Amidst Reviews

This movie is more than a political thriller. The back story and characters are realistic, and it appears that the writer did some research before writing this movie, and it pays. While the "main star" really isn't the focus of the movie, it doesn't seem to be all over the place. The story itself is well paced, and only drags a bit when Greg is introduced. If only the film had a little more material, it would be perfect. Most of the set-up is explained through words, not actions, which is never better than showing what caused the movie, rather than talking about it.
FINAL GRADE= B+

Summary: Greg (Farrell) has just arrived to teach at a small American high school in South America. Once there, he realizes that the challenges are greater then he had expected. The country, in a long recession, is clamoring for a new leader and look to retired army general Vasquez (Elizondo), now in custody, for leadership. A group of militants, led by an ex-army commander (Garcia) then takes over the small school with its many teachers and students whose parents include numerous politicians and businessmen. They demand the release of the general and the resignation of the current president.

Poster: The poster itself really doesn't say much about the film. By looking at it, I couldn't tell what the movie was about. Aside from that, the poster has a good use of darkness and shadow, though the soldiers in the background could be a tad more visible.

Website: The website is simple and easy to use. I liked that the poster and pitch were on the main page as an introduction to the story. However, I would still like the cast to be on the main page as well, rather than having to click over everytime I want to see them. Other than that, the color scheme is just a tad bland and could use some more flash and glitz.

Extras: I really liked that the real history was placed on the site. It allows easy access to the research the writer did, as well as informing the reader. The reviews were also a nice touch, even though there was only one of them, because it allows us to look at the reviews if we want, rather than just plastering qutoes all over the site.

Script: The story itself is well-told, with most of the details clarly conveying themselves into the mind of the reader. The problem comes from the fact that the story is more about generic political coups than it is about people. All the characters seem to talk about politics first and themselves second, to the point that I found myself not really caring about any of them. They all fit into generic catagories like student or extremist, and no character steps far beyond these bounds. Even Diego is a very cookie-cutter revolutionary that never questions his belief and then has a sudden change at the end. All stories need to have a conflict and a resolution. This story has a kidnapping and a release, but none of the politics seemed resolved. Nothing changes other than a few more people are dead. While I understand writing to the reality of life, and things like this happen all the time where people die and things don't change, but film is meant to be heightened reality. There must be a point or purpose to telling the story, and the characters need to live. Otherwise, its just a bunch of facts that you will have a hard time convincing people that they matter. The main thing this story needs is to make the people and facts matter. Give them weight. Make them important to us.