Review of Old Fashioned (2014) by Matthew C — 16 Feb 2015

4 stars? Really? Really? Really. I usually am among the first to say if it's Christian, don't see it, just go to Church instead. The opening of Old Fashioned, while pretty in its shots of small town America, spelled doom very clearly.

Bad writing, bad acting, bad directing, it was all coming together to be a bomb. I didn't know anything about this film so going into it was a shot in the dark. I didn't even know it was Christian, just indie.

The independent low budget nature comes across too. The trailers may be deceiving because of the references to Jesus and change and God but this film doesn't do what other Christians films do. It doesn't say, if you turn your life around you will be a better person.

It doesn't say that reading a Bible instantly makes you perfect. The characters in Old Fashioned have a long way to go at the beginning of the film. They are genuinely broken and both need to get past some major things in order to live more wholesome lives.

This includes Clay who is the "Jesus found me" frat-boy turned "saving myself for marriage guy." He doesn't go to church or read the Bible in the film. Now I will say that the script gets very expositional and preachy in the first half of the film and many of the scenes and supporting characters feel flat with good and evil a very stark black and white instead of the realistic grey.

I won't excuse any of this because you can do better as entertainers. When the film was entertaining it was very good and when it wasn't, I only put up with it because there is a message underneath it all.

The second half of the film transformed and it was a much better film. Actors, writers, director, everybody on set maybe found their groove and conflicts were paid off. There were still problems and confusing moments where you're wondering what the drama is exactly but the end scores in reminding us all what love looks like and why its so hard.

I've heard the maxims of entertaining first and leaving the message to the audience to decipher based on excellent storytelling but in this world where millions are leaving the traditional places of worship and reflection, maybe the movie house is becoming the only place where a message can be given and actually heard.

I'm not saying every filmmaker should ponder what sermon they wish to preach in their next project but audiences in this secular world need to MORE and MORE be hit on the head and slapped in the face.

While being entertained. Entertainment and storytelling of the highest caliber come first and the message should always be subservient to the story. I had a great experience with this film being on Valentine's Day with my fiance Julie and it was our counter film to Fifty Shades which dozens were lining up for in the theater.

Old Fashioned is exactly that, old fashioned. It isn't the greatest movie or technical achievement, it has a lot of Christian problems and story structure issues, blah blah blah, but if you can sit through all of it, you will care about these people and it will resonate with you.

I hope anyway.