"Run the Race and Trust in God"
What You Need To Know:
RUN THE RACE is the producing debut of Christian football phenom Tim Tebow and his brother Robby. They have chosen well for their first production. RACE is extremely well-made. The performances are outstanding across the board, as is the movie’s impressive sense of grit and authenticity. It manages to bring Christ front and center in a dramatically suitable way rather than seeming forced or over-the-top. RUN THE RACE is a terrific tale of family, forgiveness, reconciliation, and redemption.
Content:
More Detail:
Zach Truett (Tanner Stine) and his younger brother Dave (Evan Hofer) have had the deck stacked against them their whole lives. Their mom suffered and then died from cancer two years ago, after which their alcoholic father, Michael (Kristoffer Polaha), abandoned them.
They’ve been getting by via working in a supermarket owned by their godmother, Nanny (Frances Fisher). However, their dream is for Zach to get a football scholarship due to his amazing abilities as a star running back and take Dave along with him. Sadly, just as Zach is on his way to seeming greatness, he loses his temper in an argument with a rival player and tears his vital ACL ligament in the ensuing fight.
It seems all is over, but Dave doesn’t lose faith in the future, even as Zach does. Dave had a football injury the year before that led him to have grand mal seizures, adding to the seemingly unendurable pileup of their problems.
However, when Zach meets a pretty nurse intern named Ginger, Dave hatches a plan to win a track scholarship and take Zach along with him to college, hope starts to bloom. The question remains whether Zach can learn to put his full trust in God in order to turn his hardships into victories.
RUN THE RACE is gaining some notoriety for being the executive producing debut of Christian football phenom Tim Tebow and his brother Robby, and they have chosen well for their first production. RACE is a classic underdog story that’s extremely well-made and could very well cross-over to non-Christian audiences in the same way that last year’s hit I CAN ONLY IMAGINE did. It should be noted that the same distributor, Roadside Attractions, handles both movies, and they deserve commendation for being a secular distributor willing to give very strong support to faith-based projects.
The performances are outstanding across the board in RUN THE RACE, as is the impressive sense of grit that Director and co-writer Chris Dowling brings to the movie. This is a movie that feels authentic to its setting and the emotional and spiritual struggles its characters are facing. It manages to bring Christ front and center in a dramatically suitable way rather than seeming forced or over-the-top.
All in all, RUN THE RACE is a terrific tale of family, forgiveness, reconciliation and redemption told in the arena of small-town sports. It is highly recommended viewing for older children and adults.