Plot Summary
Izzy already has a strained relationship with her parents, but when she finds out that they have lied to her all her life about her being adopted, she decides to take a road trip to see her biological mother without them knowing. However, she quickly finds out that her road trip is not what it seems as things go from bad to worse. A nightmare scenario suddenly unfolds as she finds herself a hostage in a desperate situation. Though she has resisted the Christian faith for years now, she begins to change her mind when faced with death.
Production Quality (.5 point)
Sense of Urgency is unfortunately a fairly cheap small time production that had some obvious funding shortfalls. This is evidenced by a weird light filter that plagues the film and gives the video quality a bizarre gray look. The soundtrack is also generic and fairly loud at times. The sets, locations, and props are mostly pedestrian, and audio quality is somewhat inconsistent. While the camera work is fine most of the time, there is some weird lighting in some scenes. There are also cheesy special effects to contend with, and the editing is choppy in some places. Overall, while there was some effort here, this production needs a lot of work.
Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)
The surprising thing about Sense of Urgency is that the core idea of the film is actually slightly interesting. While the beginning of the movie is hard to understand since random things seemingly happen, there is some potential for the development of flawed and accessible characters with slightly complex back stories that cannot be typically found in the inspirational world. However, a lot of this potential never comes to fruition. Nevertheless, this plot idea is interesting enough as a suspense idea and would probably benefit from some sort of remake. Even so, this good effort is unfortunately not enough as some of the characters are too cheesy, such as the villain and the Christian characters, and some dialogue is too forced and expository for the moment. The conversations need to build characters better, and the circumstances need to occur more naturally rather than out of necessity for the plot. Further, the Christian message needs to be less childish, and the ending doesn’t need to try to fix everything. Overall, this was a nice effort, and it offers some slight hope for future projects.
Acting Quality (1 point)
As this cast is mostly composed of inexperienced members, the acting is unfortunately pedestrian and basically below average. This is due to forced emotional performances and line delivery that needs some work. At times, the cast members are not very convincing in their roles, but there are also moments of potential and more natural performances. Perhaps they can continue to improve their craft with better coaching.
Conclusion
Overall, Sense of Urgency does what we ask of struggling film makers: when the budget is low, focus on the plot. While this storyline is not the most creative in the world, it demonstrates potential and is definitely something to build off of. It’s almost always better to depart from the average inspirational fare that crowds the market, so trying a different type of suspense plot can help you stand out. However, what is much better is learning to portray real people in more natural ways without the message pushing. If you get this right, God will send the funding at the right time.
Final Rating: 2 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 