The Grace Card
Encyclopedia
The Grace Card is a 2010 drama film directed by David G. Evans. It intends to illustrate the everyday opportunities that people have to rebuild relationships and heal deep wounds by extending and receiving God’s grace. The film stars Louis Gossett, Jr.
and Michael Joiner. It was released on February 25, 2011 to 363 theaters, grossing $1,010,299 on opening weekend.
Things become heated when Mac is partnered with Sam Wright (Mike Higgenbottom), a rising star on the force who happens to be a part-time pastor and a family man. Sam never expected to be a police officer. He feels called to be a minister like his grandfather. In addition to leading a small, start-up church, Sam works as a police officer to provide for his family. When he gets promoted to Sergeant, however, Sam starts questioning if his true calling might be police work.
Can Sam and Mac somehow join forces or is it nearly impossible for either of them to look past their differences, especially their race?
. Screenwriter Howard Klausner explained, "We look at this project as Fireproof
2.0. The Sherwood Baptist
guys have opened up a door for all of us, proving that faith-based features can stand up in the marketplace... Maybe it’s just because so few films coming out of Hollywood reflect the values we [Christians] hold dear.".
The Calvary Church of the Nazarene in Cordova
was the film's "sponsoring church." Church volunteers worked in the catering, wardrobe, hair and makeup departments, in addition to the professional filmmakers who handled the film's technical aspects. Director David Evans said about 90 percent of the 40 full-time crew members were Mid-Southerners, as were almost all the 100-plus supporting actors and extras
. They volunteered more than 10,000 hours, working day and night to shoot the film in 28 days. The film's budget was only $200,000.
currently gives the film a 35% approval rating, based on 26 reviews. Critics listed on Metacritic
have given The Grace Card a 43 out of 100 score, an average of 14 reviews currently available. Critics from Variety
, The Hollywood Reporter
and The New York Times
gave the film a positive review, while critics for the New York Post
, Orlando Sentinel
and New York Daily News
were not as receptive.
Steve Persall of the St. Petersburg Times
said in a positive review, "This is a solid, sincere affirmation of faith and forgiveness. Praise the Lord, and pass the popcorn." Mike Hale of The New York Times said "Responses to religious films are bound to be personal, so at the risk of sounding patronizing, I'll say that my main reaction to The Grace Card was one of pleasant surprise at its competence." Orlando Sentinel's Roger Moore said, "The eggshells the screenwriter and director walk on distance the story from the reality it aims to imitate. And that robs this tale of loss, grief and redemption of its punch."
Louis Gossett, Jr.
Louis Cameron Gossett, Jr. is an American actor best known for his role as Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley in the 1982 film An Officer and a Gentleman and Fiddler in the 1970s television miniseries Roots...
and Michael Joiner. It was released on February 25, 2011 to 363 theaters, grossing $1,010,299 on opening weekend.
Plot
When Mac McDonald (Michael Joiner) loses his son in an accident, the ensuing 17 years of bitterness and pain erodes his love for his family and leaves him angry with almost everyone, including God. Mac's rage damages his career in the police department, and his household is as frightening as anything he encounters on the streets of Memphis. Money is tight, arguments with his wife are common, and his surviving son Blake is hanging with the wrong crowd and in danger of failing school.Things become heated when Mac is partnered with Sam Wright (Mike Higgenbottom), a rising star on the force who happens to be a part-time pastor and a family man. Sam never expected to be a police officer. He feels called to be a minister like his grandfather. In addition to leading a small, start-up church, Sam works as a police officer to provide for his family. When he gets promoted to Sergeant, however, Sam starts questioning if his true calling might be police work.
Can Sam and Mac somehow join forces or is it nearly impossible for either of them to look past their differences, especially their race?
Production
Filming for The Grace Card began in Memphis, Tennessee on October 14, 2009. The climax of the film was shot at Messiah Missionary Baptist Church on Chelsea. Other locations included St. Francis Hospital and the downtown banks of the Mississippi RiverMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. Screenwriter Howard Klausner explained, "We look at this project as Fireproof
Fireproof (film)
Fireproof is a 2008 American Christian drama film released by Samuel Goldwyn Films and Affirm Films , directed by Alex Kendrick, who co-wrote and co-produced it with Stephen Kendrick...
2.0. The Sherwood Baptist
Sherwood Pictures
Sherwood Pictures is an American Christian film production company in Albany, Georgia, United States. It is unusual among production companies in that it is a ministry of a local church, Sherwood Baptist Church. The company uses mostly volunteers in their productions...
guys have opened up a door for all of us, proving that faith-based features can stand up in the marketplace... Maybe it’s just because so few films coming out of Hollywood reflect the values we [Christians] hold dear.".
The Calvary Church of the Nazarene in Cordova
Cordova, Tennessee
Cordova is a community in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States. Cordova lies on Memphis' northeast side, north of Germantown, and northwest of Collierville....
was the film's "sponsoring church." Church volunteers worked in the catering, wardrobe, hair and makeup departments, in addition to the professional filmmakers who handled the film's technical aspects. Director David Evans said about 90 percent of the 40 full-time crew members were Mid-Southerners, as were almost all the 100-plus supporting actors and extras
Extra (actor)
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
. They volunteered more than 10,000 hours, working day and night to shoot the film in 28 days. The film's budget was only $200,000.
Release
On its opening day of wide release, The Grace Card grossed $360,000, and its opening weekend was $1,010,299. It was released to 352 theaters, which gives it a solid $2,870 per-theater-average.Reception
Critical reviews for the film has been mixed. Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
currently gives the film a 35% approval rating, based on 26 reviews. Critics listed on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
have given The Grace Card a 43 out of 100 score, an average of 14 reviews currently available. Critics from Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
gave the film a positive review, while critics for the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
, Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. As of 2005, the Sentinel’s president and publisher was Kathleen Waltz; she announced her resignation in February 2008...
and New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
were not as receptive.
Steve Persall of the St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
said in a positive review, "This is a solid, sincere affirmation of faith and forgiveness. Praise the Lord, and pass the popcorn." Mike Hale of The New York Times said "Responses to religious films are bound to be personal, so at the risk of sounding patronizing, I'll say that my main reaction to The Grace Card was one of pleasant surprise at its competence." Orlando Sentinel's Roger Moore said, "The eggshells the screenwriter and director walk on distance the story from the reality it aims to imitate. And that robs this tale of loss, grief and redemption of its punch."