Featured Image Credit: Lionsgate Films
Topics: Music, Netflix, Film and TV
Niamh Shackleton
I think we can all agree that everyone loves a movie based on a true story.
In fact, some of the best films are based on true events.
A personal favorite is Spotlight, while The Blind Side, The Trial of the Chicago 7 and Zero Dark Thirty also come to mind.
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And many of the greats at some point end up on Netflix - and this is exactly what happened with this 2018 movie.
Titled I Can Only Imagine, the Lionsgate movie landed on the streamer not long after its cinematic release.
Based on the life story of Christian rocker Bart Millard, it's described as a family drama.
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The movie focuses on Millard's complicated relationship with his father, who is abusive.
The film, which stars J. Michael Finley as Millard, follows the musician through the breakup of his family, his high school career, and his introduction to music.
Millard went on to release a song titled 'I Can Only Imagine' with his band MercyMe - and it was this that inspired the creation of the movie.
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In an interview with People, Millard admitted that he was concerned about the idea of putting his story up on the big screen.
"I remember being nervous more than anything because even though I had said yes to the movie, the idea of digging up stuff I've been trying to bury most of my life and then putting it up on a big screen — I wasn't sure I was ready," he explained.
However, the musician was able to become more comfortable with the idea after sessions with a grief counselor.
Speaking in 2018, Millard continued: "If this had come out five years ago I don't know if I would have been able to go through it.
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"I'm in a great place now, but I never thought in a million years it would actually happen."
His decision to go through with the film seem to have worked out for the best, as several years on, viewers are still sharing their praise.
"10/10 won’t regret watching!," one viewer wrote on the Facebook page Netflix Bangers after watching I Can Only Imagine.
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The praise continued on X, where one person wrote: "I can only imagine on Netflix is such a beautiful movie."
Another added: "I Can Only Imagine movie is so heartbreaking & so good. Tears."
Though critics have been less complimentary about the movie, giving it a middling score of 67 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, the film has received a more positive Audience Score of 91 percent on the site.