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The Shack

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The Shack

PG-13

Released Mar 3, 2017

2h 12m

Drama

Fantasy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

20%

Tomatometer

71 Reviews

76%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

After suffering a family tragedy, Mack Phillips spirals into a deep depression that causes him to question his innermost beliefs. Facing a crisis of faith, he receives a mysterious letter urging him to an abandoned shack in the Oregon wilderness. Despite his doubts, Mack journeys to the shack and encounters an enigmatic trio of strangers led by a woman named Papa. Through this meeting, Mack finds important truths that will transform his understanding of his tragedy and change his life forever.

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Critics Consensus

The Shack's undeniably worthy message is ill-served by a script that confuses spiritual uplift with melodramatic clichés and heavy-handed sermonizing.

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Tara Brady

Irish Times

Perhaps there are Christians who will appreciate The Shack's Oprahfied universal heaven, wherein no bad deed goes punished. But it made us pine for the Book of Job God to spitefully hurl leviathans and behemoths.

Rated: 2/5

Jun 28, 2017

Full Review

Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

Making a sincere film about religious faith is a tricky thing to pull off. And this folksy dose of misguided manipulation demonstrates many of the common pitfalls.

Rated: 1/5

Jun 11, 2017

Full Review

Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

Touchy-feely New Age therapy runs headlong into evangelical Christianity in The Shack.

Rated: 2/5

Jun 9, 2017

Full Review

Juan Pablo Russo

EscribiendoCine

The Shack attempts to offer a message of redemption, but it does so in such an explicit and moralistic manner that it ends up alienating any viewer who does not share the film's religious vision. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 2/10

Sep 11, 2024

Full Review

Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

Essentially a parable at its core, like the book, the film challenges traditional Christian viewpoints, notably in the visual interpretation of God.

Rated: 3/5

Oct 30, 2019

Full Review

Nicholas Bell

IONCINEMA.com

The Shack is as graceless as its monosyllabic title.

Rated: 1/5

Oct 5, 2019

Full Review

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Darcie J

Every time I watch this movie I pick up more. Very awesome and worth watching multiple times.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/09/22

Full Review

chaselynn b

The Shack is a deeply moving movie that powerfully shows God's love and grace. It’s a great reminder of how much God cares for us and can really strengthen and inspire faith.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/29/25

Full Review

Dimitra K

One of the worst, most ridiculous, childish films I have seen of late. I love Octavia Spencer so this critique pains me. The "theological" debates bits of the script were as if written by an eight year old. The directing was like a lifetime tv movie of the eighties.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

04/19/25

Full Review

Amy A

It was a beautiful movie. I loved all the scenery and cgi. If you really understand the characters emotions it is beautiful.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/11/25

Full Review

Tatiana H

I really enjoyed this movie 10/10. I feel like if you’re on a journey walking with God or yearning for a deeper relationship with him , this movie might just push that along further. I was crying a ridiculous amount and was really healing with this movie as well. I would definitely recommend this movie.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/21/25

Full Review

Paige M

One of the most powerful aspects of The Shack is how it presents God’s love in an intimate, personal way. The portrayal of God as “Papa” is a beautiful reminder that our relationship with Him is not distant or cold, but deeply personal and nurturing. It’s heartbreaking to see some critics twist this into something shameful, showing just how unwilling they are to even try to understand the nature of God’s love. Those who mock this film are often the same people who reject faith altogether—of course, they won’t understand something they refuse to open their hearts to.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/07/25

Full Review

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Stuart Hazeldine

Director

Sam Worthington

Mack Phillips

Octavia Spencer

Papa

Aviv Alush

Jesus

Radha Mitchell

Nan Phillips

Alice Braga

Sophia

The Shack: Official Clip - Meeting the Trinity

2:14

The Shack: Official Clip - Laying Her to Rest

2:58

The Shack: Official Clip - A Garden of You

3:00

The Shack: Official Clip - Understanding Forgiveness

3:00

The Shack: Official Clip - The Murderer's Shack

2:57

The Shack: Official Clip - Drowning in Fear

2:00

The Shack: Official Clip - Revisiting the Shack

2:26

The Shack: Official Clip - Boat Flip

2:04

The Shack: Official Clip - Reconciling With My Father

3:00

The Shack: Official Clip - Send Your Kids to Hell

3:00

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The Shack: 'Keep Your Eyes On Me' Trailer

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The Shack: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

After suffering a family tragedy, Mack Phillips spirals into a deep depression that causes him to question his innermost beliefs. Facing a crisis of faith, he receives a mysterious letter urging him to an abandoned shack in the Oregon wilderness. Despite his doubts, Mack journeys to the shack and encounters an enigmatic trio of strangers led by a woman named Papa. Through this meeting, Mack finds important truths that will transform his understanding of his tragedy and change his life forever.

Director: Stuart Hazeldine
Producer: Gil Netter, Brad Cummings
Screenwriter: John Fusco, Andrew Lanham, Destin Daniel Cretton
Distributor: Lionsgate Films
Production Co: Windblown Media, Summit Entertainment, TIK Films, Gil Netter
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Material|Some Violence)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 3, 2017, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 16, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $57.2M
Runtime: 2h 12m

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