Plot Summary
After athletic enthusiast Steve George has a cycling accident that leaves him a quadriplegic, he feels like his life is over. He doesn’t like the therapy he is forced to attend and he doesn’t like his family fussing over him. He wants to be free, but is trapped in his wheelchair. However, one day, his grandmother gives him new hope by introducing him to quad rugby, which he can play in his wheelchair. This opens up a whole new world for him and allows him to touch the lives of others, as well as discover the faith his family always tried to share with him.
Production Quality (1.5 points)
This film has a relatively low budget, so it’s a fairly good production considering the circumstances. Yet it seems like some of the issues could have been avoided, regardless of the funding amount. The odd hazy video quality can be forgiven, as can some of the audio issues, which include some obvious overdubs. However, the soundtrack is too generic and sometimes too loud. There are also some odd camera angles throughout, but this area is mostly fine. The best part of the production pertains to the high quality sets, sports and medical props, and outdoor locations, which are difficult to accomplish on this small budget. Yet the editing is too choppy to be able to understand the story very well. In the end, this is an average production, which is good considering what they had to work with.
Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)
Unfortunately, while this is obviously a good true story, it is presented in a very poor fashion. Where the characters should be accessible, especially in their struggles, they are not. This is likely due to the large amount of underdeveloped characters that exist in this plot. Also, the dialogue is often too straightforward and unsubstantial. There is also too much melodrama that makes the otherwise poor circumstances of the characters seem too out of reach. Besides this, though there is an attempt to craft a predictable sports redemption plot, it doesn’t even accomplish this as the story falls flat and completely lacks any arcs or twists. This is just face-value information presented in an unintentional documentary form without any real interest evoked. It’s a shame, because this could be a good film.
Acting Quality (1.5 points)
With a relatively large cast, there is a lot going on here. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of them all. Yet most of them are too matter-of-fact and emotionless in their delivery. However, there are plenty of good moments here and there is some amount of coaching present here. But overall, this caps off an underwhelming effort.
Conclusion
Low funding for production is one thing, but this crew handled this issue pretty well. The issue comes in when you have a plot written for you and you are unable to present it in a way that makes sense. It’s clear that this creative team meant well with this film, but some consulting was probably in order so that it could be as good as it could have been. It’s frustrating to see films like this, but perhaps it will lead to further improvement in the future.
Final Rating: 3 out of 10 points
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