The Secret Dare to Dream
In stressful times, escaping into a feel-good movie is what the heart desires. That’s precisely what we get with The Secret: Dare to Dream, it’s a movie that provides comfort and a happy ending in an unexpected way.
The Secret checks off all the boxes of the romance novel type of stories — you know how it’s going to end from the get go: guy saves damsel in distress and ends up with the girl. But in spite of the film’s predicable storyline, the message it delivers is a good reminder for our present times; if you have a positive outlook then you’ll attract positivity into your life…like a magnet — something that’s not always that easy to do, especially when life knocks you down.
MOVIE SYNOPSIS
“Based on the groundbreaking best-selling book about the law of attraction by Rhonda Byrne, The Secret: Dare to Dream follows Miranda (Katie Holmes), a young widow trying to make ends meet while raising her three children and dating her boyfriend (Jerry O’Connell). A devastating storm brings an enormous challenge and a mysterious man, Bray (Josh Lucas), into Miranda’s life. Bray reignites the family’s spirit but, unbeknownst to Miranda, also holds an important secret — one that will change everything. With its timeless messages of hope, compassion, and gratitude, The Secret: Dare to Dream is an inspiring and heartwarming film that shows how positive thoughts can transform our lives.”
While The Secret is not a challenging movie to watch (it has more of a Hallmark Channel movie feel to it instead of a big theater release), it manages to deliver some life lessons for the whole family. The story is centered around a widow with three children, and in addition to the financial difficulties the family is facing, one of the daughters is turning 16 in the middle of a hurricane in Louisiana. This illustrates the very real struggles that can hit a family all at once. I couldn’t help but compare the film’s situation to the circumstances families are currently going through, like losing a loved one, their jobs and income as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. It can be all too much, yet, here we are.
Though it might be hard to get the kids to sit through this dialogue-heavy movie, it’s not a bad option as far as family entertainment value goes. Kids might see themselves reflected in one of the three kids in the movie because they face some unusual hardships; birthday parties that can’t meet expectations, and wants and needs call for sacrifices they never had to make before.
The Secret Dare to Dream
Even though The Secret is one of those movies that seems predictable and full of clichés typical of the romance genre, once you hit play you’re compelled to watch until the end to make sure your movie-watching instincts were right. We had fun watching this movie because as I said, it is so predictable that we could even recite some of the lines before the characters said them. LOL!
Katie Holmes and Jerry O’Connell in The Secret Dare to Dream. Photo by Lionsgate Studios
If you’ve got an hour and 47 minutes to fill one of these nights, gather the family for a gentle and touching movie with a message of hope — something we can all use more of in these trying times.
The Secret: Dare to Dream is available to rent for $19.99 through On Demand platforms such as Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, VUDU and cable providers starting Friday July 31.
Rating: PG for language and an injury image
Feature Run Time: 107 Minutes
Screenplay by Bekah Brunstetter and Andy Tennant & Rick Parks; Story by Bekah Brunstetter; Directed by Andy Tennant.
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