TxMike
I had not heard of this movie but came across it at my public library. It seemed like an interesting, enchanting story, my wife and I watched it last night along with a teenage neighbor. While we enjoyed it, most of the time we were puzzled by what was shown and what was said. We weren't sure what the point was, but in the end it probably can be summed up, 'If you are afraid of dying, then you probably also are afraid of living.'Ryan Flynn (Ryan Kelley) has just lost his grandma, had already lost his dad in a train accident, and now his grandfather was incoherent. Traumatized, young Ryan no longer spoke, although he could have. In an unusual sequence he meets a pretty and happy girl Melanie (Hayden Panattiere) in his somewhat familiar surroundings, but things just aren't the way they seem to be. What follows is Ryan's examination of his fears of dying.SPOILERS. The incident that begins the journey into the 'dust factory', a place where you can either jump off the trapeze and get caught, then fly away (die and go to heaven), or fall into the dust pit and return to normal life, is when Ryan falls off a train bridge into the water. When he surfaces and goes home, grandpa is now lucid, and Melanie is there too. But this is not his real world, it is more a purgatory. Grandpa is really incoherent, Melanie we learn later is in a coma, and Ryan is about to drown. When grandpa dies, Ryan and Melanie recover to the real world, where they don't quite remember what happened at the 'dust factory', but seem to know something good has happened.
night_hunter1200
I thought this movie was very good. It is kind of like a movie about choices and also about faith. It kept saying that we need faith in order to make the choices that could change the lives of a lot of other people. Also the way Hayden's character didn't know what to do while she was in the Dust Factory. I must say that this movie was very inspirational and it helped me figure out a lot of things in my life. The people who say this movie is lame or boring or stupid for any reason don't know what good movies are. Just because it doesn't have exploding cars or big romantic love scenes doesn't mean it is a stupid movie. For being a family film it was sure sweet and had a very deep meaning. I really enjoy movies that I have to watch more than once to understand the meaning. I just have to conclude by saying that although not my favorite movie it is sure up there on the top ten list.
Clkdreamer40
I'm sixteen and I just watched this movie. I didn't really understand the plot. It felt too slow and just had no point. In some ways, it was boring because everything was too perfect. I didn't really understand the whole thing with the circus and the black hole. The only thing I understood was that the grandpa lost his Alzheimer's when he was in the place between heaven and earth and he became friends with the girl. This movie made absolutely no sense. Someone reviewed that this movie was original, but I've seen ten million other movies like this. They go to a new world which is perfect, but they have to go back. There's also the "loss of a loved one" element in this movie. I'm hoping that one of these days the people writing scripts will create an understandable and original movie.
Zadanian
This movie discusses topics that may not be understood by all ages, but are certainly suitable for all ages. The basic question of what is life's purpose is a central theme. The movie brings up the notion that life is not a problem to be solved, but rather something to be experienced; finding paradise and total bliss comes at a price, but must be paid. The movie's theme is something that is rarely touched on by most mainstream films, now dominated by empty action films.The acting was superb. Armin Mueller-Stahl played the guiding, grandfather very well; and Ryan Kelley is easily identified with his character. The filming location in Oregon was beautiful, and fits the film perfectly. In addition, the soundtrack fits scenes well. The plot however at times seems slow, and there seems to be periods of confusion when the audience has to guess what is happening if they missed a single line.Overall, this movie presents ideas that an entire family should consider, while at the same time presenting it in a new and innovative way. It definitely will reshape your view on life.
AD
