Miracles from Heaven (film)

Miracles from Heaven is a 2016 American Christian drama film directed by Patricia Riggen and written by Randy Brown. It is based on Miracles from Heaven by Christy Beam, which recounts the true story of her young daughter who had a near-death experience and was later cured of an incurable disease. The film stars Jennifer Garner, Kylie Rogers, Martin Henderson, John Carroll Lynch, Eugenio Derbez, and Queen Latifah. Principal photography began in Atlanta, Georgia, in July 2015. The film was released on March 16, 2016. The movie was financially successful, becoming the 8th highest-grossing Christian film in the United States. Although critical reception was mixed, Garner's performance earned general praise.

Plot
Set in Burleson, Texas, between 2008 and 2012, the film centers on a 10-year-old girl named Annabel Beam, daughter of Christy Beam. One day, Anna starts to vomit, and when examined by her doctor, he does not find anything abnormal. On March 20, 2008, Anna wakes up her family at midnight because of an intense stomach pain, severe enough that her parents decide to take her to the hospital. Doctors find no signs of illness, except to say it could be either acid reflux, or lactose intolerance, but Christy is not convinced by this.

The following morning, Christy finally finds a pediatrician in the hospital that is able to diagnose Anna with an abdominal obstruction, and he tells them he must operate immediately or she will die. After the emergency surgery is performed, the doctor explains that Anna has been left with pseudo-obstruction motility disorder and she is unable to eat, so feeding tubes are needed for her nutrition. The doctor then tells the Beams about America's foremost pediatric gastroenterologist, Dr. Nurko, who practices in Boston, but explains it could take months for them to be seen. In January 2009, Christy and Anna travel to Boston despite not having an appointment with the doctor.

Dr. Nurko has a last minute opening, and when Anna is subsequently examined at Boston Children's Hospital, the extent of her chronic illness is found. She then goes through extensive treatment. During this ordeal, Anna and her mother befriend a local Massachusetts resident named Angela, as well as Ben and his sick daughter, Haley.

On December 29, 2011, Anna, along with her bigger sister Abbie, climb up to a very high branch of an old cotton tree. While they are on that branch, it begins to break. Anna goes to the trunk for safety, whereupon stepping on it, she falls in a hole to the base of the tree. When Christy finds out what has happened, she desperately calls her husband, as well as the fire department. Anna is then rescued by the firefighters, who warn Christy to expect the worst by saying that nobody could fall 30 feet without sustaining a serious injury; broken bones or paralysis. Once out, Anna is airlifted to a hospital, where a battery of tests are run on her, and all of the tests come back negative. Other than a minor concussion, Anna is uninjured.

Sometime after the fall, Anna seems to no longer be affected by her illness. When Christy and Anna go to an appointment with Dr. Nurko, he tells Christy that Anna is miraculously cured. Anna then recounts with her parents the experience she had during the fall. She describes how her soul left her body during the fall, and God promised that she would be cured of her illness upon her return to Earth. At church, Christy shares the story of how God miraculously healed her daughter with His love. As Christy finishes her speech, one of the congregation protests, stating that he does not believe Christy. Ben, who has traveled from Boston upon hearing the story about Anna, believes her and tells her that his daughter Haley died peacefully because Anna gave her faith when in the hospital.

Cast

 * Jennifer Garner as Christy Beam, Anna's mother
 * Kylie Rogers as Anna Beam
 * Martin Henderson as Dr. Kevin Beam, Christy's husband and Anna's father
 * Eugenio Derbez as Dr. Nurko, a pediatric gastroenterologist who is Anna's doctor at the Boston Children's Hospital.
 * Queen Latifah as Angela, a waitress who befriends Anna and her mother in a restaurant in Boston
 * Brighton Sharbino as Abbie Beam, the oldest Beam daughter
 * Courtney Fansler as Adelynn Beam, the youngest Beam daughter
 * Zach Sale as Dr. Blyth, the first doctor to listen to Christy about her sick daughter
 * Kelly Collins Lintz as Emmy, a family friend of the Beams
 * John Carroll Lynch as Reverend Scott, the Senior Pastor of the Beam family's church
 * Brandon Spink as Billy Snyder, a friend of Anna
 * Hannah Alligood as Haley, a sick cancer patient who becomes friends with Anna
 * Wayne Pere as Ben, Haley's father
 * Bruce Altman as Dr. Burgi, Anna's doctor who is the head of the pediatric division at the hospital in Texas
 * Suehyla El-Attar as a receptionist at the Boston Children's hospital
 * The real Beam family makes a cameo at the end of the film before the credits.

Production
On November 10, 2014, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Sony Pictures Entertainment had acquired the film adaptation rights to a faith-based memoir, Miracles From Heaven: A Little Girl, Her Journey to Heaven, and Her Amazing Story of Healing, written by Christy Beam, and hired Randy Brown to write the script. The team behind the studios' 2014 Christian film Heaven Is for Real, T. D. Jakes and Joe Roth, were retained to produce the film along with DeVon Franklin.

On April 8, 2015, the studio hired Patricia Riggen to direct the film. On April 30, 2015, Jennifer Garner was cast to star in the film as Christy Beam. On June 22, 2015, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Queen Latifah was cast as a waitress who befriends Anna and Beam at the Boston Children's Hospital. On the same day, Variety confirmed the casting of Martin Henderson to play the girl's father and Beam's husband.

On June 29, 2015, Kylie Rogers was cast as Beam's sick daughter Anna. On July 17, 2015, Eugenio Derbez was cast to play a character inspired by Children's Hospital specialist Dr. Samuel Nurko, an American-based Mexican pediatric gastroenterologist who eases his young patients' treatment by playing games with them. John Carroll Lynch was also cast in the film for an unspecified role.

Filming
Principal photography on the film began in Atlanta, Georgia, in July 2015, as Garner was spotted filming on July 8. Filming was subsequently confirmed by various sources, together with announcements that David R. Sandefur and Emma E. Hickox had been appointed as production designer and editor, respectively. On August 2, 2015, Latifah and Garner were spotted on the set of film in Atlanta.

Soundtrack
The Miracles from Heaven soundtrack features songs from Howie Day, George Harrison, Clayton Anderson, Third Day and others. The southern Christian rock band Third Day made a cameo as the church worship band.

Release
On May 11, 2015, the film was scheduled for a March 18, 2016 release by Columbia Pictures. On January 10, it was moved up to March 16. The film held its world premiere on February 21, 2016 in Dallas, Texas.

Home media
Miracles from Heaven was released on Digital Media on June 21, 2016, and was followed by a DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD release on July 12, 2016, from AFFIRM Films and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The film debuted in second place on the home video sales chart behind The Divergent Series: Allegiant for the week ending on July 17, 2016.

Box office
Miracles from Heaven grossed $61.7 million in North America and $12.2 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $73.9 million, against a budget of $13 million.

The film grossed $1.9 million on its first day, finishing second at the box office behind Zootopia ($4.6 million). The film had an $18 million Wednesday-to-Sunday gross, including $14.8 million in its opening weekend, finishing third at the box office behind Zootopia ($37.2 million) and The Divergent Series: Allegiant ($29 million).

On its opening weekend in the United Kingdom, Miracles from Heaven grossed $29 thousand, dropping to $231 by week four.

Critical response
Miracles from Heaven received generally mixed reviews from critics, with Garner's performance receiving praise. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 43%, based on 87 reviews, with an average rating of 5/10. The site's consensus reads, "Miracles from Heaven makes the most out of an outstanding performance from Jennifer Garner, but it isn't quite enough to keep this faith-based drama from preaching to the choir." On Metacritic the film has a score of 44 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale.