The A.V. Club
Early on, when Miracles From Heaven is busy establishing its main characters’ warm, openhearted, regular-folks piety, Texas mom Christy Beam (Jennifer Garner) goes around to each of her three daughters’ bedrooms for a “prayer check.” She isn’t just checking to make sure they’ve said their prayers (though she is doing that); she also asks them to share one prayer each with her. This sequence is probably also intended to provide a glimpse into the characters of Abbie (Brighton Sharbino), Anna (Kylie Rogers), and Adelynn (Courtney Fansler), but there’s something slightly pushy and overeager about the movie’s use of this strategy, just as Christy’s request feels both like motherly involvement and a security checkpoint.
Joblo
Miracles From Heaven is the latest release from Sony Affirm, a boutique division of the studio which is experimenting with making Christian films for mainstream audiences. A few weeks ago, their Resurrection story, RISEN, opened to decent reviews while this week’s Miracles From Heaven tries to take this dip into the mainstream one-step further by enticing a well-known star, in this case Jennifer Garner, to play the lead.
The Hollywood Reporter
The inspirational memoir Miracles From Heaven transfers to the big screen as a wholesome, crowd-pleasing drama, one whose subject is faith and gratitude. The tone is frequently more searching than self-satisfied, and the harrowing medical crisis that drives the family story gives it the nonreligious urgency to preach beyond the choir. So too does Jennifer Garner’s down-to-earth lead performance as Christy Beam, a ferociously dedicated mom doing her best to keep it together in trying circumstances.
Variety
Martin Henderson has joined Jennifer Garner in Sony’s adaptation of “Miracles From Heaven.” The film, which will be released through TriStar Pictures, also added Queen Latifah to the cast on Monday.
