Treasure Blind (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

A down-on-his-luck cab driver accidentally discovers an old map from the Civil Way era that could lead him to buried treasure. However, in order to find what he’s looking for, he’ll have to face the past he’s been running from. His journey involves an exploration of Christian faith and a sight-impaired boy whom everyone else ignores.

Production Quality (.5 point)

This production leaves a lot to be desired, beginning with very cheap camera work and angles. Weird close-up shots and lack of stability confuse the audience. Audio quality is inconsistent, including a cheap soundtrack and background noises. The video is sometimes blurry, and the sets, locations, and props are limited. Some scenes are very dark while others are covered in soft lighting. Further, the editing is extremely choppy, completely cutting off some scenes with no warning. The only thing that keeps this section from being zero is the slight improvement in the film’s second half even though it’s too little too late.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

In this plot, it seems like the writers confused themselves with how they presented it to the viewers due to the past/present split in the narratives. As it is, the historical portion is very cheesy. Elsewhere, the characters are extremely vanilla and generic due to empty and blank dialogue. The story moves from one thing to the next, making it hard to understand. The overall premise is generally vague and slightly unrealistic, and any flashbacks that are included just replay things that recently happened. In the end, the rushed conclusion easily fixes all the problems and doesn’t leave the audience with much memorable or meaningful. Thus, without any potential or positives, this section can’t be awarded any points.

Acting Quality (1 point)

Unfortunately, much of the acting in Treasure Blind is very bland and even dead-faced. Little to no emotions are demonstrated, and line delivery tends to be lazy. Coaching seems lacking as many performances are a bit unnatural, awkward, and forced. However, there are some positive moments, as well as improvement as the movie goes on. Thus, a small score is warranted here.

Conclusion

Nonetheless, not much can save this screenplay from itself. While the creators of Treasure Blind may have meant well, the presentation is completely off. We need more films that highlight the everyday lives of the sight-impaired, but this is just embarrassing due to poor quality in all three categories. Hopefully, we’ll no longer see such low-standard Christian entertainment on the market.

Final Rating: 1.5 out of 10 points

October 15, 2020 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Drama, Historical, Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 1.5 points, 2008, Bill Brazelton, Bill Thomas, Billy Paul, Brian Shoop, Cloud Ten Pictures, Con Dios Entertainment, Daniel Brookshire, Denis Pimm, Drama, Elisabeth Barnett, Historical, Inspirational, Jeff Howard, Jeff Shoop, Jo Babbitt, Jon Biggs, Joseph Shoop, Koch Entertainment, Mark Gullickson, Mary Neff, Milton Berry, Nate Madden, Peter Zhmutski, Ryan Dunlap, Sam Rader, Sean Burgess, Shrae Johnson, Stacie Cannon, Travis Jones, Treasure Blind, Wanda Thomas 1 Comment

Movie Renovation: Left Behind 3-World at War

See original review here.

 

Production Improvements

We will be hard-pressed to find a more impressive internal suspense and action-based production in Christian entertainment than the last installment of the first attempt at bringing the Left Behind trilogy to the big screen.  The production of World at War is not only actually well-funded, but it is also well-utilized.  We analyzed that the only main issues with this production were some editing problems, which are to be expected.  Otherwise, there is little else that can be improved in this portion.

Plot and Storyline Improvements

World at War completely departs from the original Left Behind novel narrative, which is a fact that is its greatest asset.  Actually, the fact that this movie is stuck in the Left Behind saga basically holds it back from being Hall of Fame.  Were this film transported outside of the Left Behind universe, it would suddenly become an epic suspense action film worthy of a high rating.  The concepts in this film, such as the intrigue surrounding the pandemic spread, are more creative than Left Behind ever was.  Also, the complex and non-typical characters who do not appear in the original book series, such as the President character and the character who leads the resistance, are better than the original Left Behind characters.  However, these more creative characters and subplots have little to no buildup from the first two movies, which is a fact that hurts their full impact.  This even more speaks to the necessity of having this movie exist outside of the Left Behind universe.  Also, the ending of this film is very creative, epic, and shocking, but it has no follow-up.  However, perhaps this idea can be extrapolated into a better film in the future.

Acting Improvements

The original cast of this film was mostly professional and well-cast.  There are few errors here, but a cast would always be better without Kirk Cameron.  Otherwise, there aren’t many major improvements to be made here—only small issues that add up.  This rounds out a very close effort.

Conclusion

It’s possible that World at War is actually the film that made it the closest to the Hall of Fame without actually making it on the list.  In reality, only one single thing needed to be done to push it over the edge, but that thing (isolating it from the Left Behind saga) could have possibly caused it to cease to exist.  Nonetheless, the concepts and ideas presented in this film can and should be used in later films to boost a suffering action\suspense genre in Christian entertainment.

 

February 23, 2018February 22, 2018 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Movie and Series RenovationsTags: 2005, André van Heerden, Apocalyptic, Arnold Pinnock, Brad Johnson, Charles Martin Smith, Chelsea Noble Cameron, Cloud Ten Pictures, Craig R. Baxley, David Macniven, Gordon Currie, International, Janaya Stephens, Jean Brincko, Jerry B. Jenkins, Jessica Steen, John Patus, Kirk Cameron, Laura Catalano, Louis Gossett Jr., Martin Randez, Movie and Series Renovations, Paul Duran, Paul Lalonde, Peter Lalonde, Phillip Jarrett, Suspense, Tim LaHaye Leave a comment

Waterproof [2000] (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

Eli Zeal is just minding his own business as a convenience store owner when Thaniel Battle, a kid mixed up with the wrong crowd accidentally shoots Eli in an armed robbery.  This prompts his mother, Tyree Battle, to take Eli and her son back to her hometown to escape trouble with the law.  Basically a hostage, Eli meets Tyree’s eccentric family in a backwards small town, who try to heal his wound using their own sort of medicine.  Will Eli ever be able to escape the crazy house he’s stuck in?

 

Production Quality (1.5 points)

As an early 2000s\late 1990s production, Waterproof tends to have an air of looking archaic most of the time.  This mostly pertains to the odd video quality, even though camera work is professional.  Audio quality is okay except for the loud soundtrack and some random background noises.  For the most part, sets, locations, and props are realistic, thus making for authentic historical surroundings.  The editing is fairly good throughout, and other elements show improvement as the film goes on.  In the end, this is an average production, which is pretty good for the time frame.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

Unfortunately, Waterproof begins in a very odd manner, with a very eccentric tone and premise that dominates nearly three-fourths of the film.  The circumstances presented are almost unrealistic as they come off as cobbled-together and forced.  This story is mostly a return-to-hometown plot combined with a prodigal plot, only it comes with extremely off-the-wall characters that are trying too hard to provide comic relief.  Sometimes the story comes off as downright crazy as it is quite hard to take seriously.  For the first half of the film, it tends to meander along with no real purpose, and then near the end, it suddenly produces a profound message that is tied to an important character backstory.  However, for most audiences, this gem will be too late into the movie for it to be found due to the unusual beginning.  On the whole, it is very difficult to understand the true meaning of this story, apart from the good ending.

Acting Quality (2 points)

With professional cast members, this cast is mostly fine, even though some actors and actresses tend to be a bit forceful and stilted with their line delivery and emotions.  Other cast members are being purposely eccentric to fit their characters, but I guess they didn’t have a choice.  In the end, this is an above-average acting job that makes the film at least half-palatable.

Conclusion

It is hard to know or understand what this movie was actually going for.  Was this intended to be a satire?  If it was meant to be realistic, the eccentricities needed to be packaged a little differently.  It seems like there were many different and better ways the important message at the end could have been presented.  We may never know what was meant by this film, but perhaps someone can make an improved version of it one day.

 

Final Rating: 4 out of 10 points

 

January 1, 2018January 2, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Historical, Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 2000, 4 points, Anthony Lee, April Grace, Barry Berman, Burt Reynolds, Cape Fear Filmworks, Carol Baum, Chris Bromley, Cloud Ten Pictures, Cordereau Dye, Craig Fincannon, Frank Capra Jr., Gil Johnson, Hank Levine, Historical, Inspirational, Interstate 40 Feature Film Company, J. Peter Robinson, Ja'net DuBois, Joe Inscoe, Jonathan Cornick, Leland L. Jones, Lightmotive, Orlando Jones, Prodigal, Roland Joffé, Roy Walker, Whitman Mayo, Whitney Tucker Leave a comment

The Genius Club (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

When a madman takes the White House hostage with a complex nuclear bomb he has built, he demands that the Secret Service assemble the world’s highest IQ achievers to solve the world’s problems in the President’s bunker before the time runs out on the bomb.  The madman poses a series of philosophical dilemmas and questions for them to solve so they can gain enough points for him to turn off the bomb.  Will they be able to play the game to win before time runs out?

 

Production Quality (1.5 points)

Unlike later productions from Timothy Chey, The Genius Club actually has average production quality rather than negative production quality.  Video quality is good and camera work is good, but there is some randomly poor lighting.  However, audio quality is unprofessional, although the soundtrack is interesting.  Sets, locations, and props are also somewhat interesting and creative.  However, the editing leaves something to be desired with some confusing cuts and transitions.  Overall, this is a middle-of-the-road production that is better than negative but is not what it should be.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

Though The Genius Club has some shades of Timothy Chey wackiness, it also includes some thought-provoking philosophical concepts.  It has an interesting suspense storyline but it lacks flow and tends to jump all over the place in attempts to cover a lot of ground and information, even if it does so in an isolating way.  There are some typical philosophical regurgitations, but there are also some interesting and surprisingly well-thought-out points raised.  However, the characters, even though there are some interesting backstories, and the dialogue are not good enough to sustain a full-scale story as the conversations only seem to be used to fill time.  Finally, as with many suspense ideas, this story has a paint-yourself-into-a-corner ending that is hard to reconcile properly or creatively without being predictable.  But at least this was a reasonable attempt.

Acting Quality (1.5 points)

The acting is very inconsistent, especially with the over-the-top villain constantly manically tirading.  Stephen Baldwin is always a lazy actor, but his role somewhat fits him.  Other cast members post over-the-top performances, but others are realistic and meaningful.  Overall, like other parts of the film, this is a mixed bag.

Conclusion

Timothy Chey remains to be an enigma.  He is extremely hard to figure, except for the fact that he clearly hates lawsuits, noises, war, and oil companies, as these are constant themes throughout his films.  Yet despite his zaniness, there are some interesting thought-provokers throughout The Genius Club that actually make you think.  However, they are not enough to overcome the inevitable unprofessional elements that are almost always found in his films.  But this one is at least worth a watch.

 

Final Rating: 3.5 out of 10 points

 

July 20, 2017January 8, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Movie Reviews, Psychological, SuspenseTags: 2006, 3.5 points, Alisha Dickinson, Arch Bonnema, Carol Abney, Cloud Ten Pictures, Daishi Takiishi, Daniel Bijan, Delaine Yates, Dimitri Diatchenko, Douglas White, Evan Grayson, Huntley Ritter, Jack Guzman, Jack Scalia, Jacob Bonnema, Keiki Nishimura, Matt Medrano, Michael Tarzian, Paula Jai Parker, Philip Moon, Psychological, RiverRain Productions, Stephen Baldwin, Susan F. Chey, Suspense, Thomas E. Nicholson, Timothy A. Chey, Tom Sizemore, Tricia Helfer 1 Comment

The Miracle of the Cards (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

Craig Shergold was a healthy eight-year-old boy until he began having mysterious headaches.  The doctors ran tests and found that Craig had a brain tumor, so Craig’s parents immediately began taking steps to combat the disease inside their son’s body.  As they walk on the journey together, Craig’s mother continually has premonitions and visions about her son’s future.  Craig also receives millions of get-well cards, prompting media attention to his story and talks of a world record.  Could it be that the cards are instrumental in Craig’s healing?

 

Production Quality (1 point)

Unfortunately, as an early 2000s made-for-television production, The Miracle of the Cards is not what it’s cracked up to be.  Video quality is relatively cheap-looking, although camera work is fine.  Audio quality is also fine, except there is a cheesy stereotypical soundtrack to go with it.  Sets, locations, and props are decent enough.  There are one too many cheesy special effects that attempt to go with the ‘magical’ themes of this film.  Finally, the editing is quite choppy as time skips around to hit the high points—in doing this, the audience is left confused.  In the end, not enough time was spent on this production to make the movie worth it.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

As previously mentioned, there is not very much plot content in The Miracle of the Cards as time travels too quickly, thus leaving characters underdeveloped.  Dialogue only serves to report what is happening as time spends by—in doing so, the characters are left shallow  and one-dimensional.  Though this is a true story, it is seemingly based on too many coincidences; a sense of realism is missing from this plot, especially considering the number of childish magical and sensational elements.  The presence of these elements is frustrating because it’s hard to take this movie seriously when they are there.  Unfortunately, they weaken and cheapen the Christian message that is included in it.  In the end, at least this film is based on a true story (its only redeeming quality in this category), but it’s hard to see that there were any motives behind this film except making money on an easy-to-market television movie.

Acting Quality (2 points)

With a professional cast (even though it includes Kirk Cameron), the acting is by far this film’s strongest suit and keeps it from being left in the basement of Christian film.  There are few errors here pertaining to emotional and line delivery.  This just goes to show you that a good cast with good coaching can make all the difference in your movie.

Conclusion

What is one to do with kids-with-cancer films?  They are easy to get people to watch, especially if they’re on TV.  But despite true stories behind them, their plots are still formulaic and predictable.  Just because you use a real idea doesn’t mean you need to ignore character development.  Without realistic characters, the realism of the story is undermined.  In the end, many will view this film as fine, and it’s definitely not one of those embarrassing films, but we still feel it could have been better.

 

Final Rating: 3.5 out of 10 points

 

May 22, 2017January 9, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Drama, Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 2001, 3.5 points, Anna Cummer, Brenda Crichlow, Catherine Oxenberg, Cloud Ten Pictures, Deanna Embury, Deboragh Gabler, Disease, Duncan Fraser, Inspirational, Jennifer Carmichael, Jeremy Guilbaut, Jodelle Ferland, Karin Konoval, Ken Harrison, Kirk Cameron, Lee Wilson, Legacy Filmworks, Mark Griffiths, Mary had a little lamb, Matthew Harrison, Michael Dobson, Michele Futerman, Peter Wingfield, Richard Thomas, Rick Tae, Robert Woods, Ryan Robbins, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Tim Johnson, Viacom Productions Leave a comment

Deceived [2002] (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

When a secret space observatory in Nevada picks up a mysterious and erratic signal from outer space, a powerful billionaire who owns the observatory forms a team made up of his spiritual guide, two investigative reporters, and his company’s computer technician to fly out to the observatory to find out what happened.  Some of them believe they have been contacted by intelligent beings from outer space, while others believe something more sinister is going on.  The signal also draws the attention of a specialized squadron of troops, some of whom have questionable abilities.  As they all meet up at the observatory, who will prevail?  Will they ever discover the truth of what is really out there?

 

Production Quality (1.5 points)

As an early 2000s Cloud Ten production, Deceived is mostly average in its production quality.  the biggest detractors are the grainy video quality and poor lighting in most scenes.  There are also too many cheesy special effects that are used in an attempt to be different and sci-fi.  However, the sets, locations, and props seem realistic enough.  Audio quality is also fine and the soundtrack is intriguing.  Finally, the editing job is decent and overall rounds out an average production.  It certainly could have been better, but it could have also been worse.  However, there is not much we can say for the plot.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

With a cheesy sci-fi premise that’s full of technological mumbo-jumbo and empty dialogue, Deceived tries to be creative and different, yet misses the mark badly.  There is far too much time wasted on petty conflicts and not enough time spent on character development.  While some of the characters could be interesting, we barely get to know them in the midst information dump dialogue and monologuing.  The Christian characters are too perfect while the non-Christian characters are too flawed.  There are also too many spiritual elements that come off as a bizarre in an attempt to bridge the horror genre.  The ending is quite confusing and seems like the writers just ran out of ideas.  In the end, this is a very disappointing story that could have been interesting.

Acting Quality (1 point)

With a cast made up of semi-professionals, these cast members have their good moments, but unfortunately, the bad moments outweigh the good.  There are too many overly dramatic and theatrical performances.  Emotions are hard to connect with.  In the end, they do not live up to their full potential.

Conclusion

The early 2000s era of Christian film had some noble attempts to bridge different genres Christian film had never bridged before, and John Patus and Cloud Ten Pictures were on the forefront of this attempt.  However, for the most part, these attempts did not fulfill their fullest potential and settled for half-measures, probably because the market was so thin then.  Much has happened since these films came out, but they can certainly serve as an example of how and how not to expand Christian film into unique genres.  Yesterday’s disappointments can certainly be remedied in the future.

 

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 10 points

 

April 24, 2017January 9, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, Horror, Movie Reviews, Sci-Fi, SuspenseTags: 2.5 points, 2002, André van Heerden, Apocalyptic, Bill MacDonald, Cloud Ten Pictures, Darius Films, Deborah Odell, Gary Koftinoff, Horror, Jason Knight, Jefferson Mappin, John Patus, Judd Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Melissa Haller, Michelle Nolden, Mike Realba, Nicholas Tabarrok, Paul Fauteux, Paul Lalonde, Psychological, Ramona Milano, Sci-Fi, Shoreline Entertainment, Speculative, Stewart Bick, Suspense 1 Comment

Apocalypse 4: Judgment (Movie Review)

Everything else has happened in this series, so let’s throw Mr. T in here too

Plot Summary

As the ONE has tightened its grip on the world, Christianity is outlawed and everyone must take the Mark of world leader Franco Macalousso, or they will be arrested and possibly executed.  The world must worship Macalousso or be doomed.  But when the world leader feels that excitement about hating Christians is wearing thin, he decides to stage a televised trial for infamous Christian Helen Hannah to get people interested again.  Enigmatic defense lawyer Mitch Kendrick is recruited to ‘defend’ her, even though it’s all staged.  But no one knows that Mitch is searching for the truth himself—will he be able to find it?

 

Production Quality (1 point)

As this stupid series finally grinds to a halt, we can say affirmatively that production quality barely changed throughout it.  While camera work and video quality have improved in this final installment, nothing else has.  The audio quality is inconsistent and the soundtrack is quite loud at times.  Sets, locations, and props, in an attempt to look ‘futuristic’, only come off as cheesy.  Finally, like the rest of the series, editing is quite poor.  On the bright side, there’s no more product placements, but it’s unacceptable to have a series this long with such bad production quality.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

Was there really a justification for a fourth installment in this series that doesn’t include anything about the subplots that were supposedly continued at the end of Tribulation?  Helen Hannah remains to be the central Christian character of the series for some reason, but otherwise we are introduced to even more characters we’ve never seen before, including Mr. T.  The same ridiculous concepts this series has always pushed are present in this final film as well, but this time transposed on top of a staged legal battle.  Dialogue does nothing for character development as a lot of time the is filled exploring vague and isolating concepts.  It seems like the writers are constantly inventing ways to kill time without actually helping us to get to know all these characters they shove at us.  Finally, though the end is slightly interesting and has some potential, it cuts off with an abrupt transition to the nonexistent fifth film they obviously wanted to make.  Thankfully, their funding was finally cut.

Acting Quality (.5 point)

As Corbin Bernsen and Mr. T join this crowded cast, things really do not improve.  There are too many over the top emotions and shouting sequences.  There is some potential with line delivery, and this cast seems professional on the surface, but it’s just not good enough.  This is another disappointing effort.

Conclusion

Well, it’s finally over.  What did we learn?  When you can’t even create an average production, don’t make four movies.  When you don’t have any plot or character development to speak of, don’t make four movies.  When you can’t focus on a central story or character arc in your series and instead constantly come up with new characters and subplots with each installment, don’t make four movies.  When you cast all kinds of ‘big names’ but don’t bother to coach them, don’t make four movies.  Are you seeing a theme here?  The Apocalypse series is just another blight on Christian film and will hopefully be forgotten one day, but at least we can learn something from it…I hope…

 

Final Rating: 2 out of 10 points

 

March 9, 2017January 10, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 2 points, 2001, André van Heerden, Apocalypse series, Apocalyptic, Arnold Pinnock, Cloud Ten Pictures, Corbin Bernsen, David Gardner, Doug Lennox, Gary Koftinoff, Jason Michaels, Jessica Steen, John Gordon, John Patus, Karen Glave, Legal, Leigh Lewis, Marium Carvell, Michael Copeman, Mr. T, Nicholas Tabarrok, Nick Mancuso, Nicole Leroux, Ola Sturik, Once Upon a Time Films, Patrick Gallagher, Paul Lalonde, Peter Lalonde, Roman Podhora, Sandra Caldwell, Speculative, Steve Jackson, Suspense, Tony Nappo, Yank Azman 2 Comments

Apocalypse 3: Tribulation (Movie Review)

Creepers…

Plot Summary

Tom Canboro doesn’t believe in God or the supernatural, but his sister does and insists that he should before it’s too late.  However, one day, his brother-in-law begins to go insane, along with other people around the world.  Then Tom falls into a coma and wakes up to an entirely different world.  Everyone is following a world leader and receiving his required mark.  Will Tom turn to God before it’s too late?

 

Production Quality (1 point)

Not much about production changes throughout this agonizing series.  Though video quality has finally improved, the film is filled with unwatchable and dizzying action scenes.  Audio quality is fine, but the soundtrack is cheesy.  Sets and locations are somewhat limited and there is some poor lighting in certain scenes.  In keeping with the theme of this series, Tribulation is full of more product placements from Jack Van Impe, John Hagee, and even T. D. Jakes for some reason.  Finally, the editing is all over the place and causes a confusing plot development.  In short, though tiny improvements are being made, it’s just not enough.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

This installment is perhaps the most bizarre and sensational as it includes a lot of horror and creepy spiritual elements.  There are a lot of strange and bizarre sequences of violence, including sensationalized demonic activity.  The occult is portrayed in a childish manner yet there is still an obsession with the satanic.  All of this is combined with the forceful and ridiculous apocalyptic worldview that is being propagated in the midst of this madness.  The storyline is very incoherent as it jumps all over the place and fills time with information dump dialogue.  Most of the characters, especially the antichrist, are extreme strawmen and really have no potential.  In short, it feels like this movie was only made for the sensational appeal rather than anything meaningful, and it’s still horrible.

Acting Quality (.5 point)

In keeping with the theme of sensationalism, emotions are over the top and obnoxious.  Line delivery is mostly forced.  While there are some good factors, this cast seems overall disingenuous, especially when one finds out that a handful of these cast members didn’t even know they were in a Christian movie when they agreed to this lunacy.  I guess they should have known that a movie this bad would be labeled as Christian.

Conclusion

Besides everything else, how does this installment fit into the series?  There are some connecting elements, but this ridiculous series as a whole really has no continuity or sense whatsoever.  If PureFlix had been named as a contributor to this mess, I would have believed it.  Constantly pushing TV preacher talking points and products transposed on top of a C-grade horror film is only a recipe for disaster.  Once again, scaring people into Christianity is a failing strategy and only serves to feed someone’s obsession with the sensational.  But don’t worry, there’s only one more of these…

 

Final Rating: 1.5 out of 10 points

 

March 8, 2017January 10, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, Horror, International, Movie Reviews, Psychological, SuspenseTags: 1.5 points, 2000, André van Heerden, Apocalypse Film Projects Inc., Apocalypse series, Apocalyptic, Beki Lantos, Blair Johannes, Cloud Ten Pictures, Costa Kamateros, Darren Josephs, Erik Knudsen, Gary Busey, Gary Koftinoff, Gerry Quigley, Heather Hodgson, Horror, Howie Mandel, International, J.D. Nicholsen, Jack Van Impe, Jack Van Impe Ministries, James Brinkley, James Downing, John Hagee, John Hagee Ministries, Joseph Ziegler, Lawrence Bayne, Leigh Lewis, Margot Kidder, Nicholas Tabarrok, Nick Mancuso, Nicolas Swan, Nicole Nordeman, Nigel Shawn Williams, Patrick Gallagher, Paul Lalonde, Peter Lalonde, Phillip Jarrett, Psychological, Randy Butcher, Rexella Van Impe, Rothaford Gray, Roy Lewis, Sci-Fi, Sherry Miller, Speculative, Sugith Varughese, Suspense, T.D. Jakes, Wayne Best 4 Comments

Apocalypse 1: Caught in the Eye of the Storm (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

Helen Hannah and Bronson Pearl are two of the world’s top new reporters, but they are about to experience a breaking story like never before—the Rapture has come to the world and everyone left behind is left wondering what happened.  As the world descends into violence and chaos, everyone looks to a new world leader to answer their problems.  But at the same time, this leader turns everyone against those who hold the true hope for humanity—namely, the Christians.  Will Pearl and Hannah find the truth before it’s too late?

 

Production Quality (0 points)

As a production created in 1998, there really isn’t a lot good to say here.  Yet the fact that it was made in this year doesn’t mean it has to be this bad.  Video quality is cheap and camera work is maddening with constant zooming.  Sets, locations, and props are limited and cheesy.  Audio quality is poor with a loud and annoying soundtrack.  Many scenes have poor lighting and look like they were recorded in a closet.  Besides all this, the film is just one giant advertisement for Jack Van Impe, but it’s not even presented well.  With production this bad, nobody’s going to watch this.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

I’m sure there is a good message in here somewhere, but with Van Impe propaganda constantly being shoved down your throat and with this plot being so bad, it’s hard to find.  All typical apocalyptic concepts are conveniently inserted and forced into the story in obvious ways as Van Impe finds a way to shove every single one of his beliefs into the plot.  With this going on, there is no real plot as a majority of the story is told through childish news reports.  Character development is non-existent, since dialogue is stunted as the pot rushes along quickly to hit the apocalyptic high points.  Unfortunately, there is really nothing good to say here.

Acting Quality (0 points)

To fit with the rest of the film, this acting is very awkward and amateurish.  Line delivery is very measured and forced, while emotions are wooden.  This cast seemed like it had potential, but it was never found.

Conclusion

One can understand a ministry leader’s motivation to get their message and beliefs out there through means of entertainment, but this is just unacceptable.  Combining extremely low quality with propaganda is one of the worst combinations you can make.  While there is somewhat of a gospel presentation at the end of this film, who’s watching it?  Who wants a gospel packaged in this way?  As Christians, we need to move past the whole ‘scaring people with the apocalypse’ convention because it’s not working and people who need to hear the gospel are laughing at this.  But wait, there’s three more of these films…

 

Final Rating: 0 out of 10 points

 

March 6, 2017January 11, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, International, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 0 points, 1998, Apocalypse series, Apocalyptic, Christopher Coggan, Cloud Ten Pictures, David Roddis, David Wand, Deborah Kelly, Ian Matheson, International, Jack Van Impe, Jack Van Impe Ministries, John Hagee, Leanne Scott, Leigh Lewis, Luis Palau, Maria Lianos, Mark Richardson, Mel Downey, Mel Prout, Michael Halkusis, Paris Bonsu, Paul Lalonde, Peter Gerretsen, Peter Lalonde, Prophecy Partners Inc., Ray Boltz, Rexella Van Impe, Richard Nester, Sam Bornstein, Shauna MacDonald, Suspense, Tara Goudrea, This Week in Bible Prophecy, Toni Carey, zero points Leave a comment

The River Within (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

When Jason comes back to his hometown to try to study for the bar exam, he soon discovers that God has other plans for him.  He finds old friends have changed more than he thought and ponders what could have been if he had not gone to law school.  When his former pastor insists he lead the youth group, Jason is hesitant at first but soon realizes that he likes to help the youth.  As Jason slowly finds out more and more about the people around him, he begins to grasp what God really wants for his life.

 

Production Quality (1.5 points)

For starters, The River Within is basically an average production.  Video quality is okay, as is the camera work, though there are some weird angles.  Unfortunately, audio quality is quite cheap, with loud outside sounds and too much dead air.  The soundtrack leaves much to be desired.  Editing is also an issue, as the beginning of the film has tons of useless footage, abrupt scene transitions, and awkward cutoffs.  However, despite the issues at the beginning, all production aspects of this film do improve as it goes on.  By the end, one has to wonder why it was not better at the beginning, but it does get better if you stick with it, thus making this an overall average production.

Plot and Storyline Quality (1.5 points)

Needless to say, the beginning of The River Within is incredibly boring, depicting flat characters doing stuff that doesn’t really hold the attention.  As nothing of note happens for half an hour or so, there are too many parts that have no real purpose or focus.  Good issues in the church are highlighted, but sometimes quick fixes are suggested for the problems.  By the middle of the plot, there are some strange, out-of-place attempts at comedy that make the viewer want to just end their experience.  However, if you make it to the last thirty minutes of the movie, things finally start to make sense.  Characters become deeper than they were with believable back stories and thought-provoking dialogue.  Things do not turn out the way you might think in the end.  Basically, if you can last through the first hour, the message is very good and the ending effective, though it takes forever to get to it.

Acting Quality (1.5 points)

Like the rest of the film, the acting starts out rough, with vanilla delivery and mumbled lines, but gets better as it goes on.  Emotions are wooden at first but become more believable as it goes on.  This was actually a decent cast, but they didn’t receive the support they needed at first.  Once again, this portion comes out as average.

Conclusion

The River Within feels like it was made for the last thirty minutes of runtime.  It’s likely that this portion was written first and then the remainder was tacked on the beginning to make it long enough.  However, this is not a winning model as most viewers aren’t going to make it to the point at the end.  Character-based plots need to be developed throughout so that the audience can get to know them better over a roughly ninety-minute time period.  Nonetheless, we feel that this film was sincere and that the creators really care about their message.  Thus, The River Within desperately needs a remake since the ideas therein need to portrayed in film.  Perhaps one day its ideas will be repackaged to have wider appeal.

 

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 10 points

 

January 19, 2017January 11, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 2009, 4.5 points, Celeste Letchworth, Cloud Ten Pictures, Craig Luttrell, Craig Morris, Curtis Davenport, Fabled Motion Pictures, Fred Hollywood Moore, Geoff Falk, Gerald Brown, Haley Joiner, Harold Williams, Inspirational, Inspired Life, Jaclyn Friedlander, Jan Ainley, Jan Falk, Josh Odor, Kelsey Joiner, Kerri Cissna, Lottie Brown, Lydia Ditto, Maurice Mejia, Natalie Smith, Sarah Hill, Staci Harmon, Thomas Moore, Zac Heath Leave a comment

Left Behind 3: World at War (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

With Nicolae Carpathia increasing his grip on international politics, President Fitzgerald of the United States is highly skeptical of the United Nations leader.  The President’s suspicions are only raised when his vice president is killed in a sudden car bomb.  He also receives an anonymous tip about secret plans that threaten to overturn the delicate balance of the world.  Elsewhere, the Tribulation Force continues to seek converts and spread the gospel as the world becomes darker and darker.  When an unexpected evil strikes the planet, they must dig deep in their faith and band together under the banner of Christianity.

 

Production Quality (2.5 points)

After two previous productions failed even though they had money behind them, this creative team finally put the money where their mouth was and spent it correctly on World at War.  The camera work and video quality are excellent.  Props have a major upgrade and appear very realistic.  This movie finally lives up to its international intrigue expectations by providing wide ranging sets and locations to the viewers.  It also delivers on this franchise’s previous claims of action entertainment by pulling off action scenes very well, including professional use of special effects.  Watching this movie actually makes you feel like you’re watching an apocalyptic film with international ramifications.  The only complaints to bring up here are some minor editing issues.  Otherwise, this is a production to be proud of for once.

Plot and Storyline Quality (2 points)

World at War is actually an engaging apocalyptic plot that holds the attention, which is an unfortunately rare find in Christian film.  Subplots built up from the two previous installments are used very well, and even though this storyline departs greatly from the novels, it is still enjoyable.  New subplots are complex and hold the viewer’s attention until the end.  The dialogue is finally well-constructed and the characters are finally believable.  The apocalyptic concepts and surroundings are finally realistic and highly possible in the real world.  Although there are some unnecessary elements, there are not a few suspenseful twists that make this an apocalyptic plot to be proud of.  Finally, World at War packs perhaps the most epic action ending in Christian film to date, putting many other action film attempts to shame.  Yet two things derail this movie from being Hall of Fame: the lack of buildup from previous films and the lack of continuation.  The writers set us up with an engaging franchise reboot, if you will, yet did not deliver with a follow-up.  What happens next?  We may never know.  But for now, this is one of the most applaudable Christian action films on the market.

Acting Quality (2 points)

Acting also greatly improves in this installment not only because of improved coaching but also because of better additional cast members.  Once again, Kirk Cameron posts one of his best (probably his last) acting performances.  Line delivery is effective, but sometimes emotions are over the top.  In the end, there are only minor errors here.

Conclusion

It’s so frustrating to watch films that barely miss the Hall of Fame because of the potential they did not live up to.  World at War had everything going for it—except for better predecessors and a real follow-up.  If the franchise was going to be dropped here, it would have been better for World at War to either stand alone as a separate apocalyptic film outside of the series or for the absurd Left Behind reboot of recent to become the fourth movie rather than just a rehashing of the first installment.  It’s unfortunate, but it’s unlikely World at War will be remade for a myriad of reasons.  But it can at least serve as a testament to what can be done in Christian film if proper money and effort are applied.  We need many more films like this one on the market.

 

Final Rating: 6.5 out of 10 points

 

September 19, 2016January 15, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, Drama, International, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 2005, 6.5 points, André van Heerden, Apocalyptic, Arnold Pinnock, Brad Johnson, Charles Martin Smith, Chelsea Noble Cameron, Cloud Ten Pictures, Craig R. Baxley, David Macniven, Gordon Currie, International, Janaya Stephens, Jean Brincko, Jerry B. Jenkins, Jessica Steen, John Patus, Kirk Cameron, Laura Catalano, Louis Gossett Jr., Martin Randez, Paul Duran, Paul Lalonde, Peter Lalonde, Phillip Jarrett, Suspense, Tim LaHaye 1 Comment

Left Behind 2: Tribulation Force [2002] (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

With the world still reeling from the Rapture, those left behind who became Christians band together to form what they call a Tribulation Force to stand against the forces of evil.  Their leader, Bruce, encourages each of them to not hide from the new evil world but to find a way to reach other for Christ in it.  Rayford struggles with a decision to pilot the plane of Nicolae Carpathia, the suspected antichrist.  Buck Williams chases down a story regarding a messianic prophecy expert and two mysterious men at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.  In the strange new world they live in, they also discover everyday struggles and the realization that following Jesus is no longer easy.

 

Production Quality (.5 point)

The second installment of the original Left Behind series is a low point.  While video quality and camera work are okay, there are a host of other production errors.  Special effects are cheesy, especially when it comes to action scenes.  Many scenes have very poor lighting.  The sets and locations are pretty good, but they are littered with cheap looking props.  The soundtrack is pedestrian.  Furthermore, the editing is very sub-par and fails to cut down quite a few long and drawn out scenes that drain the viewer’s attention span.  Essentially, not much effort was put into this creation.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

Once again, for an apocalyptic thriller, there’s not much apocalyptic or thrilling about Tribulation Force.  The film takes a very melancholy tone, choosing to spend time on silly conflicts like lover’s spats and peripheral character issues.  There is little central focus as the plot meanders from job decisions to church services to turning the church into a hospital to chasing leads in the Middle East.  There is also not enough suspense or plot twists as the monotone dialogue centers on theological discussions and information dumps.  There are attempts at twists and psychological\spiritual elements, but they fall flat.  There are too many one-dimensional characters that are juggled and we can’t really get to know any of them.  Like its predecessor, Tribulation Force just gets ready for the inevitable next film without giving the viewer any reason to watch it except for the book series popularity.  The actual end of the plot is quite cheesy and non-suspenseful.  In short, if you missed this film, you didn’t miss much.

Acting Quality (1 point)

At least they returned all the same cast members.  I hate it when movie franchises try to change out actors and actresses and pretend you didn’t notice.  There is slight improvement among this cast and Kirk Cameron delivers arguably one of his best career acting performances.  My how time has flown.  This cast could have actually been great with better coaching.  Alas, what could have been.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, John Patus and company elected to follow the standard Hollywood path of bringing a popular book franchise to the big screen and relied on the series’ popularity to carry it.  There is little reason for this film to even exist except for the fact that it needed to for the series to continue.  If you skipped to the third film, you didn’t miss anything in this one.  This is the central problem to movie sagas: each one needs to be a good movie by itself without the other ones holding it up.  There are few who have gotten this right.

 

Final Rating: 1.5 out of 10 points

 

September 16, 2016January 15, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, International, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 1.5 points, 2002, Apocalyptic, Bill Corcoran, Brad Johnson, Chelsea Noble Cameron, Christie MacFadyen, Christopher Bondy, Clarence Gilyard Jr., Cloud Ten Pictures, Darius Films, David Macniven, Gordon Currie, International, Janaya Stephens, Jerry B. Jenkins, John Patus, Kirk Cameron, Krista Bridges, Left Behind Saga, Leslie Carlson, Louis Negin, Lubomir Mykytiuk, Namesake Entertainment, Nicholas Tabarrok, Paul Lalonde, Suspense, Tim LaHaye Leave a comment

Left Behind [2000] (Movie Review)

Kirk Cameron, the early years

Plot Summary

In an instant, millions vanish all around the world, causing the planet to descend into chaos as planes go down, cars drive into buildings, and unrest erupts everywhere.  Pilot Rayford Steele finds nearly half of his plane’s manifest (haha) missing.  Reporter Buck Williams is on the flight at the time and believes it has something to do with the vast globalist conspiracy he has uncovered.  As order dissipates around the globe and as many theories are posited as to what happened to those who disappeared, those still remaining look for a world leader who can bring global peace to the chaos.

 

Production Quality (1 point)

As a late 90s\early 2000s production, the original Left Behind film has many of the marks of this era of filmmaking.  Opening credits sequences were common back then, but they weren’t ever justified.  The video quality and camera work are fairly well produced.  However, action scenes are not filmed or produced very well and include poorly crafted CGI and other special effects.  Kirk Cameron provides some slight yet unwanted narration throughout the film.  Elsewhere, location subtitles from JAG are awkwardly inserted and the soundtrack is cheap.  Finally, the editing is pretty good, but as will be discussed next, there is too much content to cover and not enough continuity.  In short, this ‘classic’ Christian film has some good quality, but not enough.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

Based on the blockbuster apocalyptic fiction series by popular authors Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, the original Left Behind film is not without its plot errors.  The premise is trumped up, lacking a touch of realism, but this may get a pass since it was based on the international politics of 15+ years ago.  The movie is focused on big world-changing issues, but they come off as simplistic and not groundbreaking enough.  The creators perhaps took on more than they could handle as many subplots are juggled throughout.  While it’s commendable for this early film to take on a new genre in Christian film (apocalyptic), the plot lacks the intrigue necessary to make it great.  For example, there are too many slow and melodramatic scenes—the storyline is anti-climactic and contains to many convenient occurrences.  The dialogue is full of information dumps that overemphasize apocalyptic elements.  This builds empty characters that are swept along by the plot and are thrown together for no particular reason.  On a positive note, the climax scene at the end is slightly interesting and well-crafted.  But overall, this first installment spends too much time getting ready for the next film and not enough time building the characters and a realistic apocalyptic landscape.

Acting Quality (0 points)

Apocalyptic action movies require dynamic acting, but this cast lacks this quality.  Line delivery is stiff and not engaging.  Emotions are overdone and too dramatic.  Kirk Cameron is a better actor than he is of late, but that’s not saying much.  In short, there’s not enough positive here.

Conclusion

This was definitely a groundbreaking Christian film that brought a popular Christian novel series to the big screen.  It was a hit, since the Christian market was starved for quality.  However, this does not mean it was a great film.  It had a lot of good ideas behind it, but not enough quality to back them up.  They had an amazing budget for the time, but it seems like it was mostly squandered.  Needless to say, the old is just marginally better than the new.

 

Final Rating: 1.5 out of 10 points

 

September 14, 2016January 15, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Apocalyptic, International, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 1.5 points, 2000, Alan B. McElroy, Apocalyptic, Apocalyptic Plane Plots, Brad Johnson, Chelsea Noble Cameron, Clarence Gilyard Jr., Cloud Ten Pictures, Colin Fox, Gordon Currie, International, Janaya Stephens, Jerry B. Jenkins, Joe Goodman, John Hagee, John Patus, Kirk Cameron, Krista Bridges, Marvin Ishmael, Namesake Entertainment, Neil Crone, Paul Lalonde, Raven Dauda, Suspense, T.D. Jakes, Thomas Hauff, Tim LaHaye, Tony De Santis, Vic Sarin Leave a comment