"A Child for a Cop"
What You Need To Know:
A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND has a strong Christian, biblical, moral worldview that’s explicitly evident throughout the entire movie. It includes positive references to God by a pastor, who presents a theologically sound understanding of God. The movie’s Christian worldview is also seen in the young child protagonist’s simple, child-like faith. Finally. the ending beautifully captures the Christian doctrine of adoption. All in all, A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND is a surprisingly well-made, effective and inspiring family movie.
Content:
(CCC, BBB, A, M) Very strong Christian, biblical, moral worldview, with positive references about God, prayer, faith, Scripture, and a beautiful ending that contains adoption of an orphan, a representation of God adopting believers into his family; no foul language; no violence; no sexual content; no nudity; implied beer drinking; no smoking or drug use; and, 12-year-old female protagonist lies about her mother and her whereabouts.
More Detail:
A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND is about a cynical, tough K-9 cop, Cooper Brawn, trying to rekindle a romantic relationship with his former fiancé, Samantha Phillips. Sadly, Samantha is disappointed in herself for still having romantic feelings for Cooper and is making plans to move away to get over him.
Suddenly, Penelope “Polka-Dot” Daught, an only child taking care of her severely ill mother, enters Cooper’s life by inventing a “Cops for Kids” program, which consists of her helping to care for Cooper’s K-9 police dog, Luey, at the Police Kennel. Polka-Dot is huge fan of Mark Twain’s ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN and often draws courage from her hero, Huck Finn.
Polka-Dot’s mother’s health worsens and ends up hospitalized. Polka-Dot, afraid of ending at an orphanage, hides by herself at her home and lies to Cooper and other authorities about the whole difficult situation. Eventually, Cooper discovers the truth when he’s informed of the death of Polka-Dot’s mother. Cooper has an epiphany that pushes him to adopt Polka-Dot and rekindle his romance with Samantha.
A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND has a very strong Christian, biblical and moral worldview that’s explicitly evident throughout the entire movie. Firstly, it is seen in the positive references of God by the pastor, who is often giving a theologically sound understanding of God. Secondly, it’s also seen in Polka-Dot’s simple, child-like faith. In one scene, she arrives at the home of the pastor to ask questions about how prayer works and later prays to God for restoration of her mother’s health. This reminds believers of Jesus’ words in the Gospel of Matthew, in Verse 19:14, “‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’” The movie captures Jesus’ words and accurately represents how much children matter to Jesus. Thirdly, the ending of A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND beautifully captures the doctrine of adoption. The lovely ending reminds Christians of how God through the work of his son Jesus Christ adopted into his family. Paul, Ephesians 1:5, also declares, “In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purposes of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.” Just like Polka-Dot received a father who she never had, believers also receive a heavenly Father through adoption, made possible by the atonement of the Father’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ
In addition to A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND presenting a powerful worldview, the movie’s overall artistic and entertainment value is significantly high. Unlike many faith-based movies, which seem cheesy and cheaply made, A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND is surprisingly well made. The acting and cinematography are very professional. The good performances encourage the audience to emotionally connect and sympathize with the characters. They also reveal the psychological and emotional depths of all the characters.
For being a “made-for-TV” faith-based movie, the cinematography in A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND is really good, with the entire movie professionally filmed. While it does create a “made-for-TV” vibe, that is to be expected. Nonetheless, there are some really creative and artistic shots that contribute to the movie’s overall quality. Other shots helped arouse the viewer’s emotions.
Overall, A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND is a great family movie centered on a strong Christian, biblical and moral worldview, with positive references about God, Scripture, faith, and prayer. Therefore, everyone is strongly encouraged to consider watching it.