The biographical film I Can Only Imagine is about a man who wrote a Christian song of the same name as the film—I Can Only Imagine—which became a record-breaking hit. The song’s composition was preceded by difficult years during his childhood and youth, spent without a mother and with an alcoholic father.

The film’s main character is Bart, who has a difficult childhood. At a young age, he loses his mother, who abandons the family, and Bart is left to grow up with a father who has enough problems of his own. Bart’s father belittles him, puts him down, insults him, and sometimes even physically abuses him.

In this desperate situation, Bart finds hope in his relationship with God, who accompanies him into early adulthood. God guides Bart through life, and Bart becomes a member of the Christian band MercyMe.

Bart has a strained relationship with his father, but after a brief return home, he discovers that his father is a completely different person. As a result of these events, Bart composes the song “I Can Only Imagine,” which he dedicated to his father and which has touched the hearts of millions of people around the world.

Drama / Family

Canada, 2018, 110 min

Title in other languages: I Can Only Imagine

Crew: Andrew Erwin, Jon Erwin

Cast: J. Michael Finley, Brody Rose, Dennis Quaid, Madeline Carroll, Cloris Leachman, Trace Adkins, Rhoda Griffis, David Norona, Tanya Clarke, Jason Burkey, J.R. Cacia

Parents’ Guide

Physical assault on Bart’s son. Bart threatening his father. Bart describing abuse by his father.

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