Wild Faith (2018)

Shane Hagedorn is Emmett, a man who fought for the Union during the Civil War and whose life was saved by a black soldier.

That black soldier winds up mortally wounded in the same hand-to-hand skirmish. His dying wish: That Emmett make sure his wife and daughter are okay.

Flash forward to post-Civil War Michigan, and Emmett has moved Haddie (Lauren LaStrada) and her daughter Grace (Xylia Jenkins) into his home, which also includes son Henry and Uncle McKinney.

That prompts whispers, scorn and outright racism from folks in the nearby town, including from Preacher Collins, the father of Emmett’s late wife.

Then two rascals conspire with Sheriff Hamilton to solve the problem by kidnapping Haddie and Grace and selling them to a passing circus as a mother-sister singing act.

What no one expected is a near train detrailment that results in the escape of a killer tiger that’s roaming the countryside just as Emmett finds himself in a race against time to keep his new family safe.

Shane Hagedorn as Emmett, a Civil War vet with a promise to fulfill in Wild Faith (2018)

Lauren LaStrada as Haddie, the woman with a new post-Civil War home in Wild Faith (2018)

Review:

An endearing film with heavy religious overtones that, unfortunately, is too contrived to be wholly successful.

Hagedorn turns in a fine performance as a man haunted by the war, more concerned with fulfilling a dying wish than what others think of his new living situation.

In fact, the cast as a whole is solid and the film gets off to a promising, if someone predictable start. Even the Civil War segments are well-handled.

But add a sheriff willing to sell a black mother and daughter to the circus, the sudden conversion of the pastor and the arrival of a tiger who kills for the sake of killing .. well, it all becomes a bit too much.

Lana Wood, sister of Natalie, has a small role as a shopkeeper’s wife. And there were plans to turn the film into a TV series.

Joey Cipriano as Henry, Emmett Murphy’s young son in Wild Faith (2018)

Xylia Jenkins as Grace, Haddie’s daughter in Wild Faith (2018)

Directed by:
Jesse Low

Cast:
Shane Hagedorn … Emmett
Lauren LaStrada … Haddie
as Lisa Lauren Smith
Joey Cipriano … Henry
Xylia Jenkins … Grace
Greg Mason … Uncle McKinney
Dean Teaster … Preacher Collins
D.J. Perry … Ben Lily
Melissa Anschutz … Hester Thickett
Lana Wood … Opal
Darby Hinton … Gerald
Christine Marie … Albena, circus boss
Jack Michael Findley … Sheriff Hamilton
Ian Griffin … Cal
David Gries … Ely
Trace Adkins … Narrator

Runtime: 100 min.

Jack Michael Findley as Sheriff Hamilton, ready to make a deal with the circus in Wild Faith (2018)

David Gries as Ely and Ian Griffin as Cal, two of the scoundrels in Wild Faith (2018)

Memorable lines:

Preacher Collins: “You’ve got a single woman of color living in sin with my former son-in-law.”
Emmett: “The only sin being committed is bearing false witness.”

Cal: “Sounds like a hero to me. Came back with a medal and a pretty negro to replace his dead misses.”

Cal: “Every problem got a fixin’.”

Heather Thickett, upon hearing a roar in the forrest: “Manitou!”
Benjamin Lilly: “I think I just manitou-ed in my buckskins.”

Hester Thickett: “You’re still alive.”
Benjamin Lily: “Yeah, no thanks to you or any of my friends. You leave me out here like a damsel in distress.”

Grace, being kidnapped by the sheriff: “Let me go, or you’ll be judged by the angels.”
Sheriff: “Save your voodoo magic for the circus.”

Sheriff to Emmett: “You done lost the grit for killin’.”

D.J. Perry as Benjamin Lilly, Murphy’s old friend in Wild Faith (2018)

Melissa Anschutz as Hester Thickett, the half-breed tracker in Wild Faith (2018)

Dean Teaster as Preacher Collins, Emmett’s former father-in-law in Wild Faith (2018)

Greg Mason as Uncle McKinney, the elder member of the Murphy household in Wild Faith (2018)

Christine Marie as Albena, a circus boss looking for new talent and a lost tiger in Wild Faith (2018)

Darby Hinton as Gerald and Lana Wood as Opal, shopkeepers in Wild Faith (2018)

Lauren LaStrada as Haddie, the Civil War widow in Wild Faith (2018)

Shane Hagedorn as Emmett Murphy, ready to protect his new family in Wild Faith (2018)