Christian Movies on Netflix, Ranked: 12 Films Guaranteed to Lift Your Spirits
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The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away: Two popular Christian movies on Netflix are leaving the streaming service in the coming weeks: Fatima, about the three Portuguese children who had visions of the Virgin Mary in 1917; and Father Stu, which stars co-producer Mark Wahlberg in the fact-based tale about Father Stuart Long, a motorcycle-riding boxer who finds his calling — and redemption — as a Catholic priest. But let’s not forget the giveth part of the equation: There are still great Christian movies on Netflix to enjoy, and more are sure to be added in the future.
The Movieguide website reports that “the audience for faith-based films has grown, particularly among Christians,” and that “streaming platforms and independent studios have paved the way for some of Hollywood’s biggest names to create their own content. Stars such as Mel Gibson, Mark Wahlberg and [This Is Us’] Chrissy Metz have either taken on roles or directed films that are faith-based.”
“I want this movie to help people regain their faith,” Wahlberg noted of Father Stu during a Fox News interview, adding that it was one of the most important projects of his career. “This film especially has touched so many people and reminded them what life is all about.”
With stars of his caliber and a growing track record of Christian-value films being more and more profitable, expect for more options of Christian movies on Netflix very soon.
In the meantime, here are some Christian movies on Netflix you can dive into right away.
Best Christian movies on Netflix, ranked
12. The Wait (2021)
This import from Nigeria is based on the book God’s Waiting Room, by author Yewande Zaccheaus. The book and story, which tackle women’s struggles with infertility, “teaches a solid moral lesson that explains the importance of patience. It shows that regardless of how turbulent a situation is, if one is willing to persevere and not lose hope, there is always a rainbow at the end,” according to a review in Nigeria’s Premium Times.
11. Our Lady of San Juan: Four Centuries of Miracles (2021)
This dramatization jumps in time from 1623, when a statue of the Virgin Mary miraculously saves a young girl, to 400 years later, when a desperate family takes a pilgrimage to the same site in the hopes that their child can also be saved. It stars Alejandro Peña Arenzana, Alejandra Yañez Reynoso, and Giuliana Baker. This should be of particular interest to those familiar with the history of the 1623 story.
10. A Week Away (2021)
Sherri Shepherd co-stars in this High School Musical-esque film about a troubled boy (Kevin Quinn) who chooses to go to a Christian summer camp to avoid juvenile detention.
Movieguide calls it “a fun, exciting, enjoyable Christian musical that families will love,” adding that “the movie talks about some real hardships of sickness and death, but shows that God is near to those who call to Him.”
9. The Resurrection of Gavin Stone (2017)
This film “[pulls off] something that most faith-based films never attempt, lightheartedness,” notes Sister Hosea Rupprecht, a film reviewer for the Pauline Center for Media Studies and onetime co-host of Searchlight, a Catholic movie review show on CatholicTV.
The story, about a loose-cannon actor (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Brett Dalton) who finds redemption doing community service at a megachurch, “manages to inspire without being preachy, evangelizing through a human story rather than shoving God down your throat,” she says.
8. Blue Miracle (2021)
In another fact-based story, a haggard boat captain (Dennis Quaid) helps a guardian and his children who are trying to save an orphanage that’s on the verge of financial ruin. “While it doesn’t deviate a bit from the faith-based cinematic playbook, director/co-writer Julio Quintana’s family drama…achieves what it sets out to do and tells an uplifting story,” the San Jose Mercury News wrote, calling it “a moral booster shot for the family.”
REALTED: Dennis Quaid Opens Up About His Faith Journey: “I Was Sitting Too Close to the Devil”
7. Good Sam (2019)
The Good Place’s Tiya Sircar stars as Kate, a TV reporter who stumbles upon love as she’s searching for a good samaritan (nicknamed Good Sam) who’s leaving large amounts of money on strangers’ doorsteps.
“The viewer will not only take away a good story from this movie but probably some inspiration too,” Dove.org, which offers “faith and family-focused reviews for today’s media,” notes. “One woman who was helped with $100,000 turns around and helps buy a car for a neighbor who has no transportation,” Dove shares, adding, “As Kate puts it in one of her reports, Good Sam’s giving seems to be contagious.”
6. Greater (2016)
The inspiring true story of Arkansas Razorbacks offensive guard Brandon Burlsworth (Christopher Severio) is told in this “Rudy-like faith-based inspirational sports biopic [that’s] beautifully and atmospherically shot,” according to the National Catholic Register. “There have been inspirational football movies in the past…but what sets Greater apart is the subtlety and power of its faith message,” adds Sister Hosea Rupprecht.
5. Come Sunday (2018)
“Come Sunday takes the challenges of faith seriously. We need more movies like it,” says Slate of this story based on the story of Oklahoma’s Bishop Carlton Pearson (played by 12 Years a Slave’s Chiwetel Ejiofor), one of the first Black evangelists. Called a heretic after he questions the church’s doctrine, Pearson risks everything as he faces a wave of intense scrutiny. Danny Glover, Martin Sheen, and Jason Segal co-star.
4. Forgiven (2016)
Dove.org gave this film five Doves (their highest rating) and certified it with their Faith-Friendly Seal for ages 12+. Hercules star Kevin Sorbo appears as Lt. Morgan, a lawman called in to diffuse a dangerous church hostage situation. Dove.org adds that it’s a “suspenseful movie…filled with tension [that] focuses on a message of divine forgiveness, according to the Bible.” Casey Fuller, Jenn Gotzon, and Steve Flanigan also star.
3. The Two Popes (2019)
“It is a film that cannot be seen without a spiritual transformation happening deep inside whether we are aware of it or not,” notes Sister Nancy Usselmann of the Pauline Center for Media Studies.
Anthony Hopkins plays the conservative Pope Benedict XVI opposite Jonathan Pryce as the more liberal Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (the future Pope Francis) in this dramatization (based on real events) about their meetings to forge a new path for the Catholic Church. “This film will touch all the right chords in society and hopefully in the Church, opening all of us to consider each other with substantially more compassion, mercy, and kindness,” Sr. Nancy states.
2. Soul Surfer (2011)
“From the production values to the savvy delivery of its Christian message, Soul Surfer is a champ,” raves The Oklahoman of this biopic about teen surfing sensation Bethany Hamilton (AnnaSophia Robb). Hamilton soldiers on in her sport despite losing an arm in a shark attack, and ultimately finds her greater purpose after an international tragedy hits the news. Helen Hunt and Dennis Quaid star as Hamilton’s parents in this 2011 Crystal Dove Seal Award Winner for Best Drama.
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1. I Can Only Imagine (2018)
Fans of Christian band MercyMe’s chart-topping song should see this if they haven’t already. It follows the moving and inspirational story of band member and songwriter Bart Millard (played by J. Michael Finley), who learns to heal from his once mentally and physically abusive relationship with his father (Dennis Quaid), who has found redemption through a grave health battle. Cloris Leachman and country star Trace Adkins co-star.
“The movie works for the same reason the song does: It lightens the burden of the pain people are shouldering today, and gives them something to look forward to,” according to Variety. Adds Dove.org, the film “zeros in on your weariness and spurs you on. This is not a movie you simply watch. It is one that you feel.”
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