Standing Up for What You Believe
Bob Revere (Marshall R. Teague - Second to Die) will never forget the sound of the doorbell that day when the men from the army came to inform him that his son had died serving his country in another country. It hit Bob hard as it did his son's young wife Kari (Nikki Novak) and their newborn, Christian (Hunter Gomez), who decide to leave town to escape the memories. 14 years later and Kari and her teenage son return to town and move back in with Bob and his wife Dottie (Jennifer O'Neill) although for both Bob and Christian it is difficult as Bob still misses his son and Christian wants to know about his father. But when firstly Christian gets in trouble at school for having a bible in his locker and then Bob, the town's mayor, gets pressure over putting up Christmas decorations in the town he decides he needs to make a stand for what he believes in.
How can I put this? "Last Ounce of Courage" is not technically a very good movie but what it is trying to get across is in some ways very good. Now it is easy to focus on the detail because we are given a set up where a principal of a school doesn't want students having bibles in school because he doesn't want people offended or trouble stirred up. At the same time we have a situation where Christmas traditions are being banned for politically correct reasons. But you see "Last Ounce of Courage" isn't really about these things but about people making a stand for what they believe in an overly PC World and that is actually what is good about the movie, the basic idea is right. To put it into context at one point Bob mentions that people are afraid to wear a cross in public and sadly here in the UK there is some truth to that.
The trouble with "Last Ounce of Courage" is that the message it is trying to get across frequently gets lost thanks to a style which for some reason seems to go ridiculously over the top to the point that it borders on being bad. There is also over the top and awkward acting which contributes to the strange vibe because at times it feels tacky. I am actually unsure whether "Last Ounce of Courage" wants to be over the top and funny or just ended up coming across that way because of the mixed up vibe.
Now here is what I think happened when it came to "Last Ounce of Courage". Those behind the movie had grown tired that the World they lived in was changing with it seeming almost a crime to be openly Christian and so wanted to make a movie to encourage others to stand up for their beliefs. But call it anger, emotion or fervour the movie ends up too potent and it overwhelms it to the point that it becomes not just over the top but ridiculous in places. And it is a shame because every now and then there will be a scene where the words take over and you realise this isn't a movie about saving Christmas or allowing bibles in school but simply about standing up for what you believe in and not being ashamed of the gospel.
What this all boils down to is that "Last Ounce of Courage" is simply a divisive movie due quite simply because behind the set up it is a movie which is about standing up for your beliefs. But it has issues that range from being over the top to having awkward acting plus a strange comedic styling which makes it all the more over the top. I will finish with this; "Last Ounce of Courage" is a movie which if it had been made 70 years ago could have been directed by Frank Capra, starred Jimmy Stewart and would now be held as a classic.
