Paper revision

Fireproof, a Powerful Story Well Told

Demarcus Lindsey

English 201

Running head: WRITING TO EVALUATE 1

WRITING TO EVALUATE 7

Comment by Michelle Krueger: If you want to keep this in the beginning like this, you should make it into the abstract.

The film was intended for young couples in relationships as well as older couples who are experiencing problems in their marriage. The purpose of the critique is to review the film on neutral ground, unlike other critics who just reviewed the film “below average” based on its technicality.

Fireproof (patience in love) is a film that discusses a contemporary issue in our society, the director of the movie was trying to engage in a bigger conversation about what is happening in millions of families. The purpose of the film was to show that couples should be patient and gentle with each other in marriage, the film has a message which proves that even a marriage that is “beyond repair” can be saved if there is compassion. The movie achieves its purpose because at the end emotions and perceptions about marriage are positively triggered. The main reason the film can be classified as an informative movie is that it connects with the audience on a personal level, after watching the movie I felt as if I have been doing everything wrong in my relationship (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). Comment by Michelle Krueger: Film titles should be in italics. Comment by Michelle Krueger: In the thesis, you should outline the criteria you will use to review the film as well as the overall recommendation you would give.

Summary

In the film Kirk Cameron acts as Caleb Holt and his wife Erin Bethea who acts as Catherine Holt, they are a married couple without children, where Caleb is a fire captain and Catherine is a hospital administrator. The couple is experiencing marital struggles at home, while at work Caleb keeps on highlighting the importance of never leaving one’s spouse. Caleb has been saving some money with which he wants to buy a boat, and he does not intend to use the money in any other manner even though Catherine’s mother is sick claims Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, (2008). Comment by Michelle Krueger: Who are you citing?

For this reason, Catherine accuses her husband of being selfish, Caleb is also addicted to internet pornography, and thus he spends his free time on the computer. At the same time Caleb feels undervalued and unappreciated, Catherine becomes upset with her husband, and thus she demands for a divorce, and due to his range Caleb agrees. However, father John and Michael Caleb’s coworker convince Caleb to hold the divorce for some time. Caleb’s dad then comes in and persuades his son to undertake a love dare, which would last forty days as he tries to improve his marriage (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). Caleb agrees but does not tell his wife, on the other hand, Catherine starts flirting with a coworker at work confused whether what she feels is love. To the society, Caleb is seen as a hero-savior who risks his life to rescue individuals from burning buildings, while at home his marriage is on fire and he has no clue of how to put it out. Comment by Michelle Krueger: ? Comment by Michelle Krueger: Is this the end of the summary?

One of the most interesting fact about the film is that it is useful to both Christians and non-Christians, any relationship has its ups and downs, and every couple can try the love dare regardless of religion. Though the film is based on Christianity, the issue of divorce affects couples adversely everywhere (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). Another interesting element is that most of the actors were from the church and worked for free, this in mind, only a few had the experience to undertake such a task, and evidently they did a good job. However, it goes without saying that the film had the community theater feel, the actors did not have enough experience most probably because they were not from the Screen Actor Guild. Comment by Michelle Krueger: Remember that you are evaluating it, so you want to convey whether you think this is done well. Otherwise, it sounds like an informative essay.

Their lack of experience was evident in several occasions, especially when a victim was stuck on a rail track, everyone stood there watching and waiting for the fire department to arrive rather than helping the victim. Surprisingly, even after hearing and seeing the training coming, they had to wait until they were invited to help push the car wreck off the track (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). Comment by Michelle Krueger: In the movie? It’s not clear what you’re talking about.

The movie Fireproof triumphed because it was a compelling story and well told, although it will get lots of critics, it will still ring true with the audience. The director did a good job considering that he was working with an inexperienced crew (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). The film is an entertaining, compelling and inspiring movie, and comparing its audience connection to its peers at the same time (Nights in Rodanthe), it is clear that fireproof is a better option. The directors also had a great experience in marriage since they were on the pastoral council and thus had dealt with many marital difficulties (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008).

The film is clear visually and in its audio, the setting of the movie is perfect because it represents a simple family, which would serve as an average family. However, the film failed to add the aspects of children which would have made the movie more enjoyable and a holistic representation of an average family. The setting of the film is conservative, it showed why pornography is unhealthy for any relationship, and why communication is important in marriage. This is evident especially when Catherine caught Caleb watching internet pornography, she was disgusted and felt as if she was not being respected (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). In another occasion, Caleb tried to have a conversation with his wife in the morning but she “stormed out” and this enraged Caleb to point where it almost cost them their marriage.

Another appealing fact about the movie is that they made the setting close to a real-life situation, where both Caleb and Catherine sort advice from friends and parents. The film also showed the benefits of patience in love, when Caleb started the love dare, he was unwilling and did it to impress his father. However, after a few weeks, it became easier, and he enjoyed tackling the daily challenges. According to Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, (2008), Caleb became patient with his spouse, he realized what he was doing wrong in the marriage and changed for the best. This is evident because Caleb even gave up his dream of owning a boat and anonymously paid for Catherine mother’s hospital bills. When Catherine discovered her husband had paid for the hospital bill, she was touched by such kindness and realized that her husband was not pretending just for the sake of gaining from the divorce (as her friends implied), but he had realized his mistakes and changed to save their marriage (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008).

Fireproof patience in love is a story of true love, salvation and hope told in a time when marriages are facing a lack of commitment, infidelity, and selfishness. Caleb lacked commitment in that he neglect his responsibility as a husband. Catherine’s bank account was running dry because of her mother’s hospital bills and shopping. At the same time, Caleb was reluctant to help, his excuse was that he is the one paying the mortgage, but in real sense, he lacked commitment. These challenges are real to most families, and thus I would recommend all married couples to watch the film. The emotional experience they will receive will pave the way for gentleness, understanding, patience and forgiveness (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008).

Most critiques rated the film below averaged based on the lack of technical cleanup of the movie. However, they failed to recognize how informative the film was. I feel that the film served its intended purpose because it received lots of audiences, within three weeks, the movie was number four when averaged regarding per- screen time. The film received an audience of over 2.2 million during the first month, within ten days the film had outdone its predecessor “Facing the Giants.” The success of the movie can be seen from the “Love Dare” book which was published later (Kendrick, Nixon & Kendrick, 2008). The book was written based on the forty day challenge, a plot and prop device in the movie which turned to be an effective strategy to save marriages. The book was rated number one bestseller in the New York Times paperback advice books; it also registered third highest sales in amazon.com. Comment by Michelle Krueger: Demarcus, there are good aspects of this draft, but including more of a thesis with the criteria laid out would help readers know what to expect. Also, if you are going to use one section headers, you should use more than one. Include more transitions so that the essay flows a bit better, and be sure that you introduce the sources.

Reference

Kendrick, S. & Nixon, D. (Producers), & Kendrick, A. (Director). (2008). Fireproof [Motion Picture]. United States: Sherwood Pictures