Dispatched [2020] (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

Carl Thomas is an embattled police officer being questioned about his past actions. Thus, Carl relates why he made the choices that he did and how he’s now a different man. Will his interrogators believe his story before it’s too late?

Production Quality (.5 point)

Unfortunately, the past production transgressions of JC Films have not been atoned for. Dispatched has all the same problems of past films created by this team, such as loud background sounds and echoes, not to mention the generally grainy audio quality. Despite moments of a surprisingly good soundtrack, many aspects of the score don’t always fit the mood of the scenes. Elsewhere, lighting is inconsistent, and camera work is incredibly random, including weird angles. Video quality is acceptable, but editing is quite choppy. Thus, with a tiny amount of potential, this section receives a small score.

Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)

One of the main strength areas of Dispatched is its shockingly honest portrayal of the complexity behind police problems. In this endeavor, authentic flashbacks are used to build character motive and personality. However, it all goes downhill from there as convenient and random things happen when the writers need them to occur. Similarly, obvious dialogue steers the plot in the direction that the creators want it to go rather than letting events develop naturally. The interesting exploration of the protagonist’s backstory is overshadowed by the contrived nature of the narrative. Part of this trumped-up premise is the assumption that one spiritual experience will magically make someone the most perfect Christian who ever lived. These steep character arcs are impossible to relate to, and these concerns make for very cheap messaging. Christian platitudes are used in place of meaningful lessons, thus leading to an empty conclusion. Therefore, with only a small dose of potential, this section is awarded a meager rating.

Acting Quality (1.5 points)

Although the acting of this screenplay leaves much to be desired, it’s still the strongest aspect of the movie. Emotions are forceful, such as cast members trying too hard to be angry. Line delivery often lacks conviction and natural register. However, the acting generally improves with time to the point where an average score is warranted.

Conclusion

When will the JC Films team ever learn? The last thing that the Christian entertainment field needs is more quantity to full up our streaming services and further turn people off to the genre. Just imagine if the budgets and efforts for each individual film were bundled together into one or two screenplays. Less is always more, so one day, we’ll hopefully see this play out in Christian entertainment.

Final Rating: 2.5 out of 10 points

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May 6, 2021 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Drama, Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 2.5 points, Barbara Zablocky, Barry Michael Dailey, Beck Rosser, Bobby Lacer, Brayden Lacer, Burning Bulb Publishing, Chase Crawford, Dean Cain, Dennis P. Marburger, Derek Hess, Drama, Erica Cottrill, Gabby Christie, Gary Lee Vincent, Greg Black, Greg Mason, Inspirational, Jason Campbell, Jason Gerrard, JC Films, Jeff Moore, Jeremy Ambler, JoAnn F. Peterson, Joe Sutton, Julie Perine, Karlye Jonah, Katherine Elise Shaw, Kathy Patterson, Kathy Sanders, Kenny Clemons, Krystian Leonard, Maizze Christie, Marcus Gogas, Michael Ochotorena, Michael Sigler, Richard Zane, Richie Acevedo, Suzanne R. Neff, Timothy E. Goodwin, Xander Hayes Leave a comment

A Promise to Astrid (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

Astrid Nicosia lived in a small town and tries to do good to each person she comes in contact with. She freely gave the little money that she had to those who needed it. She also wanted to walk closely with the Lord and to make a difference with what time she had left. Those who were touched by her kindness and generosity made a promise to return her favors either to her or to other people who were also in need.

Production Quality (1 point)

As a 2019 production, A Promise to Astrid has no excuse to be as bad as it is. While the video quality and the camera work are okay, the audio quality throughout the film is quite bad, including loud background sounds, echoes inside of the sets, and an invasive soundtrack that sometimes interrupts dialogue and others times causes confusion since it doesn’t fit the mood of the scenes. In addition, the sets, props, and locations are quite cheap, and there are some obvious continuity errors between scenes. There are also other editing concerns, such as the quick and awkward cuts and transitions, the high number of fade-outs, and the fact that many scenes do not flow together and seem very disconnected from each other. In the end, this is an unacceptable effort with many unforced errors.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

Even though it’s based on a book, A Promise to Astrid is not what it should be, mostly due to the lack of substantial characters. Although this is a heavily character-based plot, dialogue is usually a bit clunky and awkward and does not adequately develop character personality or motive. Additionally, it’s very difficult to understand the true purpose of this narrative beyond random people doing random things. The vague ideas behind the storyline might be interesting, but without effective connections with the audience, it really has nothing to show for its meager efforts. Essentially, the plot meanders around as a collection of random scenes before suddenly ending and leaving the viewer wondering why they just watched the movie, which is why this section warrants zero points.

Acting Quality (1 point)

While the acting of A Promise to Astrid is not entirely bad, it’s very marked by incompetent attempts at obviously fake accents. Also, some cast members seem unsure of their roles, even though there’s not much to work with in the beginning. Further, other cast members are either clearly overplaying their roles or half-heartedly trying. Throughout the film, line delivery and emotions are uneven but not all bad, which is enough to warrant at least a point out of this section. In the end, however, this is a very sub-par movie.

Conclusion

Based on their 2019 slate of films, it’s evident that it was the goal of the JC Films team to flood the market with as many movies as they could squeeze into their limited budget. This was an old model PureFlix used in the early 2000s and 2010s, and they had some success due to lack of many other options. However, as the calendar turns to 2020, times have changed in Christian entertainment, and higher quality is demanded. Thus, it’s better to save your funds to make one good film or series and then to see how you can build off of the success of one quality project rather than to get ahead of yourself and to over-extend your means.

Final Rating: 2 out of 10 points

January 1, 2020January 3, 2020 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Drama, Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 2 points, 2019, A.T. Lantz, Barry Michael Dailey, Becky Rosser, Carson Campbell, Cindy Timms Pulice, Dean Cain, Drama, Emma Hansberry, Gabby Christie, Gary Lee Vincent, Grace Hansberry, Heather Mudrick, Inspirational, Jamyson Posey, Jason Campbell, JC Films, Jeremy Gladen, JoAnn F. Peterson, Katherine Elise Shaw, Kathy Jones, Kathy Sanders, Keith Hastman, Luba Hansen, Maddox Mudrick, Mazzie Christie, Michael Sigler, Mike Tourville, Phuong Kubacki, Richie Acevedo, Solon Tsangaras, Suzanne R. Neff, Timothy E. Goodwin, Timothy Goodwin, Tom Peterson, Veronica Rogers Leave a comment