Why do we not receive the pleasure of seeing more of Julie Dickens in more films. What a wonderful voice and attractive young woman. Aside from the singing from Cassi Davis which we could have done without the over all performance was touching. All too often we are presented with what you could refer to as a "lack of Reality" or misrepresentation of the truth. This play truly depicts the truth by showing how acceptable drug dealers and murderers are accepted into our society, on our streets and in our churches. Whether these thugs are your sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, cousins etc..., we all need to stand up and stop them from further harming our society and begin teaching our fellow people right and wrong. Greed has taken its toll and enough is enough! Everyday I see these same actions on the street, at the office, in the schools, at church and on the news and finally they are shown in their true light for the world to see how these thug losers behave in this world of 'hand out' and the attitude of 'you owe me'. Bravo!!!
8 Reviews
Suspend your disbelief and admire the talent
morrisonhimself22 June 2009
Sure, it's apparently intended to be a religious promo; sure, a lot of the plot and characterization is over the top; sure, the ending could be, to some degree, predicted.
So what? If for no other reason, watch this just to see Julie Dickens.
Here at IMDb, this show is her first credit. By now, she should have had thousands more.
She is refreshingly lovely, and her laugh should warm the heart of even the most hard-bitten theater-goer. And she is a good actress.
While most of my admiration goes to her, because -- to be honest -- she really is so lovely, most of the other players also are darn good, and even those who aren't darn good do what they are supposed to do.
D.J. Rogers, Jr., is so good and so good-looking that surely he will be a major star. It should help that he is the prime good guy here. I'm astonished at the paucity of credits so far for this huge talent.
Clifton Powell has the juicy part as the prime bad guy, and what power and authority he brings to the role. And at least he has been kept busy, meaning people who count have recognized his ability. Hooray.
Thomas Miles is what used to be called "the action heavy." He is just stupendous. And yet he has few credits! Where is the justice in Hollywood? This man should be performing in a big budget production every day. He is extraordinary.
The writing and directing need some work, but a viewer needs to realize the context: This is a stage work. Perhaps with a bigger budget and bigger sets, it would have been less stylized and more realistic -- but would it have been much better?
The producers and, in particular, the actors deserve our admiration, indeed our awe, and this presentation needs to be seen.
So what? If for no other reason, watch this just to see Julie Dickens.
Here at IMDb, this show is her first credit. By now, she should have had thousands more.
She is refreshingly lovely, and her laugh should warm the heart of even the most hard-bitten theater-goer. And she is a good actress.
While most of my admiration goes to her, because -- to be honest -- she really is so lovely, most of the other players also are darn good, and even those who aren't darn good do what they are supposed to do.
D.J. Rogers, Jr., is so good and so good-looking that surely he will be a major star. It should help that he is the prime good guy here. I'm astonished at the paucity of credits so far for this huge talent.
Clifton Powell has the juicy part as the prime bad guy, and what power and authority he brings to the role. And at least he has been kept busy, meaning people who count have recognized his ability. Hooray.
Thomas Miles is what used to be called "the action heavy." He is just stupendous. And yet he has few credits! Where is the justice in Hollywood? This man should be performing in a big budget production every day. He is extraordinary.
The writing and directing need some work, but a viewer needs to realize the context: This is a stage work. Perhaps with a bigger budget and bigger sets, it would have been less stylized and more realistic -- but would it have been much better?
The producers and, in particular, the actors deserve our admiration, indeed our awe, and this presentation needs to be seen.
Maybe it gets better, but I shut off after heavy lady eats banana
drtturner30 January 2006
This film was tough for me to stomach. I rented because some of the names involved such as the producer and the actor who played in such things as Gospel and Brothers. I was quickly cooled to the idea with the eye bulging antics of the so called comic relief. Tommy of the Martin Show plays with the word in what could be considered blasphemy. About 15 minutes in a large dark skin woman comes onto the stage slowly eating a banana. Such coon acting and self mockery was more than I could take as I cut off the film at that point. The movie opens with a slick pimp pulling rank on one of his underlings that he feels has been disloyal. After making quick work of putting him in check, he turns his attention to capturing the church which evidentally will go to the highest bidder. The humor that is attempted in the scene where Tommy puts together a plan to save the church is dim witted, slow, and insulting to the audience to which the producers must underestimate as slow. I say that because the lines seem to repeat and ponder much too long too much of the time. There is also a large effeminate man and it can not really be determined if the character is acting like that to toy with the Tommy character or if he is truly into men. Either way, such material seems to fly in the face of the supposed theme of the movie making it too much of a mix match.
wonderful
altomanlll13 August 2006
I disagree this movie is the definition of Christianity they were in the wrong and preacher Jackson brought them out...you see everything changed, even the church members behavior...Satin was saved and they got to keep the church, why because of faith, if you can't see this than it's time to evaluate your own faith,because as the bible says we are to go out and to teach to every living creature...the bible however does not say all people are to be perfect which is what we are expected to be...I believe if we open our eyes or maybe even complete the movie we can better understand the ways in which god works!And if we do not see these things than we must not call our us Christ-like!
a realistic tool to witness in a realistic world
castingitdown6 July 2006
i've seen this stage play and my reaction to it after watching it was that this could be used to draw others to the Lord. There are parts that bring laughter to me because i can identify with what's going on in the play. if you can not put yourself in any part of this play, then i do not expect anyone to see it as i do. This play, i will say, is realistic because such things do and are happening in the body of Christ. The plot to the play was that a minister did not let the faces nor happenings of his community cause him to stop doing what he was called to do; and that was to draw the lost to Christ with His power that lives in him (the pastor).
Awesome
jasonellena28 November 2007
just bought the play today and sat down to watch it tonight, and I liked to shed a few tears at the end; It goes like this: you have this drug dealer, Satin Jones(Clifton Powell),whose bar sits right next door to a church; his underling becomes too ambitious and threatens to take over the church; the pastor is already gunned down in a confrontation with them; and Satin is ready to close in on the property of the church next door to "expand" his territory; when he asks his people to wait on this, his associate,in direct opposition to what Satin said, goes to the church, terrorizes the members and beats up the new preacher; despite of all of this, the church presses on and even a love thing goes on between the preacher and one of the members; The ending of the play is the absolute best and will make you want to cry; What I learned most out of this play is that no matter how things may look or seem, things can go up after being down. Recommended viewing. One more thing, I started watching David Talbert before getting in on Tyler; I won't compare but I will say that I thank God for the both of them and that there is room for them both
Brilliant
monique_britt3 February 2007
I actually loved the stage play. I am an aspiring singer that love artist, who are brilliant such as David Talbert and others in the same arena. I feel that the music was awesome and allowed each person to utilize the gift that God has given them. Dj Rogers totally blew me out the water because of his display of the passion he has for the Lord, and I felt it when he sang Majesty. I was totally inspired because I know that God has given me a gift and I don't want to waste it. Not to mention the fact that he is FINE inside and out.....(smiles) I pray that all who were in this play that God richly blesses all of your endeavers and that many doors are opened for you, remember, the word says that a Mans gift will make room for them, so be not discouraged.
Before and After
Jalea21 January 2011
Before Pastor Jackson who is one of the main characters of the play, the play had a satirical feel; but, After Pastor Jackson entered the scene, the play took a serious turn. The play does get more interesting, layered with heartfelt moments and even some romance. There were a lot of truths that were shared, for example, the danger of being judgemental. If you can keep on open mind, you would find this play worth watching, if you like this kind of genre. Even if you are not accustomed to this type of genre, you could watch it not only for entertainment, but to see some of the critical issues highlighted facing communities that have this dichotomy existing in the neighborhoods (church and crime).
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