Plot Summary
Stuck in a long line of pastoral succession at a megachurch headed by the popular Johnny Kingman, James White is desperate to make his mark and to stand out from the crowd. But doing so only gets him into further trouble. After nearly ruining a children’s Sunday school class and an expensive painting and disrupting a church service, Kingman send James on a probation to pastor a struggling church in Atlanta. So James, his wife Lily, and their two children make a cross-country move to the Peach State and find themselves thrust into a multicultural world they have never before experienced. Not only must James find a way to save the struggling church, but he must come to grips with the fact that he is not invincible and must rely on God and his family for help.
Production Quality (1.5 points)
Compared to other PureFlix productions, Brother White is not horrible. It actually has a lot of potential. The camera work is pretty good, as is the video quality. However, the sound quality is inconsistent and some outside scenes are covered up with musical montages. The editing is decent, but the sets and locations are obviously cheap. There are some slight excuses for this, but it still could have been better. Probably the worst production element is pretending like certain characters are singing when they are obviously not. In short, the production of Brother White is just average—neither horrible nor dynamic. There was a lot of potential here that was not brought to the surface.
Plot and Storyline Quality (1.5 points)
Unlike many PureFlix plots, Brother White is slightly interesting. Exploring racial relations by inserting an affluent white (White?) family into a predominantly African-American church has a lot of potential, if stereotypes are avoided. For the most part, they are. There is plenty of satire in Brother White that is actually funny, such as tongue-in-cheek swipes at prosperity gospel churches. But there are also elements that are just trying too hard. Too much comedy falls flat and some lines leave you scratching your head. There are plot holes that are glossed over and some humor is way too obvious, such as the name ‘Lily White’. The plot boils down to a simplistic save the farm storyline and seems to lose its original purpose in the end. James’ character arc is commendable, but the whole movie just leaves you wanting more substance. In short, Brother White is not so awful that it’s unwatchable, but it’s also frustrating to watch because there was obviously a lot of creativity left untapped.
Acting Quality (1 point)
Though this is probably David A. R. White’s best lead role, it still leaves much to be desired. The presence of more professional actors in this cast keeps it from sinking to the depths of most PureFlix casts. However, there is still a lack of acting coaching. Were all the actors up to par, this movie would have improved.
Conclusion
This is probably the closest the Whites and Tommy Blaze will ever get to true comedy. But were this plot in different hands, we can’t help but feel it could have been Hall of Fame worthy. It contains a unique plot on a good topic and as it is, has some humorous elements. In the end, Brother White is the highest rated White comedy and unfortunately, it is hard to believe that it will get any better than this.
Final Rating: 4 out of 10 points
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