Plot Summary
Brad and Lillian believed that they were meant to be together forever. When Brad graduates from high school, Lillian believes this will not affect their relationship as she has one more year to go. However, on the night of the graduation, Lillian’s life is changed forever when Brad disappears for days without contacting anyone. The town searches for him and holds vigils for him, but nothing ever comes of it all as the months go by with no word about Brad’s whereabouts. Lillian’s emotions collapse as she can think of nothing else besides the future life she thought she had. Will she be able to pick herself back up and remember the faith she claims to have had?
Production Quality (2.5 points)
After several years of trial and error, the production efforts of husband-and-wife movie team John and Brittany Goodwin have paid off. Though If You’re Gone had a modest budget, it was allocated very well. This is evident in the professional video quality and camera work. The soundtrack is a very good original creation, and the audio quality is spot-on. Sets, locations, and props, though somewhat limited, are utilized very well. The only minor issues to point out here that keep this production from being perfect are some inconsistent lighting and some slight editing issues, but as a whole, this is a very professional production that gives great hope for the future of Every New Day Pictures.
Plot and Storyline Quality (1.5 points)
Based on the original novel from the Goodwins, If You’re Gone delivers a unique plot and a compelling message. Though the story can be a bit slow at times, there are some great conversations and dialogue throughout that seek to build characters. However, there were still some missed opportunities to use dialogue to deepen characters just a tad more since this is a character-based story with only a handful of characters. These missed opportunities are most evident in the middle of the film as it appears to only serve to fill time with montages and somewhat repeated scenes in order to get to the ending. Though some audiences may not hold on for the end, the conclusion is definitely worth the wait as it contains an unexpected twist combined with a very unique and empowering message that one does not see very often in Christian film. This ending is very much worth your time, but it would have been even better to see some flashbacks in the middle of the film that helped us to further understand why the characters did what they did and that expanded upon the family of origin issues that were touched on. This story was clearly written for the excellent ending, so it would have likely been Hall of Fame if the lead-up was more engaging. Even still, some will find this movie to be worthwhile and interesting.
Acting Quality (2 points)
For the most part, the cast of If You’re Gone appears to be well-coached as each cast member does a good job assuming his or her respective role quite well. Masey McLain is always a great lead, but it might have helped for her to have further support since some cast members come off as a bit weak and detracting from the overall score. However, emotions and line delivery are above average as a whole, which rounds out this film very well.
Conclusion
The Goodwins have persevered for several years in pursuit of the greatest film, and they have a unique opportunity to create their own source material by writing it before making their own films out of it. They have always been close to the mark, and with If You’re Gone, they have come even closer. Production is in a good spot for them, and acting is nearly perfect. The next step forward for their team is to ensure stronger plots to accompany their great messaging. Writing stories can be difficult, so it may be a good opportunity to adapt other source material as well since the Christian fiction world is replete with options. In summary, If You’re Gone is definitely a good film, and the Goodwins are one step away from true greatness.
Final Rating: 6 out of 10 points
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