If I bother to ever review a movie here, you can be pretty sure that I either fully despised or thoroughly enjoyed the film. We rarely go to the theaters anymore unless it’s something all the kids their dad wants to see, such as a big screen release of a comic book adaptation.

From the moment I first heard of Desmond Doss, and that his story was going to be made into a feature film, I knew I wanted to see it. For those who who haven’t heard of Doss or the film, here is the trailer:

There is a fair amount of violence and gore in the movie*, but war in the 1940’s wasn’t drone driven the battles of 2016. The story of this man, who was both a man of bedrock conviction, courage in the face of incredible odds, and steadfast faith moved me.

I know he was Seventh Day Adventist, but that theological divergence does absolutely nothing to take away from the miracle he achieved nor the extraordinary character he possessed.

Mel Gibson may or may not be nuts, but he did a fantastic job here. It’s one of the few times in recent memory when I felt like my movie dollars were not wasted.

*R-rating for gore and violence.