REVIEW: I should state right off the bat that I’m far from the faith based target audience for I Can Only Imagine 2, but I am aware of the band MercyMe. In fact, back in my middle school days, I saw the band perform live. So I do feel like I have some kind of experience with this music, even if it’s not my bag these days.

I Can Only Imagine 2 follows Bart Millard as he tries to lead his band MercyMe after their initial happy ending, but has issues at home that make him depressed. There is an interesting story there about what happens after you find big success, and where do you go from there now that you’ve tackled the mountain? But it’s more focused on Bart feeling like he’s failed as a father (which he states while providing for his big family, in his big house). Broadway star John Michael Finley does a good job as Bart, though it feels like his drama is just there for the sake of it. Milo Ventimiglia gives a good performance as Tim Timmons, a core member of the bad, even if the character himself is more annoying than anything. Dennis Quaid mostly shows up in archive footage, though he does get a quite meaningful flashback at one point.

The first film is about how Bart grew up and the creation of his Christian hit song, from which the film’s title is based. This sequel tries to show what it’s like for a musician to move forward after initial success and the struggles that may come with it, but it feels lost in its messaging. The lesson appears to be that you just need to create another hit song that catches on and brings massive success. So it’s kind of just hitting the same beats, but rather than starting from the bottom, we’re following them on a headlining tour. It’s hard to really feel like the band or the characters are really struggling in any significant way.

There’s so much manufactured drama here, and much of it feels unnecessary. One of the main conflicts of the entire movie is that Bart’s son Sam has Type 1 Diabetes. He has a lot of guilt regarding the fact that he has to hurt his kid by sticking him with a needle, and it reminds him of the abuse he endured by his father. You’d think this would be a slight subplot, but it extends the entire runtime and gets resolved in a montage. Sam gets mad at his father because he can’t take responsibility for his own health and remember to take his insulin. It comes across so childish, and even winding up in the hospital doesn’t teach him that he needs to remember to actually keep after his blood sugar levels. Instead, he’s just rewarded with a spot on the tour due to Bart’s guilt, versus Sam actually showing some initiative.

I Can Only Imagine 2 is packed full of random subplots yet none of them ever seen to really matter. It feels like the writer is just throwing a dart at a board covered with as many dramatic tropes as you can think of. Cancer? Check. Random pregnancy? Check. Son being mad at his father? You better believe that’s a check. I know that this is based on a true story but it’s all presented in such a rapid fire way that none of it even feels real. The ending text summary of what happened to everyone is real life just further adds to the feeling of “What was even the point of this film?”

However, it must be said that the music is well done and it was nice to see Red Rocks Amphitheater get such a spotlight as it is one of the greatest places to see a concert on the planet. But the messaging feels a bit lost and the focus is in the wrong spots. There are multiple times where characters are preaching to the viewer and it all feels very on the nose. I’m sure fans of MercyMe will enjoy seeing this but I’m really not sure the story transcends the faith-based audience for those without prior investment in the band. However, the target audience will no doubt appreciate it.

I Can Only Imagine 2 is now playing in theaters.

I Can Only Imagine 2

BELOW AVERAGE

5

The post I Can Only Imagine 2 Review: A Sentimental Film Lost With Its Messaging appeared first on JoBlo.

Last weekend was pretty heavy-duty for new releases, with Wuthering Heights, GOAT, and Crime 101 all vying for box office dollars. In the end, Wuthering Heights dominated the holiday weekend, but its four-day opening was a bit less than industry folks expected, and GOAT, surprisingly, was just a few million off from the top spot itself. As there are very few major new releases coming out this week, it seems like Sony’s GOAT has a good chance of claiming the top spot, relegating Wuthering Heights to second place.

One of the reasons it should easily come in first place is that family audiences have been somewhat underserved, so expect it to make about $20 million over the weekend. Wuthering Heights should come in second place with about $15 million, as it strikes me as the kind of movie that was front-loaded, especially given that it did a lot of its business on Valentine’s Day.

As for third place — this is where it gets interesting. There are three movies opening wide this weekend, but none of them are expected to set the world on fire. There’s the faith-based sequel I Can Only Imagine 2, the horror film Psycho Killer, and the Glen Powell-led How to Make a Killing.

Of the three, I Can Only Imagine 2 is the only one that has a real shot at third place, with it likely to gross about $12 million, which would be good for a faith-driven movie, as the genre’s box office results have been mixed as of late — with a couple of well-received examples like Ordinary Angels underperforming. The original I Can Only Imagine was a big hit, but it also came out at a time when there was less faith-based content in theaters. Now, with companies like Angel Studios, there is much more.

Fourth place will likely go to Amazon/MGM’s Crime 101, with about $8 million. Fifth will almost certainly go to holdover Send Help, which should make about $6 million, as it has shown tremendous legs at the box office. Psycho Killer, which comes from the same studio as Send Help — 20th Century Films — isn’t getting much of a build-up, with the theatrical run seeming like little more than promo for its eventual Hulu release. Meanwhile, the Glen Powell-led How to Make a Killing isn’t expected to make much more than $4–5 million, making it another soft result for the star, whose box office track record has been mixed.

Our predictions:

1. GOAT: $20 million
2. Wuthering Heights: $15 million
3. I Can Only Imagine 2: $12 million
4. Crime 101: $8 million
5. Send Help: $6 million

What are you seeing this weekend? Let us know in the comments!

The post Box Office Predictions: Goat to overtake Wuthering Heights in week 2 appeared first on JoBlo.