Flywheel

Okay, let's be honest. Low-budget, amateur actors, and a blatant agenda. All this has been commented on. Rather than "getting past" all this, though, I think much of the charm in this movie is in constantly remembering these factors.

I have seen dozens of Christian themed movies done with similar talent, technology and budget. Most are disappointing on more than one level. I'm not enough of a connoisseur to put my finger on it, but something about "Flywheel" transcends the genre. I was moved by several scenes; and the performances, while not stellar, were powerful and real. I was nearly asleep when I started watching, and I was captivated for two hours. Part of what held my interest was my awareness that these are not professional filmmakers or actors; watching them grapple with these roles was a treat, and the result is surprisingly satisfying. Once you take it as a given that the goal is to present a particular message, I think you have to hand it to the Kendricks for handling it like they do. Just real enough to be effective; just sanitized enough to make it completely family-friendly. Nothing, wrong, in my mind, with a rawer approach, but given certain self-imposed limitations, an admirable movie.

Worth the time, worth the rent, worth a second look

Based on previous comments, apparently the movie made its way across the country. But I am disturbed by some comments.

Who's to say a movie needed actual actors to play the parts? I have seen no-name actors go on to do huge movies.

Who's to say a movie needed a million dollar budget? Clerks was made with a 30,000 dollar budget and the movie was excellent. It also paved the way for at least five other movies such as Mallrats, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and even Clerks 2. Meanwhile, Sherwood Pictures has a new movie in September and I imagine there may be more to come.

And so "they shove religion down our throats". Big deal. Lots of movies have shoved a lot down our throats. Some negative, some positive. People can be influenced so much by movies. And I believe that is why the movie was made in the first place.

The characters were great. The Kendricks proved that you can make a clean family movie and yet have a villain(Bernie). I love villains. And he was brilliant.

The scene with Bernie and Vince about biscuits was about the funniest I have seen in any type of genre of movies.

Just thought I'd throw in my 53 cents in.

First off, this is a great story...honesty is not the subject of many movies anymore and I commend the writers for coming up with a great story.

This of course was their first movie, so from a technical standpoint there are a lot of goofs and technical things wrong.

The lighting is the most prominent of these, and you do spot the microphone in one scene, but these are understandable on a very small budget from a new film maker.

I really recommend this and Facing the Giants. They are both great stories and well acted from unknowns.

I can't wait for their 3rd film!

This was obviously a low budget flick and I only picked it out at the video store due to lack of other options. Having never heard of the movie, the description on the back of the DVD sounded OK so I rented it.

I'm not much of a religious man but I found this movie to be heartwarming, philosophical, and entertaining (although the middle was on the edge of boring.) And I disagree with the earlier reviewer who took issue with the movie's description of the flywheel. I don't think the guy said or implied that the sole use of the flywheel is starting the engine. What he said was that the flywheel was bad, which prevented the engine from starting. If he fixed the flywheel he would then fix the car.

Refreshing non-Hollywood style drama. It was obviously made on a shoe-string budget by relative unknowns, but that's part of this sweet little film's charm. It is a fine example of a thoughtful effort to get a point across without explosions, car chases, or four-letter slang.

The writer and lead Alex Kendrick has offered up a very sincere and cleverly told story. It's not polished; its independent roots are evident (tops of people's heads get chopped off a lot, for example). Nevertheless, the characters are likable and the acting isn't bad at all. The writer puts a lot of humorous one-liners in the script ("You lazy, fat, last-chip-eating thief!"), and the story rolls along nicely.

Used car salesman Jay Austin makes a perfect modern Ebenezer Scrooge type, a dishonest and ruthless businessman. His life (both business and private) starts crashing down, and he cries out to God for forgiveness and help. His revival seems rushed in the story, but it's believable. But it's not just his personal epiphany and the changing of his ways that this story focuses on, it's the result of that change. The dishonest employees of Austin who do not change, make a great counterpoint between his past and present behavior. A couple of plot twists near the end can be seen coming from a mile away, but that doesn't really hurt the film.

Certainly there's a moral, and the movie succeeds at presenting food for thought. It makes for a good rental.