by Samuel Nichols, Contributing Writer
Music is a fickle industry. We have no way of knowing what song will be the next big hit. When Christian band MercyMe released “I Can Only Imagine” it was considered out of their normal wheelhouse. But its melody and lyrics touched the lives of so many people. You might still hear it today on Christian radio station stations. Shoot, I remember hearing this song as early as six or seven years old. But more than 10 years since the band’s initial success, can they top the charts again? Is there another message the band has to share?
Now, more than a decade removed from their initial success, MercyMe’s vocal lead Bart Millard (John Michael Finley) has a lot on his plate. The oldest of his three kids, Sam (Sammy Dell) is diabetic but coming of age where Bart and his wife Shannon (Sophie Skelton) cannot manage his health. Combine this with MercyMe’s recent low sales and a new tour coming up, Bart is feeling the weight of it all. In his heart he is doing his best for Sam and his family, but Bart has questions about whether he is doing better than his own late father Arthur (Dennis Quaid). New opening headliner Tim Timmons (Milo Ventimiglia) brings some spark to the band’s new tour and even bonds with Sam a bit. But Tim has a secret health issue that might get the better of him. Bart’s faith is waning, and Sam is still figuring out how to take care of himself. Something needs to turn for it all to work out for the best. The three of them will search on stage and in private moments to find peace in the roaring seas of this life.
Narratively, the story’s decision to go for “we all will get through this together” is a complicated one. While it is true that each person is going through more than they are letting on, this decision makes identifying the protagonist confusing. Sam, Tim, and Bart all have a claim to the position. None of them truly feel underserved but I did think it could be better to focus on just one of them at a time.
My personal preference would have been to focus on Timmons as Ventimiglia has the best acting chops by far. He brings a sorely needed happy-go-lucky and comedic sense to the movie. While everyone else mopes and sulks, he finds a way to stay joyful. While I understand the direction Sammy Dell and John Michael Finley are going, it gets to a point where I am bored with their sad sack, beleaguered routine.
What, perhaps, would have made Bart a more compelling character would be addressing his writer’s block. Throughout the movie he’s attempting to write music that will connect with his audience. But we never get to watch him make progress. All of a sudden at the end of the movie he literally stumbles onto the lyrics of “Even If.” As moving as the song may be, (and it is a good song) I wanted to know how the lyrics were inspired.
But I do not want to completely disregard the Millard family here. Where Sam and Bart’s dynamic shined most is when the two put their differences aside and connect. Seeing Bart open up about trying to be better than his father cracks a door on some character insights I like. Sam brings out a different side of his dad, unlike anyone else. The two have a believable relationship for a young man and his father. Seeing more of it would help.
All in all, the movie drags before getting to the good stuff. It has some potential, but it spent too much time on the wrong stuff. But, when it does get humming near the end, as we finally hear the new song and when the focus shifts to Sam and Bart, I forget some of my critiques. I can imagine worse ways to spend my AMC A-list and an hour fifty of my time.
Rating: Just Okay
I Can Only Imagine 2 is currently playing in theaters.
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