Sweet Sunshine Review — Are you ready for some sweet schmaltz? Many of us could use some right now.

Sweet Sunshine, an indie film shot entirely in Arizona using local talent, follows the ups and downs of young country singer TJ Millhouse (John Way) as he navigates the pitfalls of fame and contends with family, love, and faith.

TJ’s dour dad, Hank (Rob Edwards), doesn’t approve of any career that doesn’t involve shoveling manure on the farm, so when TJ is discovered and becomes famous almost overnight, it leads to a serious rift between father and son.

Making matters worse, personal tragedy strikes and sends TJ into a tailspin. It looks like he’s lost both family and career. But when he meets Sunshine (Savannah McMahon), a down-on-her-luck woman with a love of music, they find their second chance together and rise above.

Although Sweet Sunshine is an indie film without a Hollywood budget, it delivers nicely in many ways. The live performance sequences and original songs are alive, catchy, and fun. Some of the locations (a gorgeous lodge where TJ goes to regroup) are really impressive, while others (a photography studio with nothing but a sofa and no professional light setup) fall flat. The acting is mostly good in spite of a pretty predictable script. But in such uncertain times, predictable can be good—like cinematic comfort food. There’s a certain downhome charm to Sweet Sunshine, and that works in its favor.

Overall, Sweet Sunshine is a passable family-friendly flick with an underlying current of faith-based optimism. While not a musical per se, there are lots of original songs and good on-stage sequences. Think of it as a poor man’s A Star is Born minus the sad ending.

Not Rated

1 Hour 33 Minutes

If this Sweet Sunshine review makes you want to hunker down and watch it in your own home, stream it on . Find more links and info at SweetSunshinemovie.com.

Sweet Sunshine Review — Are you ready for some sweet schmaltz? Many of us could use some right now.

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