Saving Faith [2012] (Movie Review)

Plot Summary

After Malcolm’s family is killed in the car wreck that he survives, he begins making poor choices that cause his life to fall apart.  He feels like he’s coming unhinged and what’s worse is that one of his employees in entangled with a dangerous gang that drags Malcolm into the mix of everything.  Will he be able to keep his head above water and remember the faith he has long abandoned?

 

Production Quality (0 points)

One has to wonder what the standards are for PureFlix to distribute a film.  Much like Saving Winston, Hollow, As I Stand, Without a Father, Birdie and Bogey, Running Inside Out, The Wager, etc., Saving Faith is a terrible production in every possible way.  Video quality is very cheap and there are a lot of weird camera angles.  Audio quality is also bad and there’s not enough of a soundtrack.  Sets, locations, and props are extremely cheap and limited.  Finally, editing is non-existent and all possible content—including useless content—is included.  Basically, this is an awful mess.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

As a typical post-tragedy troubled character plot, Saving Faith follows a lot of predictable conventions.  It is very melodramatic and refers to a lot of off-screen content, even as plenty of time is wasted.  Despite this fact, there is hardly enough content to sustain a plot at all as scenes are dragged out painfully in order to fill time.  Dialogue is dead as the characters are cardboard cutouts with no feeling whatsoever.  In the end, if you make it that far, problems are resolved way too easily and thus, nothing is learned.  Unfortunately, this is yet another throwaway movie.

Acting Quality (.5 point)

Though this cast has more potential than the rest of the film, they are still overly practiced and stiff in their line delivery.  Emotions are basically non-existent and empty.  With such a low budget, it’s easy to see why there was no coaching, but in the grand scheme of things, what was really the purpose of this film?

Conclusion

It’s likely that a lot of low-funded films have creative teams behind them who mean well but who didn’t anticipate the great undertaking that film making actually is.  In such cases like this, it would be better to make a short film or a beta test and not release it to the public because doing so only hurts your reputation and the reputation of Christian film.  But perhaps the people behind movies like this will improve in the future and surprise us all.

 

Final Rating: .5 out of 10 points

 

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August 3, 2017January 8, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Inspirational, Movie Reviews, SuspenseTags: 1/2 point, 2012, Bryan Hanna, Dan Lookabill, Eljaye Jennings, Emari Creech, Erik Contreras, Gilbert J. Menchaca, Heather Graff, Inspirational, J.R. Cruz, Jason Hayes, Jeff Vernon, Joey Holland, John-Marc Yaden, Kenny Wiley, Lauren Lina, Liliana Montenegro, Mark E. Ridley, Martin L. Carlton, Matt Teague, Michael Patrick Breen, Nikki Love, Norma Burgess, PureFlix, Ricardo Ramirez, Sarah Slotkin, Shannon Evans, Spencer Scott, Stephanie Mathis, Suspense, Tee Bradley, Thurman Dalrymple 2 Comments

In the Name of God {Name in Vain} [2013] (Movie Review)

Eric Roberts trying to conduct group counseling without screening clients

Plot Summary

When Mason, a troubled foster teen, comes to live with the Lewis family, he thinks that it will be just like all the other foster families he has stayed with.  But unlike the families before them, the Lewis are committed to setting him on the straight and narrow and teaching him RESPECT at all costs.  Even when he vandalizes a hardware store and is sentenced to ‘group’, the Lewis family sticks by him.  In the end, Mason will have to learn about RESPECT in order to move forward in life.

 

Production Quality (.5 point)

If KKO Productions have anything going for them, at least they have figured out how to have clear video quality.  Otherwise, there is little else we can say positive for this film.  Camera work is inconsistent and some scenes are darker than others.  Audio quality is also a tossup, as some lines are indistinguishable while others are too loud.  The soundtrack is cheesy, as usual.  KKO appears to be severely limited in sets and locations, as there are really only three main sets used in this film.  This causes the editing to suffer as well, since many events take place off screen in places where they obviously could not acquire a set.  In short, old news is new news for KKO when it comes to cheaply produced Christian films.

Plot and Storyline Quality (0 points)

Framing an entire film as a sermon illustration is hardly ever a good idea.  It gives the writers a springboard to shove an obvious message down the viewer’s throat and is generally lazy.  Thus, In the Name of God overuses theological concepts and oversimplifies them by having characters repeat them over and over again.  Rather than showing and demonstrating Christian virtues lived out, they are talked about and impressed upon the audience with no meaningful actions to back them up.  Coupled with this overreach are empty and mindless characters, who are driven by petty and silly dialogue.  None of them seem like real people, just players in an obvious church play designed to teach second graders the Ten Commandments.  The subplots therein are very random and lack continuity, not the mention the fact that they contain highly unrealistic occurrences, such as a small church pastor placing children in foster care and a ‘counselor’ sharing confidential information with random people.  If you want to include such things in your films, please research them first.  As it is, In the Name of God makes a mockery of important issues that could have been presented in a meaningful fashion.  But alas, we can find no real potential with this movie, thus warranting no points for the plot.

Acting Quality (0 points)

As is the usual custom of KKO, otherwise talented actors and actresses are fed lines without any real coaching or guidance.  Most of the scenes in this film seem like they were one-take only.  John Ratzenberger has certainly had much better acting jobs than this one.  Eric Roberts always plays the same weird character, but that’s beside the point.  It seems like the ‘no-name’ cast members have potential that is not being brought out.  Thus, no points can be awarded here.

Conclusion

So apparently this was intended to be a movie series about the Ten Commandments.  Can you imagine ten movies like this one?  If this was supposed to be about the fourth Commandment, it completely went over our heads.  Basically, In the Name of God, or whatever it’s called, is another embarrassing low budget production that carries an in-your-face theological message that is unlikely to convert or inspire anyone.  We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: before making a Christian movie, please make sure you have the funding for what you want to do.  Then please make sure you actually have a plot.  These two things can make such a difference when your movie is completed.  Because seriously, who’s going to watch this garbage?

 

Final Rating: .5 out of 10 points

August 18, 2016January 15, 2019 by Box Office Revolutionary Categories: Inspirational, Movie ReviewsTags: 1/2 point, 2013, Amanda Martindale, André van Heerden, Damiano Tucci, Danny Roth, Eric Roberts, Garrett Palmer, Inspirational, Jeannette Grout, John Ratzenberger, Kevin Otto, KKO Productions, Marshal Hilton, Mickey Gooch Jr., Norma Burgess, Patrick Davis, Pete Freeland, RESPECT, Robyn Lively, satellite phones, Shayne Pax, Susan Chambers, unethical group counseling 4 Comments