Here’s today’s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture.

Review: Alone Yet Not Alone. Enthuse Entertainment‘s faith-and-family friendly historical epic Alone Yet Not Alone is slated to open in select theaters tomorrow (9/27). Having had the opportunity to preview it, I can report that’s riveting story with an epic sweep that is actually quite groundbreaking in the faith-based arena.

The film, which  stars Kelly Greyson (Return To The Hiding Place, Max Rose),  Jenn Gotzon (God’s Country, Frost/ Nixon) and country  music artist Clay Walker (Jesse James), is based on the novel Alone Yet Not Alone by Tracy Leininger Craven. The novel itself is based on the true story of Craven’s ancestors, Barbara and Regina Leininger who, amid tension with the Delaware Indians in the during the French & Indian war in the mid-1700’s, were captured  in a raid on their home and transported over 300 miles of wilderness to Ohio. In the years that follow, the sisters are sustained only by their trust in God, passed down to them by their parents, and the undying hope of escape reunion with their family.

The film, which carries the clear message (enunciated even in its title) that God will never leave us no matter how hopeless a situation may seem, features superior production values to match the strong performances by its, for the most part, relatively unknown cast. I particularly like the way the screenplay (by George D. Escobar and James Richards) depicts the relationship between the European settlers and the Delaware tribe’s people. We certainly get a real sense of why the tribe felt disrespected and betrayed. And, particularly through Barbara’s romance with one of the young warriors, we are given a real sense of their humanity and dignity. On the other hand, the movie also avoids the trap of depicting the tribe’s as being without human flaws of their own.

Under the direction of Ray Bengston, the final chase scene in which the Leininger sisters make their hazardous trek toward freedom is exciting and emotionally gripping. You’ll care how it turns out. Alone Yet Not Alone is Strongly Recommended.

Tomorrow: My interview with Alone But Not Alone star Kelly Greyson.

Encourage one another and build each other up – 1 Thessalonians 5:11