in the cast of "Soul Surfer," country music superstar Carrie Underwood, actually makes my point perfectly. Underwood succeeds where the real actors fail by blithely delivering her homily choked dialogue without affect and without the glaring obviousness of discomfort that the real actors are choking on.

AnnaSophia Robb is Bethany Hamilton. At 16 years old Bethany is a champion surfer in a family of surfers. Her father, Tom (Dennis Quaid) is her coach, her brother Noah (Ross Thomas) is her videographer and her mom Cheri is her biggest cheerleader. Bethany's best friend Alana (Lorraine Nicholson) is also her top surfing competitor.

Better as a documentary

Bethany was surfing with Alana, her brother and Alana's dad Holt (Kevin Sorbo) when a shark attacked and tore Bethany's arm off. This sequence of Soul Surfer is moving but once it ends we are thrust back into a story populated by stick figure versions of what we can only imagine are far more complex and interesting real people.

I have no doubt that a documentary about Bethany Hamilton would be thousands of times more interesting than anything in the shallow "Soul Surfer." This simplistic version of Bethany's story insults the audience and the real Bethany by delivering a superficial version of Bethany's extraordinary story.

Sticky, syrupy platitudes

Barely a moment of "Soul Surfer" rings true emotionally. Director Sean McNamara, who also wrote the script with the aid of several other writers, presents Bethany's story with such thick layers of sticky, syrupy platitude that it's a wonder any real emotion escapes the screen.

You could wait for "Soul Surfer" to come out on DVD but a more productive employment of your patience would have you wait for someone to license the footage of the real Bethany used over the closing credits of "Soul Surfer" for a documentary that might give her story the kind of telling it deserves.