The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry | |
---|---|
Directed by | Rich Christiano |
Written by | Dave Christiano Rich Christiano |
Produced by | Rich Christiano Chad Gundersen |
Starring | Gavin MacLeod Jansen Panettiere Frankie Ryan Manriquez Allen Isaacson Taylor Boggan Bailey Garno Mary Jean Bentley Robert Guillaume |
Cinematography | Philip Hurn |
Edited by | Jeffrey Lee Hollis |
Music by | Jasper Randall |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Freestyle Releasing [1] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 96 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $1 million |
Box office | $1.2 million |
The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry is a 2009 Christian film, released to theaters on September 18, 2009. It was directed by Rich Christiano, and the majority of the film was filmed in Holley, New York, [2] beginning August 18, 2007. [3] The film premiered at the Merrimack Valley Christian Film Festival. [4] [5] Gavin MacLeod (in his final film role before his death), who also starred in The Love Boat and The Mary Tyler Moore Show plays the lead role in the film. [6]
Dustin (Jansen Panettiere), Albert (Frankie Ryan Manriquez) and Mark (Allen Isaacson) are 12-year-old friends looking forward to Summer fun in 1970. Dustin likes a girl named Tanya (Bailey Garno), and so he wants to ask her on a date, but he is nervous because he has never asked anyone out before. Dustin's main obstacle is the town bully, Nick (Taylor Boggan), who also likes Tanya. When Dustin mows the lawn of 75-year-old Jonathan Sperry (Gavin MacLeod [7] ), a man he has seen at church, the two become friends.
Mr. Sperry begins a Bible study with Dustin and his friends, and encourages them to be kind to Nick. Sperry also pays Dustin to mow the lawn of a stubborn, elderly neighbor, Mr. Barnes (Robert Guillaume), although Dustin is told not to let Mr. Barnes know the benefactor of this kindness. Throughout the summer, many other boys in the neighborhood get involved in the Bible study, including Nick, who, after a couple of encounters with Mr. Sperry, becomes remorseful and turns from his bullying ways. Meanwhile, Dustin finally gets the courage to tell Tanya how much he likes her, but instead of asking her to be his girlfriend, he suggests she start reading the Bible.
Then one day, Dustin rides his bicycle by Mr. Sperry’s house and discovers a crowd has gathered; Mr. Sperry has died. After the funeral, Mr. Barnes visits Dustin to thank him for mowing his lawn, and to tell him he figured out Mr. Sperry was his motivation. Mr. Barnes tearfully calls Mr. Sperry a great example of a Christian man. After this visit, Dustin’s mother reveals the secret background between Mr. Sperry and Mr. Barnes. Mr. Sperry’s wife had died four years earlier in a car accident caused by Mr. Barnes who was drunk. Inspired by Mr. Sperry’s kindness after such heartbreak, Dustin decides to continue the Bible study with the neighborhood boys, repeating one of Mr. Sperry’s first lessons with Dustin and his two friends.
In the years that follow, Dustin and his friends end up going their separate ways. Even though Tanya started reading her Bible and became a Christian, she and Dustin never dated or formed a relationship with each other. Mr. Barnes became a good friend to Dustin before he died four years afterwards. Albert gets involved in Christian radio shows and Mark becomes a creationist biology professor. Dustin became the pastor of his church for 15 years using Sperry's Bible, and Nick became a faith-filled police officer. Each year, the four boys visit Sperry's grave while sharing lemonade together.
The soundtrack, composed by Jasper Randall, won Best Original Score in the 2009 San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival. [9]
The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry was released theatrically on September 18, 2009 in 118 theaters. By November 2009, a total of 240 theaters had been booked,[ citation needed ] each sponsored by a church or Christian group. Each group paid $2,000 to get the film into a theater, and were given back the investment if the film grossed $4,500 in their individual theatre. [10]
In its opening weekend, The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry made $258,400 domestically. It had strong box office holds for several weeks, accumulating $1,169,828 to date. [11] Randall Christy of the Gospel Station Network stated the film was number one at the Ada, Oklahoma box office over the November 6–8, 2009 weekend. [12]
Christian actor Kirk Cameron said, "The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry moved me with its message of eternity and how one faithful man can make a difference in the lives of many. I recommend this inspiring movie for any family to watch together." [13] Common Sense Media gave the film only two out of five stars, citing its "very thin story," "heartfelt but amateurish performances by the young actors," and being "male-driven, and with one notable exception, white and Christian." with an "unquestioning point of view," "probably best appreciated by those with a firmly Christian perspective." [14] The Independent Critic rated the movie at 3 stars, commending Christiano for assembling "a fine looking and well acted production that is both intelligently crafted and sensitively written." while "unapologetically Christian in its message and tone." [15] The movie was awarded the Dove Seal. [16]
Gavin MacLeod was an American actor best known for his roles as news writer Murray Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and ship's captain Merrill Stubing on ABC's The Love Boat. After growing up Catholic, MacLeod became an evangelical Christian in 1984. His career, which spanned six decades, included work as a Christian television host, author, and guest on several talk, variety, and religious programs.
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable characters. His accolades include two Academy Awards, four BAFTA Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. Hoffman has received numerous honors, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1997, the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1999, and the Kennedy Center Honors Award in 2012. Actor Robert De Niro has described him as "an actor with the everyman's face who embodied the heartbreakingly human".
Shining Time Station is a children's television series jointly created by British television producer Britt Allcroft and American television producer Rick Siggelkow. The series was produced by Quality Family Entertainment, in association with Catalyst Entertainment in seasons 2 and 3, for New York City's PBS station WNET, and was originally taped in New York City during its first season and in Toronto during the rest of its run. It incorporated sequences from the British television show Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, which was in turn based on the books of The Railway Series written by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry. The series aired on PBS from January 29, 1989, until June 11, 1993, with four hour-long "Family Specials" premiering in primetime throughout 1995. Reruns continued to air on PBS until June 11, 1998. Shining Time Station reruns aired on Fox Family from 1998 to 1999, and on Nick Jr. from June to August 2000 to promote the theatrical release of Thomas and the Magic Railroad. The series also aired on Canadian television networks such as APTN and SCN. Elements from the show were incorporated into the 2000 film Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
Jonathan Stevens Jackson is an American actor, musician, and author. He is best known for his role as Lucky Spencer in the television soap opera General Hospital, which won him five Daytime Emmy Awards. He is also known for his roles in the films The Deep End of the Ocean (1999), Tuck Everlasting (2002), Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004), and Riding the Bullet (2004), as well as the television series Nashville (2012–2018), for which he received a Critics' Choice Television Award nomination.
Kenneth Marine Kercheval was an American actor, best known for his role as Cliff Barnes on the television series Dallas and its 2012 revival.
Time Changer is a 2002 independent Christian science fiction seriocomic film written and directed by Rich Christiano, released by Five & Two Pictures. The screenplay concerns Dr. Norris Anderson, who uses his late father's time machine to send his colleague, Bible professor Russell Carlisle, from 1890 into the early 21st century. The film had a limited nationwide release.
Jansen Panettiere was an American actor, known for his roles in films The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry, The Perfect Game, The Martial Arts Kid, and How High 2. He has also provided several voice roles, including Periwinkle in the sixth and final season of the Nick Jr. children's live-action/animated TV series Blue's Clues, young Stripes in Racing Stripes, young Rodney Copperbottom in Robots, Truman X in the Nickelodeon animated TV series The X's, and Shovelmouth Boy in Ice Age: The Meltdown.
Dustin Wallace Milligan is a Canadian actor, known for his role as Ethan Ward on the teen drama television series 90210 from 2008 until 2009, Tom Cummings in the Canadian spy thriller television series X Company from 2015 until 2016, Ted Mullens on the Canadian television comedy series Schitt's Creek from 2015 until 2020, and Josh Carter on American television comedy series Rutherford Falls from 2021 until 2022. He has also appeared in a number of films.
Unidentified is a 2006 science fiction Christian film produced by Rich Christiano and Alvin Mount. It was written and directed by Rich Christiano and stars Jonathan Aube, Josh Adamson, Michael Blain-Rozgay, Jenna Bailey, Lance Zitron, and the popular Christian pop rock musician Rebecca St. James. The film deals with UFOs and how they could play into the end times.
James Kimberley Corden is an English actor, comedian, singer, writer, producer, and former television host. In the United Kingdom, he is best known for co-writing and starring in the critically acclaimed BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey. In the United States, he is best known as the host of The Late Late Show with James Corden, a late-night talk show that aired on CBS from 2015 to 2023.
Dead Man's Eyes is a 1944 noir-mystery film, and the second installment in The Inner Sanctum Mysteries anthological film series, which was based on the popular radio series of the same name. Directed by Reginald Le Borg, and starring Lon Chaney Jr. and Jean Parker, the movie was distributed by Universal Pictures.
Jonathan Hickman is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for his creator-owned series The Nightly News, The Manhattan Projects and East of West, as well as his lengthy stints as a writer on Marvel's Fantastic Four, The Avengers and The New Avengers. Hickman's other notable work at Marvel includes the S.H.I.E.L.D. limited series, the creation of the Fantastic Four spin-off title FF, as well as two crossover limited series, Infinity and Secret Wars, both of which acted as centerpieces for the eponymous company-wide crossover storylines.
The Christian film industry is an aspect of Christian media for films containing a Christian-themed message or moral. They are often interdenominational films, but can also be films targeting a specific denomination of Christianity.
Pyaar Impossible! is a 2010 Indian romantic comedy film directed by Jugal Hansraj that was released under the banner of Yash Raj Films. It features Uday Chopra and Priyanka Chopra playing the leads with Advika Yadav, Anupam Kher, and Dino Morea in supporting roles.
Paul is a 2011 comic science fiction road film directed by Greg Mottola from a screenplay by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Starring Pegg and Frost, with the voice and motion capture of Seth Rogen as the title character, the film follows two science fiction geeks who come across an alien. Together, they help the alien escape from the Secret Service agents who are pursuing him so that he can return to his home planet. The film is a parody of other science-fiction films, especially those of Steven Spielberg, as well as of science fiction fandom in general.
Five & Two Pictures is an independent Christian film production company founded in 2002 by Dave Christiano and Rich Christiano. They have produced several Christian feature films; Time Changer, Unidentified, Me & You, Us, Forever, The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry, Amazing Love, Play the Flute and A Matter of Faith.
Desi Boyz is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by debutant Rohit Dhawan, son of director David Dhawan. The film stars Akshay Kumar, John Abraham, Deepika Padukone and Chitrangada Singh while Sanjay Dutt features in an extended cameo.
Hey Arnold!: The Jungle Movie is a 2017 American animated adventure comedy television film based on the Nickelodeon series Hey Arnold!, which was created by Craig Bartlett and originally aired from 1996 to 2004. Following the 2002 theatrical film Hey Arnold!: The Movie, The Jungle Movie expands on the two-part episode "The Journal", which originally aired on November 11, 2002 during the series's fifth season.
Dallas Jenkins is an American film and television director, writer and producer. He is best known as the creator, director, co-writer and executive producer of The Chosen, the first multi-season series about the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Jenkins' career is focused on Christian media.