On a cold February night in 2007, a devoted father of four and a seventeen-year-old drunk driver both received life sentences.
In one violent, devastating instant, both faced a drastically different and uncertain future. But as Chris Williams sat in his demolished vehicle, staring at the car that had just caused the death of his wife, his unborn baby, his nine-year-old daughter, and his eleven-year-old son, he committed to do something extraordinary: he would forgive.
In one violent, devastating instant, both faced a drastically different and uncertain future. But as Chris Williams sat in his demolished vehicle, staring at the car that had just caused the death of his wife, his unborn baby, his nine-year-old daughter, and his eleven-year-old son, he committed to do something extraordinary: he would forgive.
That decision launched Chris on a journey toward healing that affected his family and friends, the young man who caused the accident, and an entire community a community that would face another deadly tragedy just a few days later.
Chris's message of forgiveness is an empowering invitation to all who have suffered, however unjustly, to lay down their burdens and let go.
My Review*
Just Let Go is the story of Chris Williams, and the extraordinary way that he forgave the young man who got into a car drunk and killed Chris' pregnant wife and two of his children. Starring Henry Ian Cusick (Lost), Brenda Vaccaro, and Mitchell Ferrin, this powerful movie is tragic and uplifting at the same time. Cusick is fantastic in the role of Williams.
I can't begin to imagine the horror that Chris Williams had to live through that night, seeing his family in the car and knowing they were dead, followed by both his and his surviving son's rehabilitation (another son wasn't in the car at the time). I can imagine the immense grief and pain and anger that he must have gone through, and yet he never lost sight of the fact that the boy who hit them was just that - a boy.
Most of the movie is told through flashbacks which I think is a really smart way to tell the story, more dramatic and more meaningful as you watch his journey to forgive the boy responsible, and along the way help the boy himself to heal. Chris Williams' story is powerful, and while his book focuses more on his relationship with God and how that helped him to forgive and move forward, the movie keeps it more universal. While it definitely shows his love for God, it doesn't shove it down the viewers throat which is nice and keeps the movie appropriate for anyone no matter their beliefs. Anyone struggling to forgive someone else, or even to forgive themselves, can benefit from this movie. Highly recommend.
On DVD or Blu-Ray at any of these retailers.
*I was given a copy of this DVD for review purposes
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