The true story of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack and courageously overcame all odds to become a champion again, through her sheer determination and unwavering faith.
It's Bethany and Alana's friendship - its sturdiness and vulnerability, its laughs and sincere apologies - that rules the day.
– Lisa Kennedy,
Denver Post,
8 Apr 2011
rotten:
Hamilton is played, blandly, by Anna Sophia Robb, and her devoted parents, less bland, are played by Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt. The surfing footage, much of it shot off the coast of Kauai, is not bland at all.
– Peter Rainer,
Christian Science Monitor,
9 Apr 2011
rotten:
You wonder why this movie isn't a documentary, rather than a synthetic feature film with the heroine's arm digitally removed.
– Moira MacDonald,
Seattle Times,
10 Apr 2011
rotten:
Soul Surfer seems simply too sugar-coated to be true.