The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
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Unsung Hero
Drama · Music · Family · 2024
When David Smallbone's successful music company collapses, he moves his family from Australia to the United States in search of a brighter future. With nothing more than their six children, their suitcases, and their love of music, David and his pregnant wife Helen set out to rebuild their lives from the ground up. Based on a remarkable true story, a mum's faith stands against all odds; and inspires her husband and children to hold onto theirs.
Movie details
Unsung Hero
“One family's journey from Down Under to center stage.”
2024 Drama · Music · Family 1h 53m
Critical arithmetic
The consensus, allegedly.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
IMDb
7.0 / 10
5.3K votes
Metacritic
46 / 100
Metascore
TMDB
7.1 / 10
Community rating
External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.
When David Smallbone's successful music company collapses, he moves his family from Australia to the United States in search of a brighter future. With nothing more than their six children, their suitcases, and their love of music, David and his pregnant wife Helen set out to rebuild their lives from the ground up. Based on a remarkable true story, a mum's faith stands against all odds; and inspires her husband and children to hold onto theirs.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Unsung Hero?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Joseph: King of Dreams
Family · 2000
In this animated retelling of the story from the Bible's Book of Genesis, Joseph's gift of dream interpretation and his brilliantly colored coat inspires jealousy in his brothers.
Hoovey
Family · 2015
The true and inspiring story of the Elliott family, who refused to surrender, instead turning to one another and their faith in the worst of circumstances, to rebuild their lives, their boy, and their dreams... together. Step by grueling step, with faith, love, and the tireless work of a mother and father to save their family, their farm, their dream, Hoovey learns to walk again. To read again. To dribble and shoot a basketball again. And yes, to dream again himself. Then stepping out in his faith, back onto the hard court, to live that dream of playing this game once more...
The Girl Who Believes in Miracles
Family · 2021
When Sara hears a preacher say faith can move mountains, she starts praying. Suddenly people in her town are mysteriously healed! But fame soon takes its toll – can Sara’s family save her before it’s too late?
The Shack
Drama · 2017
A grieving man receives a mysterious, personal invitation to meet with God at a place called 'The Shack'.
I Saw the Light
Music · 2016
Singer and songwriter Hank Williams rises to fame in the 1940s, but alcohol abuse and infidelity take a toll on his career and marriage to fellow musician Audrey Mae Williams.
Journey to Bethlehem
Family · 2023
A young woman carrying an unimaginable responsibility. A young man torn between love and honor. A jealous king who will stop at nothing to keep his crown.
Good Vibrations
Music · 2012
The story of music legend Terri Hooley, a key figure in Belfast's punk rock scene. Hooley founded the Good Vibrations store from which a record label sprung, representing bands such as The Undertones, Rudi and The Outcasts.
Grace Unplugged
Drama · 2013
A talented young singer and aspiring songwriter’s Christian faith and family ties are tested when she defies her worship-pastor father and pursues pop-music stardom in GRACE UNPLUGGED, a moving and inspiring new film that explores the true meaning of success.
I Believe
Family · 2019
A 9 year old boy experiences God's power in a supernatural way.
Spin
TV Movie · 2021
Rhea lives with her tight-knit multigenerational family. After her mother’s death, she has been her father’s emotional rock, and her life revolves around her family’s restaurant, her eclectic group of friends, and her after-school coding club. Everything changes when she falls for aspiring DJ Max and a long lost passion for music is reignited. Rhea discovers that she has a natural gift for creating beats and producing music that blends her Indian heritage, but must find the courage to follow her true inner talent.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Richard Ramsey · Joel Smallbone
Written by
Richard Ramsey · Joel Smallbone
Joel Smallbone
David Smallbone
Daisy Betts
Helen Smallbone
Kirrilee Berger
Rebecca Smallbone
Jonathan Jackson
Eddie Degarmo
Candace Cameron Bure
Kay Albright
Terry O'Quinn
Grandpa James
Lucas Black
Jed Albright
Court is in session
Put Unsung Hero on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.