I Heard the Bells

This is a moving story of sorrow and grief, joy and redemption. The cinematography and score are beautiful, and Stephen Atherholt delivers a powerful performance in the lead role. The film combines elements of "Shadowlands" with "The Man Who Invented Christmas," delivering a drama that rings true with all the emotions of life. There is no cheap sentimentality here. This is a story of a man whose faith and hope are challenged and stretched to their breaking point by life's hardest trials. Where do we turn when love is lost, when right fails and wrong prevails? Is "peace on earth, goodwill to men" just an empty promise, or is it an anchor for the soul in the fiercest of life's storms? This film provides the inspiring answer, giving viewers a poignant Christmas gift.

I came to the theater with no great expectations and was pleasantly surprised. The story was interesting and the acting was solid. I found myself interested and engaged throughout, plus I learned a lot about the life of Longfellow.

It's not a stellar blockbuster movie, but I would watch it again at Christmas time because it really does get you in the spirit. I liked how they included Longfellow's other poems throughout the film. And it was religious without being overly preachy or sappy.

A solid decent film. My mother also enjoyed it, as did the other audience members around me. I give it a happy 8 out of 10.

Merry Christmas!

I was going to comment last night but I wanted more time to think on what I wanted to say. So strange that it had an 8.6 rating then and now just a 7.7🤔🤔🤔 No other reviews have been added since!

But anyway...I don't think ANY movie has touched me so deeply. The commonalities to my own made it almost unbearably hard to continue watching. Did some research and the movie was very factual to the accounts I could find. I just wonder if those were actual letters, and if so, are they on display at his home?? (Along with her diary.)🤔 I would only like to know if those letters and her diary are still intact and on display somewhere. Go see this! But take LOTS of tissue!!

I'll start this by saying that sappy, feel-good movies are not my personal taste. Keeping that in mind, this film was a delight. The acting, costuming and script were all meticulous and successful in transporting the viewer to the world of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. While this movie was certainly Christmas-themed, and had moments of sappy merryness, the approach tied in strongly with character development and plot. The strong character development led to multiple tearjerker moments interspersed with a few appropriate moments of lightheartedness. I definitely appreciated the attention to detail present in this film, especially since Christmassy and religious movies often get a pass from viewers because the movie is generally "wholesome" or "Christian". I Heard the Bells definitely benefits from the atmosphere of Christmas but doesn't use it or Jesus in general as a crutch like oh so many other religious movies do. Highly recommended, especially for Christmas movie lovers who despise the genre's predicability and poor character development.

Note for potential viewers: there is roughly 10 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage after the credits.

This is Sight & Sound's first big film, they usually only do the big plays. For it being their first film it was a great production.

The film helps you better understand Longfellow's poetry and what was going on at the time for him to write it.

It had a great cast, I think not having a big name cast helped the film very well. Great costumes as well.

Usually films like this often "forget" the children exist - not so here and I am so glad they were present throughout the film.

I hope Sight & Sound continues to make more films! Can't wait to see what they do next!

Check out my Youtube channel (RaisedVintage) for more on this film and more!