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False Prophets
Other // R // May 16, 2006
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie
As a native and resident of the southeast, I am proud to be from this part of the country. And thusly, I like to see others from the region succeed. However, it seems that I have very bad luck when it comes to viewing movies made in the south. Maybe it's the kind of movies that I'm watching, but it's rare that I find one that impresses me. My latest candidate, False Prophets, joins that list of disappointing films.
Lori Heuring stars in False Prophets as Maggie Tate, a 22-year old woman who has just learned that she is pregnant. She is very surprised by this new given the fact that she has no ovaries and that he boyfriend, Wade (Clayne Crawford), is sterile. As Maggie works as a waitress and Wade is unemployed, this is a very traumatic situation for her. She debates about getting an abortion, but then Wade is approached by Karl (Patrick Bergin), a man who represents a wealthy couple who want to adopt a child. However, Maggie is unsure of this situation and feels that Wade may only be interested in the money. As Karl applies more pressure to Wade, who in turn pressures Maggie, the young woman feels all alone with her decisions.
As with many homegrown southern films, False Prophets is a low-budget venture which depends on story, characters, and acting rather than action or locations. Unfortunately, the movie stumbles when it comes to the story and characters. The plot of False Prophets which is described above may seem rather straight-forward, but that's only because I've decided to not describe the last 1/3 of the film, as the story takes major turn. While this may sound interesting, it actually hurts the movie and verifies that the movie is never really sure of where it is going. (And apparently neither is the home video company, as the DVD case for False Prophets proclaims that the movie is an "Urban Thriller".)
The topsy-turvy story starts as an "After-School Special"-esque story about a woman who must decide about what to do about her unborn child. It then turns into a paranoia psychological thriller as Maggie begins to wonder about Wade, Karl, and their motives. The last third of the film takes another turn and becomes a chase movie. These sudden shifts are supposedly meant to keep the viewer on edge, but they only serve to make writer/director Robert Kevin Townsend look as if he wasn't sure what he was doing. This feeling is further communicated by the fact that Townsend uses fade ins and outs between scenes, even if very little time is passing between the scenes. This gives the impression that Townsend isn't confident about the editing of the movie.
While the story is confusing and forgettable, False Prophets does offer some competent acting. Lori Heuring looks nothing like Jennifer Aniston, but for some reason she reminds me of the Friends actress, mostly in the way that she holds herself and her facial expressions. She is asked to carry the film and does a good job of expressing the emotional roller coaster that Maggie is on. I never liked Patrick Bergin in the 90s and hadn't seen him in anything in years, but he does a fine job here. Instead of chewing the scenery, he plays Karl with a quiet intensity that gives him an air of mystery.
Video
False Prophets is conceived on DVD courtesy of Freestyle Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.85:1, but the transfer is not enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. The image looks OK, as the picture is sharp and clear, showing only a small amount of grain and incidental defects from the source material. The colors are good, as the film's natural shooting style brings forth nice reds and greens. The transfer does reveal some video noise on the image and I noticed some overt edge enhancement as well. All that aside, it's a shame that the transfer isn't anamorphic.
Audio
The DVD case for False Prophets claims that the disc contains a 5.1 audio track, but this wasn't to be found on the copy that I received, as it contained only a Dolby Stereo 2.0 track. This track provides clear dialogue and sound effects, but it does reveal a barely noticeable hissing. The stereo effects are solid and the score sounds fine.
Extras
The only extra on the DVD is an Audio Commentary by writer/director Robert Kevin Townsend. This is an OK talk, but Townsend actually sound over-prepared. Instead of always doing scene-specific commentary, he instead talks about (apparently) pre-determined topics such as casting, lighting, lens size, etc. He delivers some good information, but if he'd taken a more laid-back approach to the chat then it could have been more enjoyable. (Judging by some comments made by Townsend and from some info gleaned from the film's website, False Prophets was actually shot in 2000, but didn't find distribution until now.)
False Prophets contains some interesting ideas, but in the end, the film is rather dull and not much happens. Also, the movie may be one of the most confused that I've ever seen, as at one point it seems to be delivering a pro-life message, but then it also warns against trusting religious zealots. Either way, I'm not getting into any debate over this movie.
As a native and resident of the southeast, I am proud to be from this part of the country. And thusly, I like to see others from the region succeed. However, it seems that I have very bad luck when it comes to viewing movies made in the south. Maybe it's the kind of movies that I'm watching, but it's rare that I find one that impresses me. My latest candidate, False Prophets, joins that list of disappointing films.
Lori Heuring stars in False Prophets as Maggie Tate, a 22-year old woman who has just learned that she is pregnant. She is very surprised by this new given the fact that she has no ovaries and that he boyfriend, Wade (Clayne Crawford), is sterile. As Maggie works as a waitress and Wade is unemployed, this is a very traumatic situation for her. She debates about getting an abortion, but then Wade is approached by Karl (Patrick Bergin), a man who represents a wealthy couple who want to adopt a child. However, Maggie is unsure of this situation and feels that Wade may only be interested in the money. As Karl applies more pressure to Wade, who in turn pressures Maggie, the young woman feels all alone with her decisions.
As with many homegrown southern films, False Prophets is a low-budget venture which depends on story, characters, and acting rather than action or locations. Unfortunately, the movie stumbles when it comes to the story and characters. The plot of False Prophets which is described above may seem rather straight-forward, but that's only because I've decided to not describe the last 1/3 of the film, as the story takes major turn. While this may sound interesting, it actually hurts the movie and verifies that the movie is never really sure of where it is going. (And apparently neither is the home video company, as the DVD case for False Prophets proclaims that the movie is an "Urban Thriller".)
The topsy-turvy story starts as an "After-School Special"-esque story about a woman who must decide about what to do about her unborn child. It then turns into a paranoia psychological thriller as Maggie begins to wonder about Wade, Karl, and their motives. The last third of the film takes another turn and becomes a chase movie. These sudden shifts are supposedly meant to keep the viewer on edge, but they only serve to make writer/director Robert Kevin Townsend look as if he wasn't sure what he was doing. This feeling is further communicated by the fact that Townsend uses fade ins and outs between scenes, even if very little time is passing between the scenes. This gives the impression that Townsend isn't confident about the editing of the movie.
While the story is confusing and forgettable, False Prophets does offer some competent acting. Lori Heuring looks nothing like Jennifer Aniston, but for some reason she reminds me of the Friends actress, mostly in the way that she holds herself and her facial expressions. She is asked to carry the film and does a good job of expressing the emotional roller coaster that Maggie is on. I never liked Patrick Bergin in the 90s and hadn't seen him in anything in years, but he does a fine job here. Instead of chewing the scenery, he plays Karl with a quiet intensity that gives him an air of mystery.
Video
False Prophets is conceived on DVD courtesy of Freestyle Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.85:1, but the transfer is not enhanced for 16 x 9 TVs. The image looks OK, as the picture is sharp and clear, showing only a small amount of grain and incidental defects from the source material. The colors are good, as the film's natural shooting style brings forth nice reds and greens. The transfer does reveal some video noise on the image and I noticed some overt edge enhancement as well. All that aside, it's a shame that the transfer isn't anamorphic.
Audio
The DVD case for False Prophets claims that the disc contains a 5.1 audio track, but this wasn't to be found on the copy that I received, as it contained only a Dolby Stereo 2.0 track. This track provides clear dialogue and sound effects, but it does reveal a barely noticeable hissing. The stereo effects are solid and the score sounds fine.
Extras
The only extra on the DVD is an Audio Commentary by writer/director Robert Kevin Townsend. This is an OK talk, but Townsend actually sound over-prepared. Instead of always doing scene-specific commentary, he instead talks about (apparently) pre-determined topics such as casting, lighting, lens size, etc. He delivers some good information, but if he'd taken a more laid-back approach to the chat then it could have been more enjoyable. (Judging by some comments made by Townsend and from some info gleaned from the film's website, False Prophets was actually shot in 2000, but didn't find distribution until now.)
False Prophets contains some interesting ideas, but in the end, the film is rather dull and not much happens. Also, the movie may be one of the most confused that I've ever seen, as at one point it seems to be delivering a pro-life message, but then it also warns against trusting religious zealots. Either way, I'm not getting into any debate over this movie.
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