The film is about a high school football player who goes blind and, against all odds still continues to play on the football team. I know that sounds absolutely ridiculous, and trust me, I would have thought the film's story really cheesy if it hadn't been based on a true story. The movie tells the story of Travis Freeman who really did go blind, continue to play football, and then go on to become a pastor (though we only actually see those first two events in the movie). The fact that the film established that we were watching a true story from the beginning made this seemingly ridiculous story much easier to believe.
One of the things I liked about this film was that it wasn't overly preachy. The filmmakers seemed to realize that the story alone was sufficiently edifying without having to throw in corny "you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you" speeches. In fact, the only time God is even mentioned is in a dream sequence, which according to a statement during the closing credits is based on a dream that Travis Freeman actually had in high school. We still see the spiritual ups and downs that Travis went through during his blindness, but the film takes a good show-don't-tell approach. Instead of a sequence of Travis screaming at God when he gets frustrated with his blindness, he tears his cross necklace off his neck and throws it across the room. Instead of asking why this had to happen to him, we see Travis locking himself in his room for weeks. In short, this film is a great example of a Christian filmmaker understanding that you can tell a Christian story without invoking God throughout the film.
The film is also quite entertaining. The comic relief scenes don't feel forced like they often do in Christian films, the cast turn out great performances that really make us care about these characters, and the football game scenes are fun to watch. The film does a great job depicting the adjustment it takes to learn to live as a blind person, and it does so in a way that both entertains and gives us a respect for those who have lost their sight.
This is not to say that the film is without its problems. I felt that in the beginning the screenwriters were in a hurry to get to the part in the story when Travis goes blind. The beginning is rushed, and we barely have any idea who all the main characters are and how they relate to each other before Travis goes blind. Also, we learn that before he went blind, Travis had a girlfriend, but she disappears from the movie after he goes blind. The assumption is supposed to be that she dumped him after he went blind, but we don't see this happen. She just disappears from the film. This is a real shame because what little we saw of her before Travis goes blind set up what could have been an interesting subplot in the film. But it was like the screenwriters completely forgot about that storyline after Travis went blind, leaving us to wonder why she was even in the first ten minutes of the film in the first place.
Another problem I had with this film is that there are a few parts that are kind of confusing. For example, the film does a good job of capturing the lingo that football players would use when talking to each other. The problem with this is that those of us who have never been on a football team or who aren't die hard football fans have trouble following the conversations. There were a few conversations where I had no idea what was being said because of this.
So, do I recommend this film? Well, that depends. This is not the best sports movie I've ever seen, but it's still an entertaining film. I would say that if you like sports films, dramas, biopics, or some combination of these three, then you should give this film a watch. If you don't like any of those three genres, then skip this one.
NOTE: Some parts of this film may not be suitable for young children. If you would like more information about the content of this film before letting you kids watch it, then please check out Plugged In Online's review of 23 Blast here.
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