Reviews

I agree with what everybody has said about the remarkable feat this movie is, considering it was accomplished on a $7000 budget. It's dramatic, has human interest, and takes its own unique approach to the subject of extraterrestrial visitors.

The movie is an object lesson in what can be done with the most modest of means. It was filmed using a single "Blackmagic Pocket Cinema" digital camera, but it was so skillfully shot, well lit, beautifully lighted, and tastefully treated in post-production that every scene is beautifully cinematic.

The "set" is just the interior of a car and some nearby woods. The three occupants are skilled and convincing actors do a convincing job with their roles, despite very claustrophobic surroundings.

It was brave (if somewhat unwise) of its producer, considering the lack of budget, sets, etc., to try and "Kubrik" this film, stretching it to over two hours in length. Without 2001's visual effects to fall back on, many of the scenes feel as though they've been milked absolutely dry. I agree with other reviewers who say it would have benefitted from some serious "editing back."

My only own other niggle (though their budget would have allowed nothing more) is the one-man film score. It's a guy on a synthesizer, playing variations on a four-chord theme over and over for 129 minutes. The public is accustomed to synthetic movie scores nowadays, but for me, the lack of real orchestration and more varied arrangements became tiresome after the first 15 minutes.

For die-hard sci-fi fans who don't mind its "slow-boil-bordering-on-mild-simmer" pacing, I do think this movie is worthwhile watching. I'm glad I saw it, and congratulate the people who put it together for accomplishing the near-impossible.

I'm constantly disappointed by people who watch a movie like this one and try to hold it up to standards it was never intended to meet, then leaving scathing reviews. This is a simple story told in an interesting, quiet way, about a man struggling through hardship to try and reunite with his family. It's not an action film or a gee-whiz sci-fi loaded down with CGI and made ridiculous with inane, cutesy dialogue. In fact, it accomplishes its purpose with almost no dialogue at all. Call it an art film, an indy film, call it what you will. I just decided when I sat down to watch it that I was going to allow myself to take this movie in without becoming all "Mr. Film Critic." I came to the conclusion it does a good job of being what it is, and I'm rating it on that basis...not by comparing it against billion dollar blockbusters.

Lots of people have already done good summaries of this show, which I think has a lot going for it. I'm on S1 E20, and am pretty much hooked. Yes, it's formulaic, but there's enough new stuff happening to keep things moving and add new dynamics all the time. Gotta say, of all the TV I've ever watched though, I've never seen a character who is easier to absolutely despise than "Miss Parker," the adult version of the child Jarod grew up with inside "The Center." She's like the "Anti-Jarod." Both of them went through awful childhoods, but he came out of it determined to try to make life better for suffering people, and she came out of it wanting to make life miserable for everyone around her. Every time I try to feel some compassion for her when she shows a little vulnerability, she goes back into her tigress mode and lashes out, abusing her equals and especially her inferiors while shrinking humbly before her higher-ups and supervisors. That makes her an A-1 coward and a bully.

This isn't hard sci-fi, and doesn't even pretend to be particularly plausible in either its science or its storyline. But you know what? I don't care. I watch movies to be entertained, and I found this movie very entertaining. Alright, I'll admit I fast-forwarded through some of the more juvenile parts, especially the oh oh oh la la " tribal pop music with whiny, autotune singing. I just can't... Putting that aside, I loved the story, the acting, and heart-warming relationships, the surprising turns of events, and Asa's beautiful innocence as the Martian boy discovering life on Earth, and love, for the first time. There are fun moments, exciting moments, awesome rocket scene special effects, beautiful sets and colors, and gorgeous scenes as our planet stretches out before Asa for the very first time. If you like sci-fi, appreciate a big budget effort, and are more interested in being entertained than nitpicking, I think you'll like "The Space Between Us."

Before I talk about the story, let me address an issue that doesn't come up very often in reviews. Sometimes, it's tough for people of faith to find movies they can comfortably watch these days. I really enjoy the sci-fi genre, but it seems like the majority of movies are land mined with f-bombs and other vulgarity, and sexy scenes. It seems so unnecessary to the plot, and to have been thrown in gratuitously. I was really happy to see that this movie was completely clean. I mean G-rated clean. It didn't take anything away from the story to not have swearing and sex in it. As for my review of the movie itself, I felt the premise was interesting, there was good drama, and much of the acting was good...with the notable exception of the advocate guy back on Earth...who could have toned his performance down a bit. I won't give away any of the plot. Suffice it to say that if you don't need a ton of special effects to be entertained, and like to use your brain, this noble low-budget film may be enjoyable to you. It was for me. Minor spoiler: The ending doesn't tidily stitch everything together. It allows you to use your imagination about how things turn out.

Having come from a small town, and grown up with the "small town values" others here seem to want to denigrate, this movie struck a.positive chord with me. Whether or not the plot was completely unique or completely unpredictable (it wasn't), I felt it was a compelling story about people, not meteors, as viewers might easily comprehend from the title. The acting was very good, and I felt like the characters were three dimensional and believable. It's easy to look at every movie with a jaded eye, but I prefer in this case to look for the good in the story. "Anna's Storm" reinforces values lots of kind-hearted people still embrace. No, it's not a big budget blockbuster, there are some continuity (and other) problems, and the music soundtrack is just a guy playing three-note-chords on a synthesizer, but the overall effect of the movie struck a positive chord for me.

...and even most of them probably wouldn't. Like others, I thought the premise sounded potentially entertaining, but the movie contained nothing, nothing, nothing. Aliens overhead, some shooting from an obscured looking ship, then the focus turns to a group of frightened campers who wander aimlessly around in the woods with no clear objective other than to evade some humans who have been changed into zombies. White Sky seems to be one of a new generation of shoestring budget movies that count on an exciting poster and a misleading trailer to sell enough tickets to cover expenses and make a profit. All the sales must come in the first week, because once word gets around, they're sure to languish and become one more freebee on Amazon Prime.

When I first saw this movie, I had never seen any of the director's previous works, nor seen the trailer. I had no expectations or preconceived notions. I just took everything as it came.

I was floored by the movie's drama and suspense, the meticulous staging of every scene, the outstanding performances of a top-flight group of award-winning actors, the unusual plot and twists, and maybe more than anything else, by the overwhelmingly beautiful, poignant soundtrack, with solo violin by Hilary Hahn (who has been called one of the ten best violinists of all time).

I understand why people who were misled by the trailer and were hoping for gore and the supernatural probably felt let down, but as someone who doesn't care to see things like that anyway, that didn't enter into the equation at all for me. What I felt, and still feel, is that this is one of the most artistic and emotionally powerful movies I've ever experienced. I also came to love and admire the story's characters for their nobility. Their earnestness in trying to live a decent and harmonious life together, and to nurture and truly care for one-another, is something I still think is inspiring.

I can't tell exactly why but I kinda liked it. I half wonder if the movie Cars might have gotten a little inspiration from the storyline. Without giving anything away, I think those who who have seen both will know what I mean.