To help bring awareness to issues surrounding mental illness, bring support to families, and help dispel some of the stigma surrounding the disease, LET ME HAVE MY SON is poised to release on World Schizophrenia Day, May 24, in select theaters and streaming. LET ME HAVE MY SON was created by Messenger Films and is distributed through Ocean Avenue Entertainment.
Originally published as a collection of prayer letters written by Cristóbal Krusen, Let Me Have My Son was first published as a book in 2007, then revised and re-released in November, 2022 to coincide with the release of the feature film. What began for Krusen as heartfelt prayers for his mentally ill son have become words of hope and encouragement to many others going through their own times of trial.
Such is the inspiration behind the feature-length arthouse film LET ME HAVE MY SON, a semi-fictional, emotion-laden tale of a father coming to grips with his son’s devastating mental illness. In the film, Ben Whitmore Sr. (Krusen) travels to Middlemouth Security Hospital after being informed that, after years of treatment, his son, Benny (Nathan Barlow) has recovered from schizophrenia. However, instead of bringing Benny home, Ben Sr. discovers that he has disappeared, triggering the father’s increasingly desperate search for answers. In an epilogue to the film, viewers get to experience a brief, emotional video of Cristóbal and his real-life son, Daniel, sharing family time together.
The release of the film could not be timelier, as the National Institute of Mental Health reports that currently 1 out of 5 of our nation’s children now suffer from debilitating mental disorders. The word ‘schizophrenia’ itself means “a splitting of the mind”** , and according to the World Health Organization, over 21 million people worldwide struggle specifically with schizophrenia.
Cristóbal shares, “My son was, and still is, the apple of my eye. While his disease has taken him away from us in many ways, we can still see the goodness of the Lord at work. I hope the book, and now the film, can give hope and encouragement to those facing issues of mental illness. I believe that love completes what hope begins, and God’s gift of faith will carry us through life’s often arduous journey.”
Let Me Have My Son, written by Cristóbal Krusen, was published by Hollywood Jesus Books and is available at all major book retailers and online.
LET ME HAVE MY SON was created by Messenger Films and distributed through Ocean Avenue Entertainment. The film will be released through streaming platforms and in select theaters on May 24, 2023.
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