Plot Summary
Ryan Wade has always known the church life because he was raised by a pastor and his wife, whom he believed to be his real parents. However, as he grew older, he did not feel the call to ministry that his father was impressing upon him. Instead, he wanted to pursue a musical future. However, when he got caught by the authorities doing ‘wrong things,’ Ryan’s father sent him to the military to ‘get fixed,’ with the expectation that Ryan would enter seminary afterward. However, the military did not dampen Ryan’s musical dreams, and once he was out, he encountered a life-changing revelation: he is the twin brother of musical sensation Drexel Hemsley, which raises many questions about Ryan’s true heritage. Will the answers he wants give him peace or more turmoil?
Production Quality (2.5 points)
It’s clear that The Identical is a well-funded production with a well-allocated budget. Video quality, camera work, and audio quality are all what they should be. The original soundtrack is creative, even if there is some obvious lip-syncing. The production’s biggest strengths relate to the great
attention to historical detail, which is evident in the well-constructed and well-utilized sets, locations, and props that reflect correct time period and culture. The only drawback to this production is the somewhat choppy editing that is a byproduct of the plot presentation, but on the whole, this is a very good and professional production.
Plot and Storyline Quality (1 point)
Though this story concept is a bit off-the-wall as the twin brother characters bear a strangely similar resemblance to Elvis Presley (not really sure why this character concept was chosen), there are some interesting messages to explore in The Identical. For example, the story provides a realistic portrayal of historical issues of the time period, such as churches suppressing certain types of ideas, hiding issues, and expecting men to be fixed by the military. However, besides the somewhat out-of-left-field story concept, there is way too much narration and expository dialogue to fill time gaps, which obviously stunts character growth and short-circuits the dialogue potential. It would have been better to just let the story unfold naturally and to let the characters reach their full potential through meaningful dialogue that builds their personalities and motives. Besides this obvious misstep, the story is based on too many coincidences and things that happen because the plot demands it. However, despite these issues and despite the odd premise, there is lots of potential in this story–enough to warrant a remake–and many audiences will still find it to be a fine movie.
Acting Quality (2 points)
The Identical has surprisingly professional casting and acting. Several cast members, such as Ray Liota, do a great job playing multiple ages. Some emotions tend to be overdone, however, especially from Erin Cottrell. However, line delivery is almost always on point, and the costuming is historically accurate and realistic. This rounds out a slightly above average movie effort.
Conclusion
It’s great for Christian films to come up with creative movie concepts that are outside of the norm and to make films that are good because they are good without being Christian-ized. The idea behind The Identical is one of those you don’t think of every day, so the creatively must be commended. However, while a lot of the attention this movie received centered around the central concept, there were other pitfalls that kept it from being all that it could be. Even still, there is plenty of positive here to build on, and there are some great cues for other films to model after. It will be interesting to see if this creative team does anything else in the future.
Final Rating: 5.5 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 