Watch Between The Walls For Free

Sadly Over-hyped

Please don't spend money on this.

Admirable film.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

When I first skipped through the plot of "Between the walls", I thought it could be a low-budget suspense-thriller that makes up for some production value by keeping its audience thrilled and entertained.What they seem to have forgotten to mention is that this is mainly a film about finding god rather than anything else. While I really don't have any problem with religion as a personal or even public way of life, I do have some problems with hidden (or not so hidden) propaganda in what is supposed to be a non-religious film.Not only does the movie make some very questionable statements concerning the main character "being guilty" after losing faith over his abusive religious father, it also spends a ridiculous amount of time trying to convince each and every one that a loss of faith is the source of all evil. By the way: You can't just say "Bible hour ha ha" and then really start with one. The laughing makes nothing better, it just shows you're perfectly aware of what you're doing.You could have delivered the same message through a preach, but at least that would have been a less sneaky and more honest way.

There's bad acting and then there's bad acting and in my opinion this movie had neither. Of course the performances weren't exactly 'Oscar worthy' but then again this film doesn't exactly have a million dollar budget – or at least I highly doubt that it does. The performances were adequate; for the most part they were believable, in some scenes the actors did try too hard (especially when acting with props – like holding their hands over a doorknob for dramatic effect) but those were few and far between. I don't know if I've gotten used to the acting in low budget films (and no one really gets accustomed to bad acting) but I've seen acting that has made me cringe but for the 70 minutes of this movie I actually believed that Patrick Midgley (who plays Peter King Jr) was on an emotional roller coaster and I felt as if I was on the wacky ride with him. The story, as I conceived it, is about a man who's finding it hard to forgive his deceased father for the psychological abuse that he put him through during his childhood. Ultimately he is led, by an old childhood friend, to Jesus and surrenders it all so that he can forgive his father and finally have peace. The message is solid and while some may find it too repetitive we must remember that this is a Christian film, the sole point isn't to provide entertainment but to relate the message of the Gospel in an entertaining way. All in all, it was a decent film. There's character development, a little plot twist near the end, and the editing at the beginning made my skin tingle – in a good way (but that's only if you're into that kind of stuff).

I recently bought this movie at a rental shop that was going out of business; I read the description on the back and it sounded like an interesting and original concept. It described a movie which detailed the story of a man who learns while preparing for his house to be repossessed that his dad recorded every sound that was ever made in their house and now has access to the tapes. It did NOT describe a one hour and twelve minute sermon about how we all must "surrender ourselves to God" and forgive those who have wronged us. You can guess which one I found inside the case. I am a believer in Christianity myself, I read the Bible and go to church regularly, but this is too much even for me. The pathetic screenplay, consisting nearly entirely of hackneyed and overused lines, comes across as melodramatic and corny. Admittedly, the screenplay itself is not entirely at fault for this, it is also, at least partially, the result of some of the most atrocious acting I've ever seen. For every believable line uttered there are at least ten that are completely unconvincing and incredibly awkward. The makers of this movie tried way to hard to push God into the script at every possible point, resulting in the flow of the film seeming broken and being interrupted each time you thought you were just getting into it; after each interesting revelation or memory that could be built upon we instead hear another "bible hour" sermon from the banker/childhood friend who is managing the repossession. Though the concept has potential, this is not the movie which the case would have you think it is. This is the story of a man "surrendering to Jesus", and it does an awful job of telling even that story.

The only reason I rented this film was because it was not listed as a Christian film. Who could know the Family Friendly rating and the WYSIWYG Film Festival were Christian! So not knowing the above and only briefly skimming the notes, I tried to get into this film despite the terrible acting, hoping the intriguing backstory might be prove to be worthwhile.The main character's dad was a dictatorial Christian control freak who recorded everything in the house. He was both an omniscient and vengeful figure whose mode of interacting with his son is through punishment. The similarities to the god of the old testament are unmistakable. These tapes are not discovered until the house is to be repossessed.While there were some interesting juxtapositions where the main character as an adult relives his painful past through his father's tapes, the movie's heavy-handed fundemenalist message was overbearing. According to the filmmakers humanity by nature is inherently depraved and we are not worthy of anything unless we surrender to God. This is not a Christian message.The only way I can justify having wasted 72 minutes of my life is to warn others.