I came into this not knowing what to expect and came out liking what I saw.

For me I saw a movie about how hard it is to tear yourself away from the life you knew, even if it's poisoning you. This movie is a good example of how hard it is to do that, even if you have a great support system.

It's supposed to be a romance film, and I guess I saw that, but I was more thinking about this is a movie about what it takes to love yourself.

Well done!

I didn't know that this movie is based on a novel. But then again most masterpieces are. The story is really beautiful, the acting is superb, the plot is well executed, the moral of the story is really shown perfectly, the visual is stunning, and the time setting is consistent. There's not many movies made in our time which holds such qualities. I'm glad to have watched this masterpiece. The director, the actors, and the crews deserve standing ovation. Bravo! Keep up the good work!

They have casted great actors for the roles. This movie is truly all about love & forgiveness. It is so touching to see their journey together & how they been through. The storyline is interesting.

In any other world, Abigail Cowen would be nominated for an Oscar. It is a lot to ask for a young person to go from broken flower to lady.

And it is a story of redemption But alas, we are in Hollywood and therefore, they can't support a Christian story.

Boy, would they be surprised.

This movie is dark and ugly and has brutal realities (much like the bible, which we often forget is really horrifying).

A young girl is sold to a pimp and is broken and emotionally empty who then finds a kindly farmer who shows her the path to a decent life.

Yes, the Academy doesn't recognize this inspiring story unless a heathen makes it. Or the industry that hides sex traffickers.

Here, it's directed by D. J. Caruso. Whose career I'd followed closely. He made a solid flick called "The Salton Sea" He is a stylist but also has the chops to make a Christian-based topic without it being overtly religious. It's a brilliant stroke to have him design this film as it is. It has some really really hard to watch segments. Mostly due to the acting chops of a young Angel (played by Livi Birch) and, aforementioned Abigail Cowen. They play frightened and broken well.

This was made much more perplexing that reviewers on another site destroyed this film. Clear where the disconnect is with media and the public.

Francine Rivers, listed as a born-again Christian, wrote this story in the 90's as a re-telling of The Book of Hosea and brilliantly put it in the gold rush of 1850. It is a frontier movie where the people in it are survivalist.

The few criticisms I have for it are...frontier people having perfect teeth. And the prostitutes in it not looking more broken.

Great cameo from Famke Janssen as the Duchess. Her wicked step-mother take of a madam is fantastic.

The romance is good and easy to enjoy. It seems since the COVID pandemic over two years ago, there have been few romantic movies while there should have been more. After all, not everyone is a superhero to save the world but almost anyone can use more warmth from love.

I also appreciate the realistic backdrop of justice, moral, and even empowerment of education.

Characters, dresses, scenes, and musics range from nice to impressive to gorgeous.

The rating is not 8 for the love story is not remarkably new or deep, which I admit is rather tricky since new or deep does not necessarily make a good romance.

I went to end not knowing how the movie would compare to the amazing book. But I was astounded by how well this movie was done. All the characters were perfect, the scenery was amazing and the message of love, forgiveness, faith, and more forgiveness came through. This is a true love story of love stories. Not too often do you get the audience in the theater to clap and to yell out on certain scenes, but in this one they did. I would say this movie is almost perfect.

Most readers will agree that books are better than movies and that is the case here. If you didn't read the book and just went to see the movie, you would get a movie for the time and the money. If you read the book, like I did, you will feel cheated of some of the most crucial moments from the book. I don't feel that there were any needless parts in the movie. I can't even tell you how you could've added more. But I do feel like this would've thrived better if it would've been a mini series. There is literally no time to develop character relationships. It also lacked a lot of the faith and the connectivity to the Bible that it's famous for.

The actors were wonderful though. The actor who played Michael is smaller than described in the book but you quickly connect with him. The actress who played Angel was terrific also! Duke is dashing but as monstrous as the book portrays him to be.

Overall I'm not sorry I saw it but I will certainly go back to the book and likely won't need to see the movie beyond maybe one more showing.

Have you read the book of Hosea? It's not a Pollyanna fairytale. It's about a prostitute. Prostitution is risqué, scandalous and nothing short of moral bankruptcy and impurity. Ironically, this is a picture of us... you and me. We are impure, unfaithful and forever returning to our old patterns and lifestyles. That's why we need God's redemption! God chose the analogy of a prostitute to help us see the immense contrast between our brokenness and His love and redemption.

How is one suppose to write a book or film portraying prostitution!? Do you have any idea how many people can relate to this type of brokenness? We act so polished once we experience redemption and forget how awful our own sin is. Truthfully we have ALL betrayed the heart of God with sin that is no different than the sin of a prostitute.

I'm thankful for pictures like this that demonstrate how messed up we can be and STILL BE LOVED, ACCEPTED, FORGIVEN and SET FREE!

Redeeming Love is my all time favourite book and I have read it on numerous occasions. I was apprehensive about watching the film as like all films made from a book it can be brilliant or it can be a complete letdown.

Redeeming love is a book that has depth and meaning along with a wonderful storyline. You get to know and love the characters, unfortunately the film missed this. Yes the story of love, forgiveness and heartache is included in the film but it lacks the relationships built between the characters which is one on the main concepts within the book.

2 hours isn't long enough for this film to fully grasp the true story of Redeeming love. I sat watching this film thinking to myself they have missed the best parts of the book and it felt rushed.

They should have skipped making a film and produced a series where they truly focused on the characters, their life stories and the relationship/friendships built amongst the characters.

Will I watch it again? No Will I read the book again? Yes.

This book was too good for a 2-hr film. I absolutely loved it and I saw it with tissues in one hand and popcorn in the other. But there was so much more to each of these characters and their back stories. Like Paul and the shop owner. I was already in love with Tom Lewis from Gentleman Jack. This movie showed he has the charm and swagger of Matthew McConaughey! The actress that played a young Angel was just stunning! She did a fantastic job! Abigail Cowen looks like a young Nicole Kidman and I'm sure we'll be seeing more of her soon.

Abigail cown is angel, who has known nothing but trouble since she was a small child. Gold rush days of the 1850s in californy. Co-stars tom lewis, eric dane. When michael (lewis) wants to take her away from this life, she refuses and sends him away. But he doesn't give up. And even when he does marry her, the troubles are still to come. Trials and tribulations. Good stuff happens, bad stuff happens. Can marital bliss overcome the badness that is still coming their way? Directed by dj caruso. Novel by francine rivers. Good story.

First, I want to say that I've read the book multiple times and love love love it. I just feel like the movie missed the heart of the message of the book. I was so glad that my daughter was busy and couldn't come to the theatre with me! I was quite shocked at some of the almost-nudity and sex scenes in this. And frankly, I'm disappointed to see so many Christians who think this somehow brings glory to God. It's one thing to say in a book it's quite another to show on the screen. So much of the objectionable parts could have been softened. For example, when Michael first goes up to Angel's room, she's standing there naked. There was absolutely no need for that. She could have been in something skimpy for that day that would have covered her. They used her hair as a covering, but there is an actual woman acting this scene, having to stand there like that in front of the cameras and crew, and now the audience. May the Lord reveal to her that, like Angel learned in the book, she is worth so much more than that. The other thing I felt was so disappointing and overdone was the sex scenes, complete with hip movements (to put it as softly as possible.) Lastly, in the book Michael talked to Angel about how she was worth so much more than how people had been treating her. He read to her from the Word. And talked to her about salvation and giving her life to the Lord. None of that was in the movie. They could have skipped on all the skin and faded the sex to black and included the important parts that would have kept this a meaningful Christian movie.

Angel did pray toward the end of the movie, but it sort of felt out of context because Michael hadn't said anything to her about the Lord, and growing up as she did, she obviously had no real model of what a Christian is. It just was sort of expected that we would think Michael had talked to her about Christ, I guess. But what a missed opportunity to show why she ought to change-because she's created in the image of the One and Only True God and He loved her enough to sacrifice Himself on a cross for her redemption. She did turn her life around, like in the book, but there wasn't really any Christian feel to it other than the big cross around her neck and the scene where she asks God to rescue her and tells the truth about Duke.

The cinematography was pretty - though because I grew up in Africa, and have been to CA, it was quite obvious to me that it was Africa and not California in the scenes. That's not a big deal. The costumes were lovely. The town set was well done.

I wanted to love this movie. Went in fully expecting to love it. Came away so sad and heartbroken for what has become "Christianity" in America. The book is something you could hand to an unsaved person and expect them to see the gospel Truth in it. The movie... I went with a friend and we were both cringing at some of the scenes. Not something that shines the light of the gospel, in my opinion. Not something I can in any good conscience tell others to watch.

I have read Redeeming Love and it's been a favourite of mine since I was young and I have always wanted to see it as a movie. I did have high expectations that I thought it wouldn't have met but supprisingly I was blown away with the setting, the cast, the way they incorperated the flash backs to gain a better understanding of Angels character, some scenes were confronting to be seen played out as I knew they would be as Angels character had been through alot of horrible situations in life. As for the sexual content, I thought maybe they might go to far but it was done tastefully. This movie created different types of emotions in me and I was left feeling pleased with how well this movie was put together.

The overriding themes of sex trafficking and GBV made the more preachy parts of this bearable for me. Shockingly, these horrific things still happen today, even though a lot of people prefer not to acknowledge it, and walk around with their eyes closed. In the beautiful country of SA where this was filmed, a Mother and her boyfriend are currently on trial for selling her 10 year old daughter. Truth can be stranger than fiction.

I am an Atheist, but I can still appreciate a good story of undying love and redemption. I'm not ashamed to admit I shed a few tears at the end. Even though I was a bit sceptical of the very final scenes, I was glad it ended on a happy note.

I'm giving a star for the stunning scenery and costumes.

A stirring and extremely romantic movie set in California during the Gold Rush , the film follows Angela (Abigail Cowan) , a girl who has been forced into prostitution since she was a child. So hapless Angela knows nothing but betrayal . She works at a brothel for the Duchess (Famke Janssen) , at the same time being unmercilessly chased by a nasty pimp nicknamed the Duke (Eric Dane) . One day she meets Michael (Tom Lewis) , a simple farmer who believes deeply in God and he wants to make her his wife. Can her heart ever be mended? Redeeming Love shows there is no brokenness that love can't heal !. Choose the life you want !.

This is a notable and brooding film set in the California Gold Rush of 1850 with an interesting love story , emotion , thrills and several touching scenes . Based upon the fascinating and bestselling novel by writer Francine Rivers who wrote the script too . It is a powerful story supposedly inspired by the Old Testament story of the prophet Hosea and his wife , dealing with a relentless love and perseverance as a young couple's relationship clashes with the harsh reality. A good character studio starred by the young sufferer Angela who was forced into prostitution as a child so that she lives feeling hatred towards herself , and towards the men who use her ; she is convinced that nothing good will come out of that marriage , but due to the terrible circumstances in which she lives , however, it makes accept the proposal from a humble but obstinate farmer . The film shows that there is no wound that love cannot heal . This life-changing tale of the power of unconditional and all-consuming love being stunningly played by a sensational couple : Abigail Cowan and Tom Lewis , giving attractive interpretation . They're finely assisted by a splendid support cast , such as : Eric Dane , Famke Janssen ,Logan Marshall-Green , Livi Birch and Nina Dobrev .

It displays a gorgeous and colorful cinematography by cameraman Rogier Stoffers . As well as a rousing and evocative musical score by composers Brian Tyler and Breton Vivian. This moving picture was stunningly and professionally directed by D. J. Caruso . He is a good craftsman whose films often have intense car crashes , and he has directed successful films , such as : Taking lives (2004) , Disturbia (2007), The Eagle eye (2008) , XXX Reactivated (2017) , and Shut in (2022) . Rating : 7/10 . Better than average . Essential and indispensable seeing for its touching scenes , thought-provoking message and enjoyable actors.

I'm not a romantic genre lover. However,I loved it. I could just watch the movie all the day. This is so soothing. Machel love for Angel made me believe ''True love actually exists''. It doesn't count on where we come from, what we are? True love means loving selflessly without thinking about getting it back from the person you loved.

LIKES:

The Setting: I know, this is the category that is either a cop out or not important to most, but for me plays a key role in getting you into the world. Redeeming Love has a lot of pressure on the setting and career the main character "Angel" is in, and to my surprise, this movie accomplishes you going back in time to the great gold rush hour. The town, buildings, and frontier have the air of grit and struggle the West once was, and it helps to give you the horror and desperation that these characters were in. Even the costumes were integrated well to go with the times, and adds that wholesome and conservative look that frontier shows like Little House on the Prairie and The Walton's did so well.

The Story: I have not read the books, but from the trailers Redeeming Love is a large part a love story, but also one part religious, and one part drama that were rolled together quite well. The movie is adequately divided into acts that adjust the ratio of those components well, helping to build into the love story that may have many people rolling their eyes. It's a sincere movie that avoids the gimmicks and tropes rom-coms exploit, and adds a touch of the sincerity/hero complex that Nicholas Sparks books used. The balance made for better characters that were more relevant to follow and invest in, compared to those in other dramas.

The Morals: It's a deeper movie that once again ties the love story with some deeper lessons about humans dealing with hurt, pain, and the origins that can be darker. Despite the new age lessons that fill social media, the lessons in Redeeming Love seem more applicable and realistic to constructive healing and how many times one struggles. The characters are not perfect, they stumble and fall, dealing with their demons and diving back into the comfort. Yet the movie does a nice job of showing the healing process and how to become better people of it. It really showed the promise and the religious background well, and the realistic portrayal of this journey was a nice touch.

The Dive Into the Character Psyche Presentation: Redeeming Love executes the dive into the main character's past quite well, using flashbacks, but timing it well in the movie to make it the most relevant. The scenes are not just simple glimpses, but rather contained substories that give you the horror of her life, but are not too long to detract from the story too much. With this timing, combined with the importance of these scenes, this back and forth dive did well for me and really enjoyed the gradual build up to the woman Angel would become.

The Acting To Some Degree: Redeeming Love has some very good acting at times again hitting those realistic portrayals to the T and giving me an engaging character. Janssen was fine, though a bit underutilized for the role I anticipated her having, hitting the same strong woman she always plays, but with a slightly darker tide. Lewis was my favorite character and did well to fill the preaching and caring role a bit to death, but really hits the earnest and heroic well in better balance. His talent as a farmer looking to pursue dreams, be optimistic, and help others is great, but he does not take it to perfect hero quality, but rather a balanced quality that again did not go to cheesy annoying levels. As for the lead by Cowen, I really enjoyed much of what she portrayed in this film. The tough scenes involving hard to watch moments she executed with class and poise, or as much as you can, and then the repercussions that came with it were strong and again very realistic. Her evolution was wonderful as the movie went on, and seeing all the finesse she brought to the screen, covering a broad emotional spectrum and not getting too lost in the extremes. I really enjoyed the chemistry she had with so many people and characters, and how well she managed to bounce off of them.

DISLIKES:

Predictable: Not reading the book, it was pretty obvious where the movie was going and the heavy foreshadowing that the dialogue laid out our feet. The surprises were low key, the lack of twists very poor, and any diversions from the story a bit meh for an audience member like me. Others who like the linear tale of love and redemption will have no problem, but if you want a little zest in your drama, don't hold your breath.

Character Usage I don't know how accurate it is to the book, but I can't say that all the characters were used well for me in this movie or at least needed some more time to justify their inclusion. As mentioned above Janssen's character had a lot of bark, but the bite I expected was shallow and forgotten after the first act and for someone of such prowess in her life, she was out pretty quickly in the film. Angel's other friends who were prominent and seemed to form a sisterhood, had a similar limitation despite again the potential that could have formed with the group. Even the villains and antagonistic moments could have used a little heat to them, a little more on screen time among other things to help stir the pot a little more than was present. Even some of the new people to join the crowd seemed in the background, and perhaps cuts diluted the characters into the limited spectacles of the film.

A Little Too Over forced Religion For a Movie Preachy moments can be done well when in balanced and timed right, but when done too much, they sometimes lose their significance and full impact. Redeeming Love had those moments where the main character did something stupid again and called for a montage or over focused moment using the word of the Lord. The church like sermons did speak true to me, but the repetition and sort of haphazard use got a bit stale for me as the movie progressed when other tactics could have been used.

The Climactic Fights Some reviewers have found the climactic moments exciting and a true spectacle, however for me these were pointless and very choreographed. The planning was simple, feeling like a 50s western without the guns, and found the props of the firearms laughable given the little use we saw. The one fight scene we really got was limited and not needed, and I'm happy the action genre was not bestowed on this movie.

The Dialogue Love stories seem to be all about the cheese factor for getting the point across. Redeeming Love falls into the territory of using some traditional strategies for selling the love, sometimes going a bit too into the Hollywood script to convey how much the two are in love. While often sweet, the movie could have pulled some magic to spice up the dialogue, or keep to the chemistry we had in the start of the movie where Angel was toying with Michael's proposals. Stuff like that is more fun for me, and if they had been able to minimize a little more on the mushy proposals and gushing use of the word love, it could have come across a little more solid.

The VERDICT: Redeeming Love is an enjoyable and deeper romance movie that balances drama, love, and morals to a surprisingly fun level. The Western biopic history is a nice break from reality, and revisiting the frontier of our country's history was a nice change to the modern trends we get. Surprisingly, most of the characters manage to avoid the typical love stereotype, and I liked the realism they held in trying to solve the problems plaguing them. That vulnerability and balance made them a more realistic and interesting investment and helped get rid of the perfect sheen this movie genre exploited for long ago. And the acting was very enjoyable and worthy of the praise other reviewers have given as they made the emotions and hurt come to life despite the wide range they would have to cover. Yet, the movie's plot is predictable, and a little boring in terms of the exciting climaxes they could have tried to bring in. Characters are not the best used outside of three or four, and the religion and dialogue sadly dive into cheesy levels that get stale and old when they try to force it too much. Still, the movie does feel like an adaptation of a book and I must give it applause for accomplishing the goals set out by the trailer and from audience members following deeply with the book. Given this my scores for the movie are:

Drama/Biopic/Romance: 7.5 Movie Overall: 7.0.

A powerful story of true love and redemption based on the best-selling novel of the same title by Francine Rivers.

I had my doubts going into this movie, I'd read the book years ago and really enjoyed it, but wasn't sure about how it would translate onto the big screen, especially in regards to the mature themes and adult content. I was pleased to discover that Francine Rivers was heavily involved in the screenplay, and that the project was not being rushed, but that they were taking their time to find the best way to bring a film that did justice to the book to viewers. I can honestly say that I think that they did just that.

Redeeming Love is the re-telling of the Biblical story of Hosea, set in the gold fields of California during the 1850's. Angel is a prostitute, highly prized for her beauty and the wealth that she brings to her handlers. Michael Hosea hears God tell him that Angel will be his wife. But Angel has lived a rough life, mistreated by everyone she ever met, and her acceptance of Michael's offer is only the beginning.

The way that this book stayed true to the book surpassed all of my expectations, some of the details are changed but the storyline, characters, and message all come shining through. The movie is well done, with a stellar cast, an excellent script, set against stunningly captured scenery. The camera is artfully handled in a way that shows the full gravity of the nature of the story, but also decisively deflects some of the more grisly things. The movie doesn't shy away from sex, and there is nudity where the most sensitive areas are artfully covered by hair, blocking and angles. There is brief language. Though handled very well, I personally thought that the very heavy dark themes of the hit harder in the film, and I could tell that much thought had gone into how to best handle the difficult themes of the book. Rated PG-13, I would say that I felt that it definitely isn't a film I would want my 13 year old daughter seeing and would view with caution with older teens, perhaps after reading and discussing the book first.

Overall, this film does an excellent job of bringing this powerful story to the big screen. It is so obvious that great care was taken with this story and I think that it pays off. One of the best novel to film adaptations I have ever seen. I know that the book is fairly controversial in some circles, so I think that viewers should use discretion when deciding to go see it. If the book was offensive, then the movie isn't for you. I think it is good to know what you are going to see, so if you haven't read the book I would recommend discussing the story with someone who has, before going to see the film. I was so happy to see that the movie didn't shy away from keeping the strong faith elements central to the story, the message of hope and redemption shine through. Fans of the book will fall in love with Michael Hosea and Angel's story all over again as they watch this powerful story of love, hope and redemption unfolds before them!

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Many thanks to Universal for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.

6/10

@redeeminglovemovie

I expected this to be one of those classic romantic dramas, that's cheesy and sappy and takes place in a different century. However, it didn't turn out that way. It turned out to be more of a drama film than a romantic film even with the on-screen lovemaking. There were definitely more punches thrown and a couple of dead bodies shown than I expected, but I'm not complaining.

I enjoyed Abigail Cowen's performance. She brought to life the idea of an emotionally and physically traumatized woman in the capacity she was able to show. Opposite her was Tom Lewis. I was much a fan of his acting. It didn't feel convincing, or consistent, as well, the chemistry and bond of love between them just never seemed to be there.

The big takeaway was that love conquers all. Tom Lewis' character Michael never showed love for Angel for the sake of love or for pity. It was genuine and he wasn't going to force it. He gave her an option and he was always going to let her choose which way she wanted to go.

While I can't believe the film was two hours, as time flew by, I can honestly say that I'm somewhat intrigued to read the book to get a fuller story than I'm sure the movie showed.

I'd recommend seeing this film if it's one you had you're eye on. However, I'd like to note some things. It's a Biblical movie, but it's not. It's a "Fifty Shades of Grey" type movie, but it's not. Trigger warnings include young girls being abused in a verbal or off-screen manner. Disturbing scenes include visual strangulations and hangings.

A bit of a long and heavy review, but I hope I've given you some thoughts on the film in case it interests you. Until next time.... Enjoy the show!

I really went in after seeing the trailer knowing the cinematic abilities were already going to shine, and I wasn't disappointed with the acting or story line. It was a very dramatic and hard to watch piece at times, and wonderful in others. Even seeing a sunset is a shining moment in this.

The lost feel of the lead is apparent from the start, and some things involving abuse could really turn away a few viewers for apparent reasons. The use of the tragedy and influence on the story development is carefully executed and there are more than a few surprises. You can almost smell the wood furniture, oil lamps and the lingering fear in this.

I really enjoyed the wardrobe and makeup choices and modulations throughout the piece as well, it was very carefully attended to. Accuracy as what I could understand really makes this a step ahead from just another western drama. Some might also have issues with religion in the piece, but I found it a good attempt to show many different sides to what was very important in that era.

I would certainly say the audio and video in this piece warrants a large screen viewing, and it's up to you to go and see it, even with others in a large living room on a saturday night together.

I should have done more research on this movie. I thought it was going to be like Finding You with a mostly unknown cast and interesting plot line to make a different romance movie. This is a movie based on an author who has clear religious under tones. I could look past that if the dialogue was better, everything wasn't so far fetched and the plot line didn't jump around so much. Minus the main actress, everyone else is either just ok or cheesy at acting. The movie is so bad it made it my first film ever to walk out of the theater and ask for a refund.

If you're not into religious fiction this movie isn't for you.