O Jogo da Vida

This is a faith-based movie, it has a lot of "1" votes from people who detest faith-based movies, and a lot of "10" votes from fans. But objectively it is neither, probably a "5" or "6" rating is deserved. It is trite and over-simplified in places and interesting and wise in other places. I found it streaming on Amazon, I found it worthwhile.

It opens with an amateur golfer, Eric Close as Paul McAllister, playing in a pro-am. He is having the round of his life, birdies the first, then the second, is nine-under after the first nine, ultimately has a 30-inch putt on 18 to finish his dream round, eighteen under. Then the gallery starts to "hum" in unison, hum-hum-hum ... then he awakes to his smart phone telling him it is time to wake up.

For a person not an avid golfer that may sound very hokey but for me, I could identify. I suspect that type of dream is one all life-long golfers have. Paul, a high-powered international business man arrives late for his actual pro-am tee time, has to play with no warm-up, plays terribly, embarrasses himself. He gets mad, breaks clubs, generally making an ass of himself.

All this just sets up the main story of the movie, Paul is a very flawed man and badly needs a "mulligan", maybe several of them. Mulligans in life, with his son, his estranged wife, his co-workers. And only turning back to his faith can help him get there.

For me, a product of the 1950s and 1960s, the best part was seeing Pat Boone, pushing 90, in the role of the Old Pro, purveyor of great wisdom. Pat Boone as a young man was a talented and popular singer in the 50s and the 60s. As a young man he starred in the 1957 movie "April Love." As time went on he was in many more movies. He is great here in the role of the Old Pro.