Indivisible
Film
Review by Kam Williams
Soon
after completing his seminary studies, Darren Turner (Justin
Breuning) was commissioned as an Army Chaplain. He was assigned to
Georgia's Fort Stewart, but received orders to ship out to Iraq
before he and his family even had a chance to get settled.
Still,
Darren and his wife, Heather (Sarah Drew) took the deployment in
stride, relying heavily on their faith that he would return safely
and have no trouble making the adjustment back to civilian life.
This, despite evidence that neighbors like spouse-abusing Michael
Lewis (Jason George) had been left severely damaged psychologically
by tours of duty overseas.
So,
Darren naively bid Heather and their three young children adieu,
oblivious of the toll that serving during the 2007 troop surge might
take. Stationed at a forward operating base outside Baghdad, he would
experience all the horrors of the war: sniper fire, ambushes,
improvised explosive devices, rocket-propelled grenades and mortar
attacks.
While
Darren was spared physical injury, numerous soldiers that he
ministered to were wounded or killed during the intense campaign.
Against his better judgment, he routinely hid all the gruesome
details of what he was witnessing from his family.
Consequently,
Heather came to feel that Darren was no longer connecting with her
and the kids. And those suspicions were only confirmed when he
arrived home after a year on the front lines. Jumpy and paranoid, the
once doting husband and father was now angry, distant and mean.
Her
patience wearing thin, Heather tells her husband he needs help.
Ultimately, she kicks him out of the house, though praying for
forgiveness for “judging something I don't understand myself.”
Thus
unfolds Indivisible, a faith-based docudrama recounting the real-life
fall from grace of Darren Turner. Co-written and directed by David G.
Evans (The Grace Card), the compassionate biopic convincingly conveys
the idea that a non-combatant like a chaplain might very well suffer
from Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome.
What
sets this film apart from most Christian-oriented fare is that its
characters are more complex than those simplistically-drawn
individuals typically served up by relatively heavy-handed morality
plays. Homecoming from war treated as more than merely tying a yellow
ribbon around an old oak tree and leaving the rest to Jesus.
Excellent
(3.5 stars)
Rated
PG-13 for violence
and mature themes
Running
time: 119 minutes
Production
Studio: Reserve Entertainment / WTA / Graceworks Pictures
Studio:
Pure Flix / Provident Films
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