Christy: The Movie

What a disappointment! This movie is poorly written, poorly directed and poorly acted. A deeply heartfelt American classic, Christy, becomes a superficial, boring, vulgar, dumbed down story of which man Christy will have sex with first. The cast is so amateurish and the doctor looks old enough to be Christy's father, not her lover. The only good thing about this movie is that, by comparison, the original Christy television series looks like a masterpiece.

The story of Christy has long been a favorite in my family. The new movie is a wonderful example of quality television at it's best. The movie added a new dimension to the continuing saga of Christy. Several new actors were introduced including Lauren Lee Smith who plays the title character who is reminiscing with her daughter about her years in the Cove. Returning from the original series in SFM who plays Dr. Neil McNeil. The show boasts a wonderful cast and gorgeous scenery. A mini-series is set for late spring which will answer the questions from Return to Cutter Gap. My family and I can't wait to see this wonderful book once again brought to life on the screen. I urge anyone who has been searching for good family entertainment to watch this movie.

"Christy: Return to Cutter Gap" is an excellent starter for one of the best mini-series I have ever seen. It takes place (for the most part) where the series left off back in 94'. An aged Christy and her daughter (author Catherine Marshall) are showed driving back to the mission of Cutter Gap some 40 years after the story takes place. While most of the cast is new, some of the origional's are still there, like the wonderful Dale Dickey (Opal McHone) Andy Stahl (Tom McHone) Bruce McKinnon (Jeb Spencer) Mike Hickman (Birds-Eye Taylor) and of course, the talented Aussie actor Stewart Finlay-McLennan (Dr. Neil MacNeill)- who's Scottish accent is enough to make Mel Gibson (Braveheart) run and hide! The some of the new cast members include, the critically acclaimed actress Diane Ladd (Alice Henderson) Lauren Lee Smith, as a beautiful Christy, James Waterston (Rev. David Grantland) and Ingrid Torrence (Fairlight Spencer)

While the movie doesn't start directly from where the series left off, it is very close to it and stays very true to the book. Most of the story is based on Christy's choice of a husband, and there also is a bit of jealousy when an atractive female pilot crashes into Cutter Gap, drawing the attentions of all Cutter Gap men, Neil MacNeill included.

All in all, Christy: Return to Cutter Gap is a fantastic start, in what is an amazingly wonderful mini-series. It is, and always will be my favorite.

I found this to be an exquisitely photographed, skillfully-scripted and carefully cast interpretation of the beloved novel by Catherine Marshall. This wonderful family film includes skilled performances by Stewart Finlay-McLennan returning as the beloved Dr. MacNeill and newcomers Lauren Lee Smith and James Waterston as a very believable Christy and her would-be suitor Reverend David Grantland. Veteran actress Diane Ladd brings to life a Miss Alice who seems to come straight out of the pages of Ms. Marshall's novel.

My own family of six ranging from 4 to 38 yrs. watched "Return to Cutter Gap" with great interest and all were particularly fond of Lauren Lee Smith's portrayal of Christy. My teen children have read the novel and watched the videos of the short-lived CBS series aired in the mid-1990s. All agree that "Return to Cutter Gap" is a wonderful version of "Christy." This was an extremely well-made movie and it left us eager for the two sequels, promised in Spring of 2001. And no, I did NOT get paid to say this--we really did thoroughly enjoy it!

This adaptation is horrible. The acting is horrible. The audio is horrible. The whole thing is horrible. If you're a fan of the TV show just stuck to the show. Firstly the acting is not great, but by far David's actor is the worst. That man has no emotion in his voice and in most of the scenes they have together, Christy and David sound like they're reading off of a teleprompter. I don't know what was going on with Alice but that actress made my skin crawl. Near the start of the movie there is very obvious audio dubbing, especially with Christy and Mr. Holt in the school. It is lowkey uncanny valley. Also for a story that is meant to have a Christian message all the characters act incredibly selfish and all of their problems are focused on themselves and not what would be best for the other individual. The side story with Neil and Harriet was nice, both actors did a decent job with their characters. It was nice to see the same actors for Jeb and Neil, but honestly was not worth sitting through nearly an hour and a half of awful writing and acting.