Movie Review - Signed Sealed Delivered: The Impossible Dream

Signed Sealed Delivered

The Impossible Dream

2015

Moon Water Productions / Muse Entertainment Enterprises : The Hallmark Channel / Muse Distribution International

8 / 10

This movie is the apotheosis of what the series represents.  In the film, not only are the issues of hope when things appear blackest are addressed but so are the concepts of sacrifice, love, obsession, and truth above all else.  All of this is Signed Sealed Delivered in the usual heartwarming package that leaves you with a warm feeling and thinking that everything is right with the world.

The writers, Matha Williamson (the stories creator) and Brandi Harkonen do another wonderful job as intertwining a myriad of events into an enjoyable show.  This is actually a continuation and conclusion of the story from "Truth Be Told" as the Postables are taken before a Closed Senate Committee regarding national security.  As they tell their story, in a roundabout fashion of information that's come into their possession concerning the whereabouts of Lieutenant Randilynn Amidon; the missing mother of  Pheobe from the last film.  Their testimonies are interspersed with scenes of Lieutenant Amidon in Afghanistan.  All of this coincides with the Postal Pageant to find the next Miss Special Delivery, in which Rita is enrolled.  If this isn't enough then Steve, Shane's old love, is back and helping the team to find the missing Lieutenant.

On the whole, all of this is handled superbly, and I particularly loved the opening titles with the Postables marching side by side into the Committee meeting, the bit with Norman brought a smile to my face and a laugh to my throat.  Director Kevin Fair does some nice shots and segues, however, there are some sections which let the film down a little and these are mainly confined to the outdoor Afghanistan scenes.  If it weren't for these then I may have given the film a Ten.

The cast once again is impeccable and right on target with their characters and their portrayals.  Mark Valley gives off the right sense of power and swarthiness that you can understand what Shane saw in him.  Zak Santiago is back as the brilliant Ramon Rodriguez.  Christina Bianco is great as Mindy, one of the contestants in the pageant, and boy does she can wail.

Do I recommend watching this movie, I do and strongly.  However, because of the characters and their back stories, I think you would get better enjoyment from this movie if you had watched the series and previous movies.  It's well worth it.

Movie Review - Signed Sealed Delivered: Truth Be Told

Signed Sealed Delivered

Truth Be Told

2015

Moon Water Productions / Muse Entertainment Enterprises : The Hallmark Channel

9.25 / 10

I am pleased to say that the writing team of Martha Williamson and Brandi Harkonen are back on track after the previous episode, which resolved Oliver's estranged marriage.

They have managed to put the series back on track as they revert to the tried and true structure.  The main story is that of the lost letter, with the postables lives taking second place.  In this movie, the lost letter comes from a military officer stationed in Afghanistan.  The letter is to her daughter...

The story does a very good job of telling a story of loss, hope, and heartbreaking truth.  Back on the home front, we learn more about Oliver and his past as his father comes home to visit with some shocking and groundbreaking news.  It also seems that Oliver's wife is not the only family member he's estranged from.  There's so much going on in this episode that it should keep you entertained.

The direction is up to par with the previous episodes as Kevin Fair is still in the Directors chair and the resident cast is consistently good and builds their characters and ongoing relationships well.  The extra cast of Gregory Harrison as Oliver's Father, Joe O'Toole; Megan Charpentier as Phoebe Amidon, and William B Davis as Harper, Pheobe's Grandfather; are very good in their roles, especially Charpentier. 

If you've watched the previous episodes of the movies and series then you should like this one, though if you're not familiar with Signed Sealed Delivered then I would recommend watching from the start as it's the best way to relate to the characters... and it's worth it.

 

Video Nasty - Man From Deep River

Man From Deep River

1972

AKA: Sacrifice

AKA: Deep River Savages

Roas Produzioni / Medusa Distribuzione : International Trading / Shriek Show

5 / 10

Though this made it onto the Video Nasties list when it was released and classified as a horror film I must admit to finding little horror in it at all.  It is more of a drama, with gore, about a photographer in the Thailand jungle who is captured and subsequently brought into the tribe where he has to marry the chief's daughter to stay alive.

It also isn't a bad movie...

The major trouble with the film is that it's all staged, which means the scene's of animal cruelty are real.  With other films of this ilk, most of the cruelty scene's were filmed by a third party for documentary reasons, though added to the movies for entertainment; you can usually notice the difference in film quality.  So the cockfight and the snake vs mongoose are real, though I'm unsure at to the decapitation of the monkey skull so they eat the brains, as there is a cut which may indicate they changed out for special effects - one can always hope.

However, at the heart of the film is the change in John Bradley's (Ivan Rassimov) character from being a captive to a reluctant member of the tribe to a fully fledged tribe member, thrown into the mix is the love story between himself and Maraya (Me Me Lai).

It's not a fantastic film though Umberto Lenzi directs nicely, though I think the steady pace is a little too slow at times.  It is beautifully filmed and I like that Lenzi filmed it in vivid colour and resisted making it more grimy and gritty.  However, this beauty has a downside some of the sets are too clean and structured, not what you would expect to find in the middle of a jungle.  The actors aren't too bad either and do a respectful job of bringing the tribe to life and showing their traditions and day to day living habits.

I really wouldn't recommend anybody to watch the film as it falls between the gaps trying to please everybody.  For example, for an adventure, it's too slow so if you like adventure films you may not like this.  The love story, which is more suited to this pace, at times could have made a decent "chick-flick" in its own right, though I don't think lovers of this style of film would enjoy the torture and cruelty aspects of the adventure. 

Nergling - The Video Nasties Scare - The Man From Deep River

Movie Review - Dragon Hunter

Dragon Hunter

2009

Ground Glass Entertainment / Dragon Hunter Films : Cinedigm / IndieReign / Koan / Metrodome Video Ltd.

5 / 10

Since this is a story about a man who is a Dragon Hunter in a world of Orcs, Elves, and Dragons you would expect to find this review in the Fantasy section.  However, as a fantasy film, it pretty well sucks.  The Dragon is only in the movie for a few minutes and the orcs you see are just a band of five, dispatched in seconds, and the special effects for them are quite weak, they're just men in masks.  The Dragon, on the other hand, is a pretty decent CGI for a low budget flick.

Realising the budget wouldn't be so large the writer and director, Stephen Shimek, decided to make it about the journey of brothers Darius and Kendrick, played strongly by Erik Denton and Maclain Nelson respectively, take to get to the Castle Okarda to train the last Dragon Hunter.  On the way, they for alliances with a band of soldiers who accompany them on their mission.

As a drama, it's an above-average film with some really nice camera shots.  I particularly liked the way Shimek created the love scene between Darius and the Elfin Raya, portrayed elegantly by Kelly Stables.  There's a nice chemistry between the pair and as they move in for their first kiss a rain shower starts, and you know what the rain drop hitting the leaf really represents.

The actors have above average acting skills and give the most to their roles.

The only things that irked me were the amount of time the journey took; they walked a lot... and must have passed the same tree at least three times, this slowed the film down quite a bit... not to the point of boredom, but close.  Then there was the swordplay when the Hunter was training.  It would've been advisable to bring in an expert to show them how to wield a sword correctly.

This is not a fast and action-packed movie it's a slow meander through the fantasy realm and therefore not for everyone.  I enjoyed it thought I wouldn't rush to watch it again... or ever.

If there's nothing else to watch and you can't get out the house for some reason, then this could pass the time quite well.