When Calls the Heart: Lost & Found (Movie) Review
Genre: Family
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“Inspired by the bestselling series by Janette Oke” Elizabeth Thatcher is one determined young schoolteacher. Even though pretty much everything is going wrong, she is trying her best to work things out and find her place. When Calls the Heart: Lost & Found is set in the Old West, in a hardscrabble mining town called […]
“Inspired by the bestselling series by Janette Oke”
Elizabeth Thatcher is one determined young schoolteacher. Even though pretty much everything is going wrong, she is trying her best to work things out and find her place. When Calls the Heart: Lost & Found is set in the Old West, in a hardscrabble mining town called Coal Valley. When young Elizabeth leaves her wealthy family and sets out west to her very first teaching post, it seems as if nothing can go right. Her stage coach is robbed, her books and belongings stolen. When she finally arrives, the women of the town are skeptical that she will be able to handle the difficult times Coal Valley is facing, and to top it off, she burns down her house the very first night here. Things couldn’t possibly be any worse.
Three months prior to Elizabeth’s arrival, the families of the town suffered a terrible tragedy. A cave-in at the mine resulted in a number of deaths, leaving many of of the women widowed. As Elizabeth struggles to connect with kids who have been through so much in their young lives (in direct opposition to her own pampered upbringing), the widows battle with the mining company to save their families from eviction. The homes are company owned, meant for miners to live in, so the women set off into the mines to earn their keep – despite the company doing everything they can to make things difficult.
Despite its somber story line, When Calls the Heart: Lost & Found is an uplifting tale. As Elizabeth rises up to meet every challenge that is presented to her, she learns much about the families of Coal Valley – and even more about herself. There’s even a bit of a love interest side story to it, as Elizabeth and the new town constable butt heads often, and plenty of lighthearted moments keep the film from feeling too dark. It’s an engaging story, albeit one that doesn’t make you think too hard, but its end leaves you wanting a bit, as things end on what seems too quick a note, with little resolution of some of the plot lines, most notedly the constable’s investigation of the mining company. Still, it’s an entertaining film, and one you can feel good about watching with your entire family.