Soul Surfer Blu-ray Review

The Movie
We live in a cynical world, and so sometimes true stories fail to connect with audiences when a real-life hero shows too much pluck and determination. Such might have been the case with Soul Surfer, the tale of waverider Bethany Hamilton. On Halloween 2003, the talented athlete--then 13--suffered an unfortunate shark attack that took her left arm. But during the ordeal and from the first moments of her recovery, she displayed a courage beyond her years, one that would lead her on a spiritual journey long after the physical scars had healed.
Bethany was determined to surf again, and compete, which meant that she needed to re-learn everything she knew about the sport. It's more difficult than it looks, but at one point she tells her father, "I don't need 'easy,' I need 'possible.'" Thankfully, when star AnnaSophia Robb says it, we believe it, and her heartfelt performance along with the strong supporting cast help steer Soul Surfer away from the realm of total cornball.
The Picture
The movie appears to have been shot on a combination of 35mm film and digital video, and the ubiquitous limb removal special effects are mostly inconspicuous. The 2.4:1 AVC video presentation displays surprisingly soft focus, although grain is in no way problematic and noise is minimal. Blacks are somewhat oppressive and without nuance, but colors are strong in the Hawaiian sunsets and the lifelike blood in the water.
The Sound
Dialogue is consistently clear but the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is mostly front-heavy, frequently rather timid in its use of the surrounds. The soundtrack does however showcase the requisite power of the thundering surf, and some surreal moments as when we hear the world from Bethany's point of view when she is in shock after the bite, and the Hawaiian chanting from all around can be quite evocative.
The Extras
This disc contains an assortment of featurettes that take us behind the scenes and also introduce us to the real Bethany Hamilton. "The Making of Soul Surfer" (about 13 minutes) provides an informative overview, "Surfing for the Screen: Inside the Action" (five-and-a-half minutes) reveals how eager the cast was to hit the waves, and "Becoming Bethany" (four minutes) explores the bond between the actress and the woman she is portraying. All of these are in HD, as are the eight deleted scenes, about four minutes total.
Becky Baumgartner's 2007 documentary Heart of a Soul Surfer (30-and-a-half minutes, SD), is included here, along with the new HD short "Bethany Hamilton on Professional Surfing," wherein she opens up about her career. The disc is also BD-Live-enabled. Disc Two is a DVD of the movie with all of the bonus features except BD-Live.
Final Thoughts
Some found the religious undercurrent of the film to be a bit off-putting, but the girl's faith and support and charitable work are essential to this extremely inspirational story, a fine value in the Blu-ray/DVD combo pack although the limited HD A/V quality might ultimately relegate this one to a rental.
Product Details

• Actors: AnnaSophia Robb, Dennis Quaid, Helen Hunt, Carrie Underwood
• Director: Sean McNamara
• Audio Format/Languages: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (English, French, Portuguese); Dolby Digital 5.1 (English Audio Descriptive Service)
• Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
• Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: PG
• Studio: Sony
• Release Date: August 2, 2011
• Run Time: 106 minutes
• List Price: $38.99
• Extras:
  • Deleted Scenes
  • "The Making of Soul Surfer"
  • "Surfing for the Screen: Inside the Action"
  • "Becoming Bethany"
  • Heart of a Soul Surfer Documentary
  • Bethany Hamilton on Professional Surfing
  • BD-Live
  • DVD with special features