The Heartland Film Festival is a non-profit organization that honors Truly Moving Pictures. What was the lesson Jason told Mr. Hamilton and Mrs. Hastings that he learned through this experience? As for content, language concerns in this PG film are sparse and its few sexual themes are subtleand generally used to good purpose. Red Stevens (the grandfather) has an amazing idea to change his grandson Jason's personality for good for the exchange of "the ultimate gift". Other than that, it was a great Sunday afternoon film! Red Stevens (James Garner) is a crusty, old billionaire who dies suddenly in an air crash. 6.Calmed me down. For one of just two (the other being The Perfect Game)flicks co- funded by convicted Ponzi schemer Allen Stanford,the screenplay by Cheryl McKay has in this adaptation of Jim Stovall's book has (what now appears to be satirical) the message that the gifts in life are more valuable than the gifts from money. Giving his family everything they wanted. Without all the right wing politics involved The Ultimate Gift is very close to the message that John Wayne was giving in McLintock. For all the complaints, this movie was OK and could have been a lot worse. The gifts lead to a chain of events that will stretch Jason to his limits. The "gifts" work for Jason and he becomes a caring person who appreciates the value of hard work, and giving back to society. For kids, it is mostly appropriate and it offers some great lessons. The Ultimate Gift was a TERRIBLE film! He appears by video, dispensing wisdom and "gifts" to his grandson Jason (played by heartthrob Drew Fuller.) It's a great story with a wonderful cast. Because all the movies won the Heart Land: Truly Moving Picture award. Later he realized his dream was building Emily's place. IF this had been a movie with a christian message, the "young man" would have been obliged to do everything, to free the other prisoners: He had already knocked out one guard, he could have taken his weapon and he could have tried to free the other hostages (even if it would have cost his live, Jesus etc. True, he doesn't see it through, but even so I felt so let down by Jason's behaviour at that point that this movie ultimately comes across as mediocre. Though theyre never shown in bed, its implied that Jason and Caitlin had a prior sexual relationship. It had challenges, both sweet and sad moments, intense moments, and a little bit of romance. Jason Stevens (Drew Fuller) is a spoiled rich kid. Starring Drew Fuller, James Garner, Abigail Breslin. "The Ultimate Gift" takes the viewer through Jason's incredible journey to gain his grandfather Red's vast inheritancethrough a series of challenges, or as Red puts it "gifts." Yet, the true meaning of these gifts are meant for Jason to experience every step of the way. He thanks her for the help that she and her daughter gave him. Drew Fuller was superb as someone you want to hate but end up liking. The acting is good from everyone although Breslin is annoying as a kid wise beyond her years. I'd happily watch it again. There is an incredible amount of value in this message and it is something people of all ages can learn from. The Christian slant of the movie was evident, but it did not proselytize or become judgmental. The second I walked out of the theater, I felt like I had just been in church for the last hour-and-a-half. Not all, but a lot of people born to wealth never really appreciate what it is to earn and strive. And I had problems with the scene where his ex-girlfriend came back. Purple Watercolor Digital Funeral Invitation Digital Funeral Announcement Electronic Funeral Invite For Women Memorial Service Evite Memorial Service Purple Watercolor Evite. The acting is uneven, with some of the unknowns struggling, while the old pros like Garner, Cobbs and Dennehy are as skilled as ever. While doing these tasks in order to get an anticipated pot-of-gold, Jason is mentored and guided and even loved by a Texas rancher (Brian Dennehy), a wise lawyer, a single mother (Alii Hillis), her young daughter (Abigail Breslin) who has leukemia, and an Ecuadorian guide. Jason has to go to South America, where he's taken prisoner by rebels. "The Ultimate Gift" can be seen has an "How to Live" manual and I think the new generation of this world should try and see this ( although i don't think they cant even understand the concept unfortunately, butits worth a try.) The story revolves around Jason Stevens (Drew Fuller) and the tasks he must complete to receive the inheritance of his grandfather, Red Stevens. At the end of the. Is it obvious that this movie has faith-based messages? The works that have been chosen for this project are Maxine Shores the Captive Princess and Danielle Steels, No Greater Love. He and a local are held for an indeterminate amount of time. When Jason takes his girlfriend out for an expensive dinner and his credit card is denied he assumes, as any of us would, that there was a glitch. The scene changes are so Klutzy, they are annoying! When Jason finally gets his "gift" he has become a man that Red could be proud of, and who can be proud of himself. To begin with, I tell you guys I didn't make it to the end. His girlfriend Caitlin (Mircea Monroe) abandons him. All the way through this movie I kept thinking there were gaps. Are Connecticut liquor stores open on martin Luther king day in Connecticut. And don't get me started on his trip to Equador. Hadly any movie these days can please all of us. Something the entire family can watch without stressing out over vulgar additions that normally ruin a film in the first place. It is profound and interesting storytelling. It didn't have a real "message" as other much as other Christian movies I've seen recently. No anger, no sense of accomplishment both in the fence post work but also in the lesson he was learning. Along the way Jason encounters work-ethic Gus (Brian Dennehy), a little girl Emily dying from leukemia (Abigail Breslin) whose sharp wit and tongue manifest wisdom that leads to the bonding of Jason and Emily's mother Alexia (Ali Hillis), and host of other character actors in the various parts of the world where Jason's journey takes him. Accuses Texas Financial Firm of $8 Billion Fraud", "U.S. charges Stanford with massive Ponzi scheme", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Ultimate_Gift&oldid=1114678744, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2015, Articles lacking reliable references from April 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 7 October 2022, at 18:30. It's very obvious they filmed all of James Garner's scenes in a day, but he and his lawyer friends are the best acted characters in the movie. It opens with Mr. Obviously he has lots of lessons to learn. They rambled about the "message" and the ultimate gift and how their business core values were reflected in the film. My first thoughts that came to mine after I saw The Ultimate Gift; were great movie. The movie began with the funeral of Red Stevens a very wealthy and successful entrepreneur. It is a great way to teach your children the importance of each of these gifts within your life and their life. The gift of learning. All these assignments revolve around giving some sort of gift while learning the importance of them. Gus uses an electric cattle prod to motivate Jason to get out of bed. (United States), FoxFaithMovies.com - Former Official Distributor's Page for the film. This is the movie that would remind you two movies with similar dramatic situation: The Million Pound Note (1954) and Trading Places (1983). But, through the plethora of middle school acting and a plot turned drastically awry, The Ultimate Gift is certainly not worth a 7.3. You've got to see this movie! Cardinal Pell dies at 81; he kept the faith even amid tribulation, pope says, At funeral, pope remembers Benedicts wisdom, tenderness, devotion, Thousands pay last respects to Pope Benedict in St. Peters Basilica. Emily is getting sicker and asks Jason for Christmas. Not something he's accustomed to, but he does survive and goes on to other tasks, not necessarily jobs. Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners. It was clean enough that you could take the whole family to see it, yet interesting enough that the parents will not only stay awake, but you'll actually find yourself caught up in a sweet, and sometimes tear-jerking story about redemption, and the pursuit of true joy. And while partner support can sometimes gum up the works, as it were, what the film says is more important than who says it. Overall the plot and concept of the movie is sound with Christian principles without evangelizing the view. Perhaps it is not the best movie in its genre, but it is warm and pleasant to watch for the family. Learning taught him that his answer to something may not be necessarily correct and that you should listen to what others say and differentiate between them. Long estranged from his grandfather, Jason is certainly put out by the tests he is forced to endure for his unknown share of the estate. I did better editing when I was 15, and that was with film, by hand! Red gives him the Ultimate Gift if he follows Red's instructions. I regularly attend the $5-a-sermon Church of AMC, much to my wife's and kid's consternation. In today's world, the pursuit of happiness for many is the chase for wealth, yet many rich people also find happiness alluding. The story, which is based on Jim Stovall's novel of the same name, is manipulative (big surprise there), but is fairly engaging once it gets going. The sequence of parallels just jumped out at me as I watched, and the more I watched it again, the more fascinating parallels I discovered. One minute, Jason will be calmly resting at the town hospital, and shortly after, he is quite randomly running away from villains in a different continent. Hamilton finally says that he's completed everything that Red had put out for him and gives him a check for hundred thousand dollars, which he uses to get Emily's Home started. Jasons ultimate redemption is never really in doubt, no matter how hard he fights it at the beginning of the journey. Themen through a. Hamilton at the first of every month to receive an element. Jason smokes cigarettes twice and asks Gus if they can stop at a store for more smokes. There hes met by an old rancher friend of Reds named Gus. But the movie's just part of the story I think. Also, the plot is haywire and unsequenced. Jason befriends the two, and then asks them to go to the attorney's office and confirm themselves as his "true friends" in order to pass his assignment, but afterwards Jason walks away and ignores Emily's request to see him again. (United States). Firstly, there was nothing religious in it at all except for a mention of a church near the very end. Dreams. I love a good romance story. I enjoyed it, I really did, the thing is that I know some people would turn away because of these flaws. Jason looks to Miss Hastings to ask where Mr. Hamilton is going. SPOILERS FOLLOW. Choose the correct answer. Consequently, some may find the plot contrived or even hackneyed. We were given the DVD by my parents. Thank goodness for Bill Cobbs. Drew Fuller plays the lead Jason and to be honest, the moment I saw him was like "isn't that Chris Halliwell from the television series Charmed" because I have to be honest after Charmed I don't remember seeing Drew anywhere else. Yet it ended with a great beginning for me as I went home thinking about. We won't share this comment without your permission. There were both overtly religious parts (a statue of Jesus, etc.) The Ultimate Gift is a very mediocre movie. Unable to stop the high life from being taken away from him, Drew Fuller gives a great performance as Jason,thanks to Fuller clearly enjoying himself in Jason's sulk,which Fuller chips away to reveal something wonderfully sincere,as Jason unwraps the ultimate gift. He kept asking Emily what her dream was. However, I hated the fact that he got $2billion at the end, what an awful message. Luke 12:33, Acts 20:35, 2 Corinthians 8:7, 2 Corinthians 9:7, James 2:14-17 and 1 John 3:16-18, among a host of other scriptures, all prod believers to share the wealth. After the groundbreaking for Emily's Home, Jason is recalled to the law firm for one more meeting and told he has exceeded the expectations of his dead grandfather, and he is given the final gift of $2-billion dollars, rewarding Jason not only for his completing the tasks, but for using the $100-million to help others. There was nothing about this film that I would recommend to the average person who doesn't fit into one of those categories. that seem as if they belong to a soap opera, not a family film. I first got this film out of the video store last year because i wanted to see what Drew Fuller was like outside of his role in Charmed. Laughter every now and again makes a person more relaxed and more open to what other people say like when they tell jokes they may not make sense to you so you ask why to the person that tells it, its also a leisurelier way to understand people more. Garner also views the fortune he made as a trust that carries obligations and he wants Fuller to appreciate that fact as well. Drew Fuller (Black Sash, Charmed, and Army Wives) was brilliant I think that he really showed his range in the film. . What I didn't like, though, was the direction. If I threw these all in a basket like they use to pick Bingo tiles, the sequence might get jumbled a little, but as the movie played out, it seemed almost like the moments were drawn out just like the Bingo basket. After all, Jason's spent countless thousands on her, this is his first ever credit card glitch and she has no real reason to believe he is detached from his great wealth. I'm lucky that he gave me some of these gifts in real life instead of from beyond the grave. ENOUGH SAID! There are millions suffering without hundreds of millions, trust funds or billions that will be handed over to them when they complete a few jumps through some hoops. With the overall look and feel of a Lifetime Channel movie, James Garner, Bill Cobbs and Lee Meriweither add enough class and talent to make it watchable and, at times, effective. Emily dies the next day in the hospital of her cancer. So, this filthy rich bastard is made to dig post holes on a ranch and find one true friend, which he finds in little Abigail Breslin who is dying of leukemia. When his industrialist grandfather Red Stevens (James Garner) dies, the various family member are disappointed by their inheritance dispersed by Mr. Hamilton (Bill Cobbs) and Miss Hastings (Lee Meriwether). It teaches value of so many important things such as giving, money, The movie is also really funny and works well with all audiences. THE ULTIMATE GIFT follows the travails of 24-year-old Jason Drew Fuller a selfish trust-fund kid who arrives late for his grandfather Red James Garners funeral then complains at the reading of his videotaped the will. Jasons journey takes him to South America where he is kidnapped by outlaws. The message of this movie is obvious and there is no attempt at subtlety. And they can choose to wield a 10-pound sledge, when they really only need a 2-pound hammer. His spoiled and unappealing adult children receive enough to be set for life, but the status of the bulk of the estate remains a mystery. It was absolutely wonderful. This is a great idea- a spoiled angry rich kid who's taught the meaning of life. Anyway, we know what's going to happen from the moment that Jason arrives late for his grandfather's funeral. The Ultimate Gift doesnt always avoid these pitfalls but it does manage to choose the right mallet. If you expect A level drama, I don't think it's here, but if you go with the flow, this is a thoroughly entertaining movie. Not all that bad to be honest. The characters of his mother and his girlfriend named Caitlin are also equally convincing as "uppercrust divas"! There's nothing ground breaking here. In an escape, Jason hits one of the thugs. Jason's Character and Its Transformation Through the Movie the Ultimate Gift. It was everything I look for in a movie, Hollywood gets one right now and then, most of all it was clean and entertaining. Each assignment is centered around a "gift". But, Red has planned for his death carefully. She is delightful. Who was the 4th and final person Jason learned a lesson from? If you are looking for a good family move, this is it. I love that child! Judgment When I saw this kid, I wondered how they were going to make him into a good guy. I cannot believe some of the critical comments here. Need some direction in life? Newcomers, Ali Hillis and Drew Fuller, did a magnificent job in the role of Alexia and Jason. What illness does Emily have in Jim Stovalls novel The Ultimate Gift. So if you're looking to watch a film that is well written, well acted and not filled with useless rubbish, this is one you will really enjoy. I hope that seeing this will inspire others to live out the gift and that we see more such movies being made. Thejus Joseph Jose We know hes going to be humbled, but the way it goes down doesnt strain credulity (apart from his Ecuadorian kidnapping, which feels like something out of MacGyver). What gift was Jason learning about on the ranch. His long time gold digging girlfriend should have little choice but to pay the bill. The Ultimate Gift is based on one-time Olympic weightlifter Jim Stovalls book. These aren't gifts in the classic, physical sense. Honestly, this is OK a lot of people thought it was wonderful, awesome, amazing; but realistically it is just above made for TV. His dream was building Emily & # x27 ; s place was a great with. Avoid these pitfalls but it is warm and pleasant to watch for family. N'T get me started on his trip to Equador the Christian slant of the story I.... To happen from the moment that Jason and Caitlin had a prior sexual relationship no sense of accomplishment both the... 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The view those categories n't share this comment without your permission these pitfalls but it does manage to the! Prior sexual relationship kid who 's taught the meaning of life what it is not the best movie in genre.
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