Fred�s No
Clue Movie Review
"Manna
From Heaven"
Directed by
Gabrielle C. Burton & Maria Burton
I saw this movie at a special screening a few months ago at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, CA. I originally became intrigued by the movie, because it was shot in my hometown of Western New York. The entire film was shot in and around the Buffalo area. Now, there have been some movies that were shot partially in the area. The Natural, a wonderful film that many local people still talk about being involved in. Best Friends and Superman II were also shot there (remember Superman saving the kid falling into Niagara Falls?). More recently, Buffalo �66, which depicted Buffalonians as sports obsessed weirdos with little to do, but freeze in the cold winter. Now, I�ll admit, that�s partially true, but to focus on that you miss the whole point of the area. It�s filled with broken promises, hopes, dreams and some of the most wonderful people in the world.
This
movie is a little bit sugary sweet for my tastes as a movie lover, but it�s a
film that the whole family can enjoy together.
It�s about a family who finds money falling from the sky one day and
after being convinced by one little girl, keeps it thinking it�s a gift from
God. Flash forward many years,
where this same little girl is now a nun and convinces the rest of them it�s
time to pay back their �loan�. The
problem is that nobody has it. It�s
like a little fairy tale or fable.
It
doesn�t have a lot of cursing, sex, or violence that flows through many
independent films of today. A large
cast headlined by Wendie Malick, Cloris Leachman, Jill Eikenberry, Shirley
Jones, Frank Gorshin and many more get into a lot of trouble and have plenty of
fun. It�s a film that reminded me
a lot of It�s a Mad, Mad, Mad World.
I laughed a lot during the film. Especially
during the scenes with Wendie Malick, a Buffalo native, who�s hilarious as a
deadpan woman who has left the area and is not the happiest to be back.
It�s a movie filled with hope, fun, and the importance of family.
It makes you feel good after seeing it and that�s the movie�s
greatest strength.
It
manages to capture the warm spirit of the Buffalo area.
The community will pull together in the face of adversity to help out
anyone. The movie demonstrates this
through the fund-raising efforts of the family.
I don�t want to say anymore since I might ruin some of the fun of the
movie.
It�s a
beautifully shot film filled with warm colors.
Kudos to the cinematographer who shot a very nice looking film. (I saw a really great print I must add.)
It contains a lot of longer held shots, not at all a frantic pace of
edits. It�s reminiscent of an
older style of movie that doesn�t seem to get made anymore.
It was a film made by an entire family.
The sisters produced it, one of them stars in it, and their mother wrote
it. It�s a labor of love for this
family and it shows.
The very
cool thing about this film is that the Burton sisters, there are five of them,
who own their company together, are taking this movie on the road. They are traveling in a van, going from city to city
presenting the film. They
could�ve sold out to a major distributor, but then they wouldn�t have had a
theatrical release. Instead,
they�re releasing it on their own, which is very risky.
They are having Q&A sessions after certain screenings and getting the
word out in a grass roots sort of way. It�s
already played in Branson and Kansas City, Missouri, as well as, a screening for
Congress. It�s currently on a
five-week and counting stand playing in a plethora of local theaters in the
Buffalo area. It�s likely to play
there for a few more weeks. There
are plans to take this movie across the country throughout the year. For specific cities and dates of when you can catch this film
check their website below.
I recommend seeing this fun family film. It�s got heart and is a bunch of fun. You also might consider seeing it, to encourage the growth of true independent filmmakers. People who get an idea and stick with it, knowing that they�ve done something that many people are sure to enjoy.
For more information visit http://www.fivesistersproductions.com
Got comments?
Suggestions? I�d love to hear them.
email me at no.clue@indenation.com
come back soon, until then, i�ll be at the movies...