Movie Review: Homestead

 

Michael's Movie Grade: D+

Angel Studio's weakest film yet. 

First things first, this movie is really the set-up for a streaming series of the same name. I am personally very against this idea. It is one thing to have a film where the story will be continued with the next movie but it is a very different thing to have a movie be nothing but a glorified pilot episode for a show. Many movie fans (me included) just simply want to watch a film when they go to the movies and don't want to have to watch a whole TV series after they are done. Because of this a movie like this really needs to stand on its own. Unfortunately, this film doesn't but feels just like what it is. 

I always appreciate how Angel Studios tries to take the Christian film industry beyond the usual genres. Unfortunately, this delve into the post-apocalyptic survival genre simply falls flat. Unlike most of the Angel Studios films, this movie does not do a good job at incorporating its Christian message into the story. For the majority of the film, there is hardly a mention of God. However, towards the last act, this suddenly becomes a full Christian movie with barely any build up. This sudden shift from what has been a very cynical story to an uplifting Christian one, simply feels jarring. Because of this it takes away any real impact this Christian message could have had. This movie also suffers from bland characters, who barely have any personality. The actors playing them, try their best but they can't make these characters interesting. They also can't deliver the awkward dialogue in a way that makes it work. For a movie about society falling apart, little is explained about what happened. I am sorry but I need more information than just technology stopped working and we were too dependent on it. How little is explained makes this film full of plot holes. There is so much that simply doesn't make sense here (also why do modern movies assume Texas and California would work together if society fell apart, this makes no sense (yes, I know it is only two films but still)). 

This movie does benefit from good performances (even if not good enough to make up for the weak characters), visuals that look surprisingly good and some thought-provoking questions being brought up. 

Yeah, this is not a great movie and the first Angel Studios film to really miss the mark.