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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Ought
Stars: Denton Blane Everett, Sarah Ewell, Valri Bromfield, Starina Johnson, Michael Beckham, Jerri Owen, Colandos Scott and Jon Russell Cring Director/Scriptwriter: Jon Russell Cring Composer: Janet Clazzy Extraordinary (F 3) Films Rating: Not rated but could be PG 13 Running Length: 119 minutes Web site: www.extraordinaryfilmproject.com Ought is one of twelve feature length films the F 3 Film Company (Extraordinary Films) is making in a year's time. The company is out to prove a point: that interesting feature films can be made on a small budget. Topics for the films are varied and include the humorous story of a waitress (Bernee) and Ought which is about an attorney gone astray. For more information on upcoming projects, visit their web site. Ought tells the story of Johnson Reynolds (Denton Blane Everett who is a Ben Affleck lookalike). Johnson is a young attorney into an assortment of drugs. What happened is told in flashbacks and we learn that Johnson is a hit and run driver. In fact, the child he hit is in critical condition. Johnson was trying to keep a bag of marijuana from falling off his car seat at the time of the accident. This wouldn't look good to police, so Johnson keeps quiet and donates his car to charity. Even so, he feels a need for friendship and surprisingly enough, his best friend is his drug dealer, Zookie (Colandos Scott.) Years pass, Johnson marries his girlfriend, they have a child, troubles in the marriage cause them to separate and the overriding thing is guilt. Something happens to Johnson at this time that causes many people to simply scratch their heads in wonder. What is really going on with this man? Ought tells a plausible story and Denton Blane Everett carries the role of Johnson well. We see the descent of a man who can't confess and how this affects his life. The role requires both humor and pathos. One of the best moments in the film is a dialogue between Johnson and Zookie, at night, in a car, during a drug sale. There are moments of clarity and then each man backs away. With the exception of Johnson's two law partners and their meeting with him, the rest of the cast delivers dialogue rather stiffly. There is some clever dialogue, though, such as when Johnson tries to con his secretary and she is wise to him. Humor is provided when Johnson shows up at a trial with the wrong preparatory notes, or director Jon Russell Cring's appearance as an opposing attorney who can't keep his vest buttoned. I enjoyed the film for giving a new twist on "conscience." The moral of the story is served well and it will leave you thinking when the film is finished. At two hours, the film could have been shortened by 20 minutes with fewer scenes of Johnson trying to get accident information, for example. Also, the shift ahead in years is not well delineated. Ought ends up being a film about a man who ignores his positive inner voice and ends up in a quandary. You ought to do the right thing. Copyright 2007 Marie Asner
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