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Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

*** This review may contain spoilers for 'It's A Wonderful Life' as well as for 'Doonby' *** In 'It's A Wonderful Life' the lesson George Bailey learns is 'every life is worth living'. In 'Doonby' the lesson is 'even 'unwanted' children will grow up to save lives and become talented, successful musicians'. In 'It's A Wonderful Life' we see the support of the loving family George Bailey grew up in, and can easily understand how he came to be the man he is. In 'Doonby' they never show how he went from being abandoned at an orphanage by his mother at a very young age, to being the totally well-adjusted adult he becomes.In 'It's A Wonderful Life' an Angel uses magic to show George Bailey what Bedford Falls would have been without him. In Bedford Falls with George Bailey in it, everyone knows him, and in the Bedford Falls without George Bailey, no one knows him. But when Doonby exists, he is unable to shake the hand of Laura's father – how can Doonby exist and at the same time hate Laura's father for aborting him? Not only is the magic hidden until the very end, but the world with Doonby and the world without Doonby seem to have been blended together without explanation. It is like a paradoxical and half-finished script for a 'Twilight Zone' episode.Small wonder I did not see that coming. Who would have guessed the lesson would be so absurd – much less that it would not be directed at any of the characters but at the audience instead. Nothing that happens in the movie is even known to any of the characters except Laura. Laura is the only one who learns the lesson, and she is not pregnant. So the entire story was not about the characters, but about what the film makers want the audience to learn – a clumsy, manipulative, and incoherent breaking the fourth wall.If 'It's A Wonderful Life' and 'The Twilight Zone' had a baby, 'Doonby' would be it. And this baby should never have been born.

I want to write this review primarily to warn people Not to spend money to see this film. We did, and only made it 1/3 of the way through. We saw: indie film, 7.0 score, blues. Wow. Silly, silly us! I assume these are nice folks who were involved in the making and distribution of this film, and I really really hate to say bad things about good people. But I am embarrassed for you! Plot: slow and painful. Acting: forced and fake. Thriller? Really? The few other people who gave this film a review that was positive MusT have a friend or relative involved in the production or distribution of the film and/or some belief system that promotes the agenda the film was attempting to promote. If you are looking to watch a thoughtful and intelligent indie film, this is not it!

I recently saw the movie Doonby, and when the film ended, I felt like I had just watched an excellent movie. Doonby is an emotional, heartfelt, entertaining story, that weaves an interesting theme throughout the picture. As a viewer, you can certainly tell that something unknown is going on underneath the story's surface, and this riveting sense keeps you interested and glued to the story. I was pulled into the movie from beginning to end.I give a nod to John Schneider's portrayal of the lead character, Sam Doonby, yet Jenn Gotzon, as the lead female playing Laura Reaper, carried this movie, in my opinion. Jenn's role as Laura Reaper is believable and powerful, and as an actress, Jenn's character by far reaches the deepest and the most difficult ranges to draw from of all of the characters in the movie. I was glad that I sat through this movie that deals with pertinent social issues, and I highly recommend seeing Doonby.

This movie is an anti-abortion fantasy piece. The acting was terrible. The story was disjointed and did not hang together even in the context of its "look what would have been" evangelical message. John Schneider was particularly bad--stilted and wooden. It was pretty apparent early on that there was something weird going on in this movie, and I don't mean the Superman Sam action. It was set in a small Texas town but though there were drunks and promiscuous women, the F word never once passed anyone's lips. The hero, a big aw shucks kind of guy who is pure in heart and mind sees a woman riding in a Mercedes with her hair blowing in the wind and is instantly smitten with her. He has eyes for no one else despite the fact that many women are lusting for him and she is a spoiled rich drunk. The worst person in the movie was a knife-loving homicidal maniac from guess where? You got it, New York City.I think the user reviews will tend to break down along ideological lines although I saw one that thought the story & message engaging while agreeing with me about the disjointed nature of the film. Putting aside my disagreement with the movie's ideology, it was aesthetically a badly made and badly acted film. I wasted $8.50 (I'm a senior who went to a neighborhood theater) and a nice Sunday afternoon. Don't make the same mistake.