Upamanyu Biswas
Directed by Patricia Riggen, ‘Miracles from Heaven’ tells the story of Anna Beam, a young girl whose life is upended when she is diagnosed with a rare terminal stomach disorder, which signals a grim outcome for her. Determined to save Anna, her mother, Christy, embarks on a desperate quest to secure the services of the best doctor in the nation who may have a cure for the girl. As Christy takes on the monumental responsibility, she faces a crisis of faith.
The mother’s journey leads her to question God’s design for people like her daughter, who are innocent in the eyes of everyone. Meanwhile, the entire Beam family must showcase their unity in the face of an overwhelming obstacle that threatens to rip everything apart. Thus, the Christian drama movie probes into the genuineness of miracles in a powerful story about belief, perseverance, and resilience in the face of mounting adversity. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Miracles from Heaven is Based on the Real Experiences of a Young Survivor
For the most part, ‘Miracles from Heaven’ is a true story inspired by the incredible journey of Anna Beam, who defied all expectations to recover from a seemingly incurable disease after having a near-death experience. The movie’s script was written by Randy Brown, taking cues from the eponymous 2015 memoir written by Christy Beam, Anna’s mother, who chronicled her daughter’s miraculous tale in the pages of the book. In it, Christy writes about the Beam family’s devastating plight after their youngest daughter, Anna, was diagnosed with two rare digestive disorders – Pseudo-Obstruction Motility disorder and Antral Hypomotility disorder when she was 5 years old. As both were considered life-threatening, the family knew they had limited time to save Anna.
The Beam family made trips to Austin, Texas, and Boston, Massachusetts, to see specialists who might be able to help Anna. However, it wasn’t until they met Dr. Samuel Nurko, a pediatric gastroenterologist with the expertise and know-how to deal with Anna’s complicated health issues, that the family stopped their search for the best-suited healthcare physician. Additionally, Nurko was one of the few remaining doctors in the country who were still allowed to prescribe a medicine with certain side effects, like Cisapride. While Dr. Nurko treated Anna’s disorder diligently, her health challenges did not fully stop. Instead, the symptoms had to be managed constantly while she went on with her life as best as she could. Eventually, a miracle occurred that flipped the family’s fortunes on their head entirely.
In December 2011, while playing with her sisters, Anna climbed a cottonwood tree in their home. However, the branch soon gave way, and the young girl plunged 30 feet headfirst down into the hollowed-out inside of the tree. The family had to wait for emergency workers to carry out their rescue operation to save the young girl, which they did successfully. She was airlifted to the hospital as a necessary precaution. When the doctors treated her, they were astounded to find that Anna had no serious injuries. Moreover, they found that her digestive disorders had miraculously vanished after the fall. The girl claimed that when she was down in the tree, she had a spiritual encounter with Jesus, asserting that he had cured her. Her mother confirmed that she did not show any symptoms associated with her disorders in the aftermath.
Miracles from Heaven Explores the Validity of Divine Providence
While ‘Miracles from Heaven’ largely follows the real events in the Beam family’s life with a high degree of accuracy, it also dramatizes certain elements to heighten the storytelling’s impact and resonance. For instance, the film tells us that Christy took her daughter to Boston without managing to book an appointment with Dr. Samuel Norko. However, in reality, this was not the case, as the family had already found an appointment slot with the specialist doctor before making the trip to Boston. The film likely changes the circumstances to add more jeopardy and higher stakes to the family’s ordeal in the movie. Minor differences such as this exist throughout the narrative. One of the main reasons behind the creative decision could be to prominently highlight the themes of spirituality and divine intervention within the story.
It is undeniable that ‘Miracles from Heaven’ poses various complicated questions about the genuineness of heavenly interactions and how they might manifest in real life. In fact, Anna’s entire journey in both memoir and film serves as a testament to the inexplicable nature of certain events, especially when it comes to changing someone’s life. In an interview, Christy Beam claimed that a big reason why Anna’s story and the Beam family’s struggles resonate with different individuals is that “It’s meeting a need of people who are yearning for that message of hope and inspiration. People need to hear that, and God knows they need to hear that verified and validated in their lives. So, I’m just reminded that God is Good, and he can do such great things.”
The faith-based message at the heart of ‘Miracles from Heaven’ is one of its key components because beneath the harrowing journey of a young girl’s challenges with a rare disorder lies a tale encouraging empathy, unity, belief, family, and optimism. When adapting the memoir to the big screen, director Patricia Riggen stated that she tried her best to root the narrative in realism, even though an underlying supernatural element can be taken away from the story. “It’s very spiritual. I think it allows anyone from any faith or no faith at all to see it and understand it and relate to it. That was my intention from the very beginning – to really find the universality of the event,” she said. Therefore, ‘Miracles From Heaven’ tries to walk a fine line in its dramatic portrayal while giving due credence to Anna’s real-life story in as authentic a fashion as possible.
Read More: Where Was Miracles from Heaven Filmed?
