Jim Stovall wrote more than 50 books. Out of which 3 became famous films Ultimate Gift 2006,Ultimate Life 2013 & Ultimate Legacy 2015. This sequel is about a tenacious,diehard,strong-willed American Businessman Red Stevens(James Garner)who leaves behind a huge fortune for his Grandson Jason. All 3 films are worth watching & make the complete sense. Here is true American values culture & morals. After he earns inheritance in hard way,he makes Hospital,Oil rigs & investments. He is big & rich but looses his love. His wife finds niche in nursing in a distant Hospital. He hates to be just a money making Robot. In the confusion,his Grandfather's journal helps him. He gains love &ultimate life. Request please first see the Ultimate Gift,later the Ultimate & last the Life. If you are American or Global citizen you will yourself & your life. James Welch Henderson Arkansas 6/30/21.
16 Reviews
A wonderful film
barbicane33339 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
The Ultimate Life has been attacked by critics as a sop to "family values" types and prudes, who complain about "too much sex and violence" in movies. I'm not a prude or an ultra religious person, and I loved this film. I knew nothing about it when I agreed to go with two friends, who had seen trailers for it. I nearly passed after reading critics' reviews, and boy, am I glad I didn't.
This is a "feel good" movie which I highly recommend, particularly to anyone who likes a good romance. The main characters are shown falling in love as teens and still in love as adults. It presents its characters honestly and shows how someone can change from ruthlessly pursuing riches to wanting to do good for mankind. You'll also see beautiful cinematography of the Texas prairies.
There are battle scenes of WW II and it also portrays the beginning of the oil industry in Texas. The key word for me is romance. Ignore the critics this time. This is a story well told.
Please check this review for spoilers.
This is a "feel good" movie which I highly recommend, particularly to anyone who likes a good romance. The main characters are shown falling in love as teens and still in love as adults. It presents its characters honestly and shows how someone can change from ruthlessly pursuing riches to wanting to do good for mankind. You'll also see beautiful cinematography of the Texas prairies.
There are battle scenes of WW II and it also portrays the beginning of the oil industry in Texas. The key word for me is romance. Ignore the critics this time. This is a story well told.
Please check this review for spoilers.
Good movie with good story, but did not have a star value.
Reno-Rangan20 March 2014
This is a sequel to the 2006s 'The Ultimate Gift'. The story commences from where It ended in the first, but after opening few minutes it takes us to the flashback story in the earlier decades. It was not a bad story at all, but it did not have any valuable film stars in it to lighten up. Especially failing to bring back Drew Fuller was the biggest drawback for this sequel. Other than that it was well filmed in beautiful places in the United States. This movie was not bad as you heard about it. If you try it once, you will realise what I was saying. It is a fine B movie.
✰✰✰✰✰✰½/10
✰✰✰✰✰✰½/10
It feels like DVD bonus material for the original film
DUKEJBM23 September 2013
I really enjoyed The Ultimate Gift (original film) and saw it at a time in my life where it really hit home and really registered with me. I was greatly looking forward to this sequel. Having said that, something seemed missing this time around. To be honest, this entire movie feels like DVD bonus material for that original film. That's not a bad thing but despite a great message, this effort feels lacking. I enjoyed the Red Stevens back story but the writing and story feels somewhat shallow and incomplete. Since I enjoyed and was moved by the first film, this extended look appealed to me. Truthfully, as a stand alone film it really doesn't hold up well at all even delivering a wonderful message and few points to live by and dwell upon.
More than worth watching if you enjoyed the first film.
More than worth watching if you enjoyed the first film.
Would definitely watch again!
sanna-febin8 July 2015
It's probably not something that would blast the box office open, but its a notch above others that I've seen. It's definitely worth watching. I enjoyed this movie enough to write a review because:
1) It's totally CLEAN. Absolutely nothing lewd or inappropriate. I would watch a movie for this alone, given how rare it is. 2) Plenty of amazing looking guys, yum. :) 3) A positive, not overly cheesy, message. At first, I was worried it was gonna be one of those dogmatic, preachy, "Christian" films or something... 4) The film leaves a "feel good" feeling that stays with you. 5) It's good enough to watch again, with family or friends. Nothing too scary for the young kiddos. 6) Pretty decent, interesting storyline and plot, definitely wasn't bored watching it and rooted for the characters the whole way. 7) Has a good, satisfying ending, and not depressing. I hate movies where you feel bittersweet and left hanging at the end. 8) Was really beautifully shot for an "average" movie. Wait, maybe the movie wasn't so average, after all, haha.
You won't regret watching this, unless you're just not into sweet romantic, inspirational, rated PG family films. :)
1) It's totally CLEAN. Absolutely nothing lewd or inappropriate. I would watch a movie for this alone, given how rare it is. 2) Plenty of amazing looking guys, yum. :) 3) A positive, not overly cheesy, message. At first, I was worried it was gonna be one of those dogmatic, preachy, "Christian" films or something... 4) The film leaves a "feel good" feeling that stays with you. 5) It's good enough to watch again, with family or friends. Nothing too scary for the young kiddos. 6) Pretty decent, interesting storyline and plot, definitely wasn't bored watching it and rooted for the characters the whole way. 7) Has a good, satisfying ending, and not depressing. I hate movies where you feel bittersweet and left hanging at the end. 8) Was really beautifully shot for an "average" movie. Wait, maybe the movie wasn't so average, after all, haha.
You won't regret watching this, unless you're just not into sweet romantic, inspirational, rated PG family films. :)
Disappointing
aer71367-313-15506916 November 2017
After reading the series I was very excited to find that films had been made. My husband and I really like the Ultimate Gift although it left out parts of the book, it was still a wonderful movie. So I rented The Ultimate Life without hesitation and when we sat down to watch it, I wanted to scream! I was really looking forward to seeing court case of Jason against his greedy relatives and all I saw was a bi-op of Red's life. Did the director even read this fantastic book? He couldn't have, because he didn't do it justice at all. I was peeved that Drew Fuller wasn't in this film but little did it matter since Logan Bartholomew wasn't much in it as well. What a let down to a life changing book. This series deserved better.
Sadly, not even close to as good as the first movie...
LiveLoveLead13 July 2020
My family loved' The Ultimate Gift' so we were looking forward to this squeal (which actually provides a backstory for the original movie and is more of a prequel.) The first movie wasn't a huge box office hit or high-quality film but was an enjoyable, heartwarming, family movie with a great message, good acting, and a decent script...along with some familiar, well-liked actors. On the other hand, this movie came across as very low budget and amateurish. The movie had some very unrealistic, even silly, scenes and was completely predictable. Those things in and of themselves wouldn't be all bad but the writing, acting, direction, and pacing were also pretty bad. This film tells the story of Red Stevens, the grandpa, played by James Garner, from the first movie, and how he became the man he was, and why he passed The Ultimate Gift down to his grandson, which was interesting and we did watch it to the end but this movie was very disappointing and not as pleasant to sit through as the first movie, In My Humble Opinion!
Leaving a Legacy
scrap116511 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
The Ultimate Life was a fantastic movie, and I was greatly surprised when I went to the theater a mere 4 days after its release and there were only 3 other people there. The movie itself was a well done sequel/prequel to The Ultimate Gift. In my opinion, this movie has a lot more of an impact if you have see the other before this one, I would highly recommend watching The Ultimate Gift prior to The Ultimate Life. The main takeaway from this movie should be that we have too much selfishness inside of us, and if everyone keeps living at the rate we are living now, we are going to grow up breeding selfish generation after generation.
Of course this is an extreme over generalization for our world, since there are obviously still good people in the world, like the ones who inspired this movie I would imagine. And one of the more important lessons we learn from this film is that the greatest fortune in life is love and family, without those, not even a billion dollars could ever truly satisfy our desires. Riches, possessions, trophies, and anything else we accumulate on this world will fade, and it will fail us. Ultimately, we are remembered by our legacy, which is not only what we have done in life, but also by our family and future generations, who will be our legacy.
The film itself was done very well in terms of recreating the grandfather's past and explaining to us how the 12 gifts came to be. I loved his story and how he had to work very hard to get to where he wanted to be. In contrast, too many young people today expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter, and they don't want to work for anything they want. There needs to be more movies made like this so we can get the point across to the younger generations that it's not all about them, life is about loving each other and creating a legacy that we can be proud of.
So whenever someone asks me what I want out of life, I know what I'm going to say now, "I want to leave a legacy. I want to be remembered long after I'm gone. I don't want to just float through life, I want to make an impact." I would highly recommend this movie to anyone wanting to see something different from the usual garbage that is shown in theaters.
Of course this is an extreme over generalization for our world, since there are obviously still good people in the world, like the ones who inspired this movie I would imagine. And one of the more important lessons we learn from this film is that the greatest fortune in life is love and family, without those, not even a billion dollars could ever truly satisfy our desires. Riches, possessions, trophies, and anything else we accumulate on this world will fade, and it will fail us. Ultimately, we are remembered by our legacy, which is not only what we have done in life, but also by our family and future generations, who will be our legacy.
The film itself was done very well in terms of recreating the grandfather's past and explaining to us how the 12 gifts came to be. I loved his story and how he had to work very hard to get to where he wanted to be. In contrast, too many young people today expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter, and they don't want to work for anything they want. There needs to be more movies made like this so we can get the point across to the younger generations that it's not all about them, life is about loving each other and creating a legacy that we can be proud of.
So whenever someone asks me what I want out of life, I know what I'm going to say now, "I want to leave a legacy. I want to be remembered long after I'm gone. I don't want to just float through life, I want to make an impact." I would highly recommend this movie to anyone wanting to see something different from the usual garbage that is shown in theaters.
Just an awful movie
rdeweyclark7 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
I usually do not find a lot to be critical of in a movie. I like cheesy action films, bad comedies, and overdone dramas. But this movie was just awful.
The acting looked like it was from a whose line is it anyway skit. It was like the skit where one actor is given a character to play and they overact it so ridiculously that the other improvist can easily guess who they are. And this acting was pervasive throughout the film.
The interactions between the characters were unbelievable. The main guy, proposing to his girlfriend with the ring in hand, is served a subpoena and promptly puts the ring away and leaves the girlfriend there alone. I get it. The guy has his priorities mixed up. But, that's ridiculous. Additionally, the whole movie is a flashback that the main guy is reading about in his grandpa's journal. After a night's reading, he is a changed man, and is now worthy of his girlfriend. Come on.
But the frustration continues. The flashback portion of the movie takes us back to late depression era USA. Following the grandpa now (who is 15 at the time) we get to see comical attempts in recreating the time periods. Sitting around the table in an obviously poor apartment, is the grandpa's family. His younger brother has on a t shirt that was clearly bought at old navy. Later, the grandpa is getting paid for a day's work. The dollars he is paid in look suspicious from a distant camera shot, but whatever. But then, the camera zooms in nice and close to show 20s that are clearly a modern design. These are small things that honestly made the whole movie look silly.
I suppose those involved with making this movie are of the mindset that the wonderful message behind it absolves them of any professional film making responsibility. In reality, they do that wonderful message injustice by expressing it through unbelievable dialog, poor acting, comical laziness in recreating time eras, and logic defying character development.
The acting looked like it was from a whose line is it anyway skit. It was like the skit where one actor is given a character to play and they overact it so ridiculously that the other improvist can easily guess who they are. And this acting was pervasive throughout the film.
The interactions between the characters were unbelievable. The main guy, proposing to his girlfriend with the ring in hand, is served a subpoena and promptly puts the ring away and leaves the girlfriend there alone. I get it. The guy has his priorities mixed up. But, that's ridiculous. Additionally, the whole movie is a flashback that the main guy is reading about in his grandpa's journal. After a night's reading, he is a changed man, and is now worthy of his girlfriend. Come on.
But the frustration continues. The flashback portion of the movie takes us back to late depression era USA. Following the grandpa now (who is 15 at the time) we get to see comical attempts in recreating the time periods. Sitting around the table in an obviously poor apartment, is the grandpa's family. His younger brother has on a t shirt that was clearly bought at old navy. Later, the grandpa is getting paid for a day's work. The dollars he is paid in look suspicious from a distant camera shot, but whatever. But then, the camera zooms in nice and close to show 20s that are clearly a modern design. These are small things that honestly made the whole movie look silly.
I suppose those involved with making this movie are of the mindset that the wonderful message behind it absolves them of any professional film making responsibility. In reality, they do that wonderful message injustice by expressing it through unbelievable dialog, poor acting, comical laziness in recreating time eras, and logic defying character development.
Continuation from the ultimate gift
tgdx20 January 2021
Odd Values
polsixe23 August 2020
For a feel good Christian values movie this one is a little odd, the protaganist has it in his mind to be the next Andrew Carnegie and goes about it with single-minded determination. Is becoming a billionaire so important for the evangelicals? Whatever happened to the old "eye of the needle" proverb?
If you have to choose between The Ultimate Life and The Ultimate Gift, watch The Ultimate Gift instead
pottsb299 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
When The Ultimate Life was released, I decided to go to the theater to watch it, thinking that it would be as good as The Ultimate Gift (I've watched that movie a few times, including shortly before going to see The Ultimate Life) - The Ultimate Life ended up being an unnecessary addition to the original, unless you're interested in the family's background and don't like the ending of the original movie. If you haven't seen The Ultimate Gift, be sure to watch that movie before viewing The Ultimate Life. Once again Jason is learning how to be a model citizen, but this time through reading his grandfather's journal. The prequel (most of the movie) shows Red at a young age, how the family became rich, and how his mistakes led to some of the family's problems (more money was never enough to him, he neglected his family). Red's change in character is shown, but unfortunately it came too late for his own children (most followed the bad example he set for them when they were younger). The sequel is predictable to anyone who's watched The Ultimate Gift. Some people think that this movie is Christian - The truth is that there is very little mention of God or anything else associated with Christianity (most people would agree with the movie's message, regardless of religion).
what a load
sandcrab2772 November 2020
Of steaming horse dung ... poorly cast, poorly written, poorly acted, and the producers should be shot on sight ... sincerely doubt anyone would pay the price of popcorn to see this drivel ... if family means everything then make it so and quit dancing around it ...
The Ultimate Gift The Ultimate Life The Ultimate Legacy
kempfercrystal10 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Prequel
pamelachipper6 April 2020
New and improved
MickyG3338 February 2024
7.6 stars.
This is a sequel in one aspect alone: it's a backstory for Red, the billionaire from the first movie. Every other aspect of this film is different and exclusive from the first and should not be compared. If you've seen the first one, you might be tempted to look at this as a sequel, expecting something similar with the same feel and background, but you would be disappointed (possibly the opposite) if you take this approach. I am in the latter group. I did expect something like the first, but realized after 20 minutes I must shift my reckoning to a fresh perspective.
We are taken back to the 1940's before the war, Red is a young man with massive aspirations to be a billionaire like Carnegie. He starts from rock bottom, homelessness, working on a ranch for a pittance, skipping high school to follow his dream of being rich, doing whatever it takes. He's smart, and soon he's also smitten by a girl. They love each other dearly and as the story continues the epic adventure and life of this man unfolds. We are taken into her attempts to get him to attend high school, then their courtship, into his experiences in World War II, digging for oil after the war, hitting paydirt, getting filthy rich, winning lawsuits, becoming an oil tycoon, and leaving competitors in his wake. It all spans about 30 years. Unfortunately, he becomes one of the most greedy and ruthless men in the industry.
This is an absolutely marvelous standalone film. Unlatch yourself from 'The Ultimate Gift', because it will be the ultimate gift for yourself in order to fully understand and enjoy the originality and adventure this movie offers. If you are stuck in the tracks of the first installment, comparing, taking notes, differentiating, rating the performances, placing emphasis on the actors and not the quality of writing...you will miss the obvious: 'The Ultimate Life' contains a superior setting and background than that explored in 'The Ultimate Gift'. The former film utilized a higher budget and the production value appeared larger, but this sequel presents a much fuller story and is easier to follow. I think people got caught up in the casting choices and lack of marital focus. The romance is predominantly absent, but in its place is an inside look at a rags to riches story of a man and how he was shaped from hard-hearted to compassionate.
This is a sequel in one aspect alone: it's a backstory for Red, the billionaire from the first movie. Every other aspect of this film is different and exclusive from the first and should not be compared. If you've seen the first one, you might be tempted to look at this as a sequel, expecting something similar with the same feel and background, but you would be disappointed (possibly the opposite) if you take this approach. I am in the latter group. I did expect something like the first, but realized after 20 minutes I must shift my reckoning to a fresh perspective.
We are taken back to the 1940's before the war, Red is a young man with massive aspirations to be a billionaire like Carnegie. He starts from rock bottom, homelessness, working on a ranch for a pittance, skipping high school to follow his dream of being rich, doing whatever it takes. He's smart, and soon he's also smitten by a girl. They love each other dearly and as the story continues the epic adventure and life of this man unfolds. We are taken into her attempts to get him to attend high school, then their courtship, into his experiences in World War II, digging for oil after the war, hitting paydirt, getting filthy rich, winning lawsuits, becoming an oil tycoon, and leaving competitors in his wake. It all spans about 30 years. Unfortunately, he becomes one of the most greedy and ruthless men in the industry.
This is an absolutely marvelous standalone film. Unlatch yourself from 'The Ultimate Gift', because it will be the ultimate gift for yourself in order to fully understand and enjoy the originality and adventure this movie offers. If you are stuck in the tracks of the first installment, comparing, taking notes, differentiating, rating the performances, placing emphasis on the actors and not the quality of writing...you will miss the obvious: 'The Ultimate Life' contains a superior setting and background than that explored in 'The Ultimate Gift'. The former film utilized a higher budget and the production value appeared larger, but this sequel presents a much fuller story and is easier to follow. I think people got caught up in the casting choices and lack of marital focus. The romance is predominantly absent, but in its place is an inside look at a rags to riches story of a man and how he was shaped from hard-hearted to compassionate.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
