MovieChat Forums > Saving Sarah Cain (2007) Discussion > inaccuracies

inaccuracies

posted 17 years ago by pafpdd
16 replies | jump to latest

This movie is SO inaccurate, first off, you cant become amish, there is no converting, you either are or your not. secondly Pittsburgh (239 miles & 3H & 40 M) is not the closest city to Lancasty County, Philadelphia (79 miles & 1H & 20M) is, Amish people are well aware of this, they are always in Philly & surrounding suburbs selling their stuff at farmers markets & whatnot. How difficult is that to find about before you make a movie? Also that DHS guy at the beginning is very unrealistic. & when Liddie hides her mothers letter in a heat grate in the house, why do people who dont have electricity, running water, or central heat/AC have a grate in their house? & at the end when she is typing on her laptop, uuummmm where would she plug it in to recharge it? also i dont think that would be ok with old order amish to be using yr laptop in their kitchen? it would be like if you went to someones house for Shabbos & after dinner started watching tv. not cool. For the most part our laws dont pertain to them, except for murder, drugs & other big crimes. they are mostly allowed to decide on matters within their own community. As in a case about 10 or so years ago, where elders took away a families children & shunned them, if DHS didnt get involved in that i cannot see them getting involved in this. & when no one in the community would take all of the children, that is also so not something i can see the amish doing, they would have made every effort to keep them together. This movie is utterly ridiculous.

---so long & thanks for all the fish---

[–] filmreaver 16 years ago

The plot appears to be pretty weak, how could the main character have a sister who is Amish and yet she is not? Sounds like someone didn't research enough into this. It should have been that the character entered Rumspringa and then decided to stay out among the 'English' and not be baptised into the Amish faith. That would be more realistic than the tripe this film plot is about. It would make more sense as those who make the choice to remain outside and not be baptised can still visit and are not shunned. The screenwriters could have discovered this little bit or realism and incorporated that into the plot. Would have made the film flow a bit more smoothly. Highly unlikely that there were no other Amish relatives that could have taken in the kids, Amish families are known for their size and amount of relatives so again, another plot hole and inaccuracy.

[–] anyabar-1 16 years ago

ok first off you can become Amish. it is just very hard to do and most people don't get past the classes that are required. no the father was not Amish either (read the book)

the book explains that they are new order and do have electricity in the house. New order is allowed to use electricity to a point and also all Amish houses are designed according to code, with full wiring so that if they move for some reason and an "englisher" buys the house all they have to do is hook it up to the grid. they could also have bought an "englisher" house

[–] hazzardcountygirl 16 years ago

yes, this movie is highly inaccurate, but you have been misinformed. you can become amish. very few people do, but it is done. i have not seen the movie but i saw a sneak peek of the making of it, and from that i would have to agree with you, the movie is udderly ridiculous.

[–] redknight42972 16 years ago

And also when taking guardianship, you may not change there religion.

[–] realgump 16 years ago

You are right that Pittsburgh is not the closest city, but you are wrong about Philly. It is Harrisburg.
Again you are right in that the Amish settle things amonst themselves. You can join the Amish, but it is usually done by marrying an Amish person; I don't recall the movie saying whether the father was Amish.
One other thing personal to me. I went nuts hearing Lancaster mispronounced!!!!! To the best of my ability it is pronounced Lan-chust-er and said very fast.

realgump

[–] pafpdd 16 years ago

i guess i dont really consider harrisburg to be a big city. i mean have you been there? its like the size of 1 city block.

---so long & thanks for all the fish---

[–] sherm50 16 years ago

No it is pronounced Lan-cast-er, just like that.Its a movie people,not a documentary,writers ,directors,etc..do that all the time. Movies are seldom 100 % accurate. The only problem I had was that the woman who played Sarah was not a very good actress.

[–] elfishpirat 14 years ago

It's Lan-cast-er.

Some of you people really need to do some research into the Amish. I'm PA born and bred and I have known several Amish families throughout the years. There are 2 main Amish Churches: New Order and Old Order..and there are several others (like beachy) New Order Amish allow electric and often have telephones in the house or barn. Old Order Amish allow no electric whatsoever. According to the book, the Cottrells were New Order Amish.

Furthermore, an Enlgisher marrying an Amish person is beyond rare. An Amish youth dating an "englisher" is often seen as a sin and a blight on the family. You can also join the Amish Church, but most people only last a few months. It's a very hard life.

This is simply another case of the book being WAY better than the movie...like usual. In the book, the children were never removed from Lancaster. Sarah never joined the Amish, rather she lived there but kept her relatively modern lifestyle.

Directors and Screenwriters, STOP SCREWING UP THE PLOTS OF REALLY GOOD BOOKS!!!

[–] quigley_brown-1 13 years ago

There's no such thing as an Amish 'church.'

[–] IATeacher 16 years ago

Yes you can become Amish. It is rare but possible. According to the book Redemption of Sarah Cain, which this movie is based on, her sister and brother-in-law became Amish which is why there are no Amish relatives to care for the children. The books also explains that they were New Order Amish. This means they can have electricity (for the laptop) and heat.

[–] sellif 16 years ago

Granted it's not as big as Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but Lancaster is technically a city. It's also full of restaurants, shopping, entertainment etc...

[–] flier-1 16 years ago

Yes there are inaccuracies, for instance, the funeral scene has background mountains that are not found in Lancaster Co. They look very western. Anyway despite the problems, it was a good movie.

[–] sweettalker2168 16 years ago

I for one found it a good movie, but the one inaccuracy that jumped out at me was the lenght of the two older sisters hair...from what I know, females in the Amish community don't ever cut their hair, if this being true the older sisters hair should have been longer than the younger.

[–] SPNGirl83 16 years ago

I live in Amish Country PA and my stepdad works for an Amish family driving them to and from the Farmers Market here in town. From what I've learned from the family:

1. All houses are modernly built. Some even have electricity in the barns and house, refridgerators, telephones.
2. You can marry into the Amish Faith. Most of the time it is the new order Amish and not the old order.
3. Even if you leave sometimes you can still be accepted by your family. (as with the brother of the guy my stepdad works for)
4. The Men never shave their beards is true, depending on the strickness this may be changed in the community. Same goes with women's hair.
5. After the age of 13 schooling stops, for both the boys & girls. Its considered Vocational Training after that.

WE ARE ROBIN HOOD
Live life to its fullest!

[–] DavidCrow 14 years ago

& at the end when she is typing on her laptop, uuummmm where would she plug it in to recharge it?

It could have been fully charged prior to her visit.

[–] blnj25 13 years ago

As someone who is originally from the area ........ the closest city is actually the city of Lancaster. Harrisburg is the closest city with an airport. Another thing that irks me is the pronunciation of Lancaster.