Flying Changes

It is refreshing to see a film whose emphasis on a character driven plot leaves the audience feeling uplifted. This character study focused on the complex relationship between mothers and daughters. Each character was presented with depth and color. Marilyn Mitchell is stoically portrayed with a quiet dignity that is naturally worn by actress Melissa Kelley. Julie Hudson presents Kari's rage and reckless pursuit of public recognition with an energy that is unmatched by most of today's leading Hollywood actresses. While the women in this film are the foundational actors, moving the plot through to its dramatic climax, the men in the film are not brushed aside or disgracefully presented, as in many mainstream films. Joe Gatton establishes himself as a polished actor, portraying Mike Mitchell as a balanced individual who is able to retain his composure despite the most trying circumstances. Gatton and Kelley's confrontational scene at the kitchen table leaves the audience breathless and on the edge of tears. Kenny McKinney, while a delightful comic addition to the film, does his best work when he allows the audience to view his character, Baggley, as a humble and hardworking man who accepts his subservient role within the family structure. This moving film is recommended viewing for the entire family.

Most movies that made today are made for a simple purpose: dollar signs. They contain actors that audiences will never meet and take place in locales that most people will never visit. Often they are full of ear-squelching sound effects and light shows to dazzle the mind. It is truly a rare to see a film in which the audience knows many of the characters and can see locations they recognize. It is even rarer for such films to be made well.

Flying Changes is a movie made by Brady Nasfell and Andrea Gyterson Nasfell (both graduates from Asbury) and an entire team of others, consisting partially of Asbury students. The movie is distributed under the company Revival House. The story begins with Kari (Julie Hudson) coming to the Mitchell farm for a time. The Mitchell's daughter, Rebecca (Laurie Warnecke) is training to be a dressage rider (a sport that seems to mainly deal with the "harmony between horse and rider"). Soon Kari becomes a competitor not only for the sport Rebecca loves, but also the "farmhand" Will (Damon Boggess).

This story is only the surface to a deeper story about family relationships, however. It seems that there are closer ties between Rebecca's mother Marilyn (Melissa Kelley) and Kari than anyone knew. Kari is actually Marilyn's daughter, who she put up for adoption many years ago and left most of her family out of the secret, including her husband. Much of the rest of the movie deals with the family members reactions to the new member and the cover-up. The only distraction to the story was a subplot about a villain (he has to be a villain if he dresses like that) named Charles Crenshaw Jr. (Jeff Baier). He seemed to have little to do, but thankfully did not have too much screen time. Julie Hudson and Damon Boggess stand out in their characters and seem the most natural in their roles. Kenny McKinney as "Bags" not only acts as narrator, but steals nearly every scene he is in with some of the witty dialog given him.

For a lower budget film, the cinematography was surprisingly good. There were many wide landscape shots with pastoral farmland stretching across the scene. The colors were vibrant and sparkling in the bright sunlight and the film did not fail to take advantage of the beautiful outdoor setting, putting many of the scenes outside. A highlight for Asbury College students was seeing a party scene filmed in Glide-Crawford (with the fountain running, no less). One problem, possibly stemming from the low budget, was the film's audio; most of the audio was seemingly added after the scene was shot. While most of the dialog blends in seamlessly, some of the other sound effects, especially the sounds of horses walking or running were a bit distracting, especially around cuts.

Overall, the movie made for a very enjoyable and memorable night at the Kentucky Theater as over 700 people came to see this movie about their area, made by people that they knew. It was more simple than most of the projects coming out of mainstream Hollywood today and that added to its beauty. It had a story about seemingly ordinary people and how they faced situations. The characters were ones that the audience felt that they could have known. I, for one, am hoping for more movies from Revival House.

This movie was great. I really loved the story line and I also thought the photography was great!!! Please make more movies like this and use the same director of photography because the lighting was beautiful.