Plot Summary
Cadon and Jess have made bad choices in their lives, but they have each other and they have Jess’ son to keep them going. However, in one fell swoop of mistakes a ‘friend’ convinced them into, they lose custody of their little boy to Jess’ parents, whom she is still not speaking to. Thus, in a moment of desperation, they turn to the same ‘friend’ who got them in trouble for help getting out of it. Together, they concoct a dangerous scheme to get their son back, but little do they know what God really has planned for them.
Production Quality (.5 point)
As a severely underfunded production, My Son unfortunately has a lot of issues here. Camera work is quite shaky, including a lot of odd camera angles, and lighting is strange throughout. There are too many loud outside sounds that crowd out the audio, as well as a loud soundtrack. Sets and locations are relatively limited, but the props are good and appropriate. Some of these production elements improve slightly in the end as the final scenes appear to have more effort behind them. Yet nonetheless, the editing throughout is an issue. Basically, this was a very ambitious idea for such a limited budget, but the effort is commendable.
Plot and Storyline Quality (1.5 points)
My Son is a rare instance in which the plot is better than the production, as long as you can look past the production issues. The writers mean well and are trying their best to portray realistic circumstances and accessible characters. The suspense plot setup is very intriguing and well-constructed. Dialogue sometimes isn’t as good as it should be, but for the most part, it is realistic and believable. As the suspense progresses, the movie actually holds the attention if you are committed to it. In the end, the ending is well written and realistic. Since this is such an ambitious idea trapped in a bad production, it would be great to see a remake or at least another suspense plot from these writers.
Acting Quality (1 point)
At the beginning of this film, the acting is too forceful and overly practiced, as well as awkward. However, it seems like this cast means well and is really trying. The most interesting thing about the cast members is that they are actually better as suspenseful acting than at regular acting, and thus show improvement at the end, like other elements do. There is tons of potential here that needs to be brought out in another film.
Conclusion
Despite its obvious flaws, My Son is a surprising and interesting burst onto the movie scene. It likely will not get as much attention as other films, but it embodies a gold mine of potential this church has in making unique and ambitious Christian films in different genres. Rarely do you see this much potential in a freshman film from a random church group. It just goes to show you how trying a different genre and really working on your plot, even if you have poor funding, goes a long way. They are already one step ahead of other film makers, so we can’t wait to see what they have next.
Final Rating: 3 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 