Plot Summary
When Alex Shelby inherits his father’s real estate investment company, he feels like he is in over his head because he does not know how to lead. But he decides to trust in the experienced people who assisted his father all of his career. However, when he is faced with an impossible situation involving accusations against an employee of his that he is falling in love with, Alex will have to make hard decisions as he tries to discover who is really trying to sabotage his company. Will love win out in the end?
Production Quality (1.5 points)
While Courageous Love is an improved production effort compared to the track record of Crystal Creek Media, it is still just average. For example, video quality and camera work are fine, but inconsistent audio issues still plague this film, which is an error Crystal Creek has yet to rectify in their films. Also, the soundtrack is very stock. In this film are many of the same limited sets from Unexpected Places, especially the office sets. Finally, the editing of Courageous Love is very sloppy, with very confusing and abrupt transitions and cuts. Overall, while this production looks better than the past ones, there are still commonly recurring issues that plague it.
Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)
Unlike past plots from this studio, Courageous Love has an interesting and slightly complex idea behind it, even though it gets severely covered up by incompetent writing. There is really no way to follow what’s happening as the audience is presented with a dizzying amount of unconnected and underdeveloped subplots. From one scene to the next, there is little continuity or understanding of what is happening. Many sequences and scenes are empty and wasted, doing nothing to deepen the story. This story’s characters are one-dimensional, act disingenuous, and demonstrate no real purpose or personality as they are driven by mindless dialogue. Finally, the plot rests on unrealistic yet extremely convenient occurrences in order to make the story go where it ‘needs’ to go. In short, while we believe the Knudsens and company have good intentions, their messaging is all wrong.
Acting Quality (.5 point)
While this is another film filled with the same old under-coached Crystal Creek cast members, there is still some potential here. Tim Kaiser seems to be improving with time. However, there are still many errors that plague this section, including useless fake accents and overdubs and the usual emotion and line delivery problems. This group may mean well, but they are in severe need of coaching.
Conclusion
After a handful of movies under their belt, has the Crystal Creek team really made it anywhere? Following such poor productions like Unexpected Places, Indescribable, Christmas Grace, and Creed of Gold, they are just now getting the hang of a proper production, even though they still have a ways to go. But what of their writing? We sincerely implore the Knudsens to reach out for help in this area, because whatever good ideas they have are being wasted as they are lost in translation. Furthermore, please find some new cast members or at least try to coach the ones you have. Movies like Courageous Love are easily forgotten for all of the previously listed reasons. If you want to make an impact, aim for quality over quantity.
Final Rating: 2.5 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 