Joe Bell

This is one of those movies that deals with an important subject matter. Something that everyone involved with can pat themselves on the back and brag about how awesome they are for being a part of it. It's got award bait written all over it. But it's just not that great. The plot device where Marky Mark talks to his dead kid's ghost is distracting and silly, and takes away any seriousness the film needed to be effective. The Marky Mark character comes across as buffoonish and completely unlikeable, making it difficult to care about his ordeal. This is based on a true story, and if the real-life guy wasn't that annoying, I think they did him a disservice. The rest is just paint-by-the-numbers cliched dreck. Total Lifetime Movie of the Week level stuff. There are so many "you're supposed to be sad here" moments, that it resembles the way a bad horror movie relies on cheap jump scares instead of actually being scary. Throw in a few musical interludes with Marky Mark walking down a road looking haggard and pathetic, some terse wife interaction, and a splash of him still being a dick to his other kid, and ya got a movie... I guess? The acting is fine, I blame everything on the script and direction. Marky Mark was Marky Mark, but he was fine. The actor that plays the gay kid did a good job, albeit too good perhaps. Could've dialed it down a notch, but again I blame the direction. The mom did a great job of being a mom in a movie not about the mom. The younger brother got to cry in one scene. They were all fine. Gary Sinise as the sheriff was pretty damn great. The problem with this movie is that the people who actually need to see it will either never watch it, or make fun of it if they do. This movie will not change any hearts or minds. It's only gonna stroke the egos of the producers into thinking they did something good and important. The sad truth of the matter is that they might actually have been able to do that, IF they were more interested in the craft of effective film making, and less interested in getting back-pats from their soulless peers at parties. I lost a friend to suicide due to bullying, and this movie is an insult to his memory. I wanted to like this movie. I wanted it to be important. I wanted it to inspire. I didn't like it. It wasn't important. It disappointed.

I'm puzzled as to why Mark Wahlberg (and a lot of other very talented people, including screenwriters Mary McMurtry and Diana Ossona) thought the story of Joe and Jadin Bell deserved its own movie. If you know what happened to the real-life father and son, you'll know what I mean. (No spoilers.) The ending has zero sense of feel-good moral uplift--no matter how contrived it might have played--because the "true story" makes that impossible. It just feels...kind of pathetic and deeply sad. There's one good scene in the entire movie, and it's a heart-to-heart talk between Wahlberg and Gary Sinise as a sympathetic cop who picks him up on the side of the road and gives him a hot meal. The rest, sad to say, is a well-intentioned big-screen After School Special that fails on nearly every conceivable level.

This is a very well done movie with a great message about a real person that was trying to make a change in the world. If you watch it you'll experience some serious emotions and one of the parts is so well done you'll be blown away.

It was less than ten years ago that Joe Bell lost his gay son and then decided to walk from Oregon to New York. He felt he had to do it, on the way he took opportunities to speak to crowds, especially students and parents in school assemblies. His message was simple but unrefined, bullying is bad and we all need to be more accepting of those who are different. This is based on real people and their true story. It is a good movie of a difficult subject. After seeing it, and now noticing 12.5% of the IMDb votes are "1", it makes it clear that society will never be accepting of those who are different, especially those who are not heterosexual. My wife and I viewed it at home on Amazon streaming movies. Truly the high point for me was Brandi Carlile singing "The Joke" during the end credits.

Yes some may be surprised ... even shocked ... even more shocked than to find out what is actually going on here. I did not know of the man of the title ... I did not know of his struggle ... his pain ... his issues ... and his walk (of shame) ... actually not exactly his shame. Or not entirely his to carry ... but you'll find out if you watch the movie. Really rich drama that tells us what society is like ... what bullying does to people ... and how individuals have to carry that weight ... or not. It is a heavy drama and a really good one. Stop bullying I'd say ... but unfortunately it is not as easy as that. I had no idea what the movie would be about, if you like dramas and twists along the way ... I suggest you watch it without any knowledge yourself ... it's a tough one.

Mark Wahlberg is struggling to be a good actor. He appears in numerous big-budget movies in all high-budget box office projects. Which I think does well. He and Reid Miller made a good couple in this movie. Reinaldo Marcus Green did a pretty neat job. The year may be 2021, but homophobia is still a big problem. Especially for a teenager. Such films are important for awareness.

Just leave everything you're doing and go see Joe Bell now. It's a very important amazing movie. Its story is powerful, emotional, touching but also so sad specially that's it's a true story. It tackles a very serious topic and delivers very important beautiful messages and life lessons. Cinematography is nice, the film has many stunning sceneries. Wahlberg's performance is superb. Joe Bell is a great father and a great movie that everyone needs to see.