2 stars out of 5 for 7 Days in Utopia, the Robert Duvall/Lucas Black flick about a young and up and coming golf star who implausibly wrecks his car in rural Texas and ends up becoming mentored by retired PGA star Duvall. Think Karate Kid meets Texas steers. This one has all the usual small town plot cliches and it seeks to communicate a vague message about finding purpose outside of sports. The message is not particularly well delivered, and the script is more a burden than a vehicle to say much of anything. Having said that, Duvall brings his usual charm, and Black is good here, at least as good as he was in a more professionally produced sports flick, 42. Veteran actress Melissa Leo and young starlet Deborah Ann Woll complete an impressive cast for a religious-themed low budget film. The striking cinematography by M. David Mullen is also a welcome surprise. This is not a great film, and the harsh comments by many critics are understandable. But it fares well against other Christianese films such as Facing the Giants and Kirk Camerons Fireproof, both of which suffer from an unnecessary heavy handedness in prostelyzing for the faith. Director Matt Russell is more content to simply tell the story and let the faith aspects emerge more naturally. Yes, there is much here that stretches credibility beyond reasonable limits, most obviously the idea that golf is highly popular in rural Texas among cowboys, no less. And the ending, without giving anything away, leaves much to be desired. But Duvall and Black help carry it, and theres enough good natured folk charm to help it succeed in being bearable. But the film still falls short of being worthy of a hearty recommendation, and the golf sequences, in particular, lack much zing or intrigue. Watch it if you are looking for a family type film, thats squeaky clean, and has some of the home spun wisdom of Michael Ingalls and Little House on the Prairie. But if youre watching it because youre a sports film junkie or a die hard Duvall fan, there are better options. Fair, not good, but not as awful as some of the others in this genre. **/*****
Posted on: Wed, 22 Jan 2014 23:24:54 +0000
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