The Unbreakable Boy (2025)
SHOULD I SEE IT?
YES
Fans of the best-selling book will likely be excited this long-simmering project finally land on the big screen.
DIrected by Jon Gunn, whose last film Ordinary Angels was a audience-favorite.
Some will find Scott’s redemption story inspiring and see a story about the strength of family …
NO
While others will see Scott’s redemption story flood out everything else and become the film’s misguided and almost singular focus.
Please tell me we did not make Zachary Levi’s character the actual “Unbreakable Boy” in a film where a young child on the autism spectrum actually suffers from brittle bone disease.
I don’t have an issue with faith-based films per se, but The Unbreakable Boy seems to have such a simplistic, self-serving message that I actually grew to despise the main character the longer the movie went.
OUR REVIEW
Watching a movie called The Unbreakable Boy, one should not have to wonder if we are discussing the teenage boy on the autism spectrum, stricken with brittle bone disease or the selfish, narcissistic, alcoholic father who overcomes his dependency through a belief in God.
And yet, here we are.
Shot in 2020, and finally getting released in February 2025, The Unbreakable Boy is based on the true story of Scott LeRette, and adapted from his memoir of the same name. While the story does feature a teenage boy finding his way through adolescence with those medical conditions, he appears to be competing for screen time with his father’s story. Scott (Zachary Levi) is a man who struggles to be an effective parent and husband, battling his own demons. Though much of the first half of the film features narration by Scott’s son Austin (Jacob Laval), the movie pivots all too easily to the perspective of Scott, ruining a narrative that sees Scott’s growth as an adult outshine that of his son’s.
Please tell me we have not made Scott the actual unbreakable boy.
Honestly, the longer you watch the movie, it becomes hard to not see the film that way. Scott’s story dominates much of the back half of the film. After tormenting his family with his bad decisions and alcohol dependency, he becomes friends with “Preacher Rick” (Peter Facinelli), a local pastor who also becomes a surprising connection when Scott finally seeks help. And then there are the scenes where Scott has to make things right with his far-too forgiving wife, Teresa (Meghann Fahy), who at one point finally stands up to his behavior and kicks him out of the house when his drinking puts their children in danger.
Do you see where this is going?
Having not read the book, I will defer to the many who have - The Unbreakable Boy spent approximately three months on the New York Times Best Seller list in the fall of 2014. However, as a film, the focus is completely in the wrong place. Writer/director Jon Gunn (Ordinary Angels) loses his grip on what truly seems important here, with his screenplay adaptation shoving the more interesting characters aside to focus on Scott.
Maybe that’s the point: the film exists as a redemptive arc for a father who is ill equipped to face difficult challenges a parent could never anticipate, only to then crumble spectacularly. Then, he finds a path to sobriety and rebuilds himself through a faith in God, helped in large part by the unlimited patience of his family and friends. I mean … in and of itself, all of that is okay.
But Gunn is a bit deceitful in his approach. We are asked to invest in Austin’s story as he describes coping with brittle bone disease, navigating an autism diagnosis, and overcoming bullying with his mother’s and brother’s support. This does lead to some genuinely nice moments.
A subplot involving a bully named Tyler (Pilot Bunch) ends in a surprising way. Laval’s performance as Austin is certainly spirited and he forms a nice connection with younger brother Logan (Gavin Warren). Fahy is also an interesting character as the mother of two, left to hold the household together, when Scott pushes headlong into self-destructive behavior and goes off the rails.
Levi is actually pretty good here, though there is an ironic twist that he initially endorsed Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for president in 2024 - a man who believes vaccinations cause autism. But we apparently are simply supposed to forget all of that. Instead, the biggest failing is that Gunn decides to randomly pivot away from Austin’s story and focus on Scott’s journey as the bigger tale to tell. As a result, he undercuts nearly all of the good moments we feel and experience.
Gunn’s decision to include Scott’s lifelong imaginary friend Joe (Drew Powell) is a substantial mistake. Joe, who appears in nearly every scene, is a physical embodiment of Scott’s thoughts and internal dialogue. While many characters laugh about the fact that Scott talks to himself a lot, we see him actually chattering out loud with someone who isn’t actually there. As a result, it becomes next to impossible to take Scott’s growth all that seriously.
As the last several paragraphs of this review have pivoted to Scott’s story and character, therein lies the problem with The Unbreakable Boy. We think it is about an inspirational young boy who overcomes incredible obstacles to find a footing in life, in school, and in his community.
Intentional or not, the film positions Scott as the unbreakable one, offering a bait-and-switch that suggests some narrative decisions can indeed be unforgivable.
CAST & CREW
Starring: Zachary Levi, Meghann Fahy, Jacob Laval, Drew Powell, Gavin Warren, Patricia Heaton, Todd Terry, Peter Facinelli, Pilot Bunch, Kurt Yue, Roy Jackson Miller, Kellen Martelli
Director: Jon Gunn
Written by: Jon Gunn
Adapted from the novel “The Unbreakable Boy: A Father’s Fear, a Son’s Courage, and a Story of Unconditional Love” by Scott Michael LeRette and Susy Flory
Release Date: February 21, 2025
Lionsgate