Parents' Guide to Faith, Hope & Love

Dancing and Christianity have come a long way since Footloose: This is a faith-based film that doesn't need to kick off its Sunday shoes -- it boogies in them. Just like the Kevin Bacon classic Dirty Dancing, Step Up, and other beloved dance films, Faith, Hope & Love hinges on a top-notch dancer coaching someone with two left feet on how to wow a crowd. It's been done before for a reason: It's just plain fun to watch, especially when it involves skilled stepper Peta Murgatroyd, a Dancing with the Stars pro making her acting debut, shining with an on-camera ease. And a brief side story with actors Ambrit Millhouse and EJ Gage is so delightful that it's hard not to hope their characters will get a sequel.

Faith, Hope & Love is perfectly imperfect -- words the filmmakers will wear as a badge of honor (it is, after all, the film's message). What works is a real-life authenticity in which one main character is a dedicated Christian and one isn't but is nevertheless accepting of and interested in what drives the other's faith. That said, there's a palpable struggle to entertain "casual Christians" while still satisfying the devout crowd. And as the movie goes on, it starts to get bogged down by the need to hit more scriptural components. Plus, since Murgatroyd, Krantz, and much of the supporting cast create a world that feels really genuine, it's all the more distracting when co-producer Michael Richards appears as a zany, over-the-top, Kramer-like character. The grown-up relationship stuff isn't too likely to interest kids, but for faith-based parents, Krantz's "So You Think Dad Can Dance" story is sensational.