Upside (Movie Review by Ann Esievoadje)

Movie title: Upside
Starring: Randall Bentley, Leah Sims, Taylor St. Clair, Jeremy Harrison
Production outfit: Spyplane Films.
Director: Ken Horstmann
Executive Producer: Robin Thornton, George Wallace, Donnie Coe, Wayne Morgan
Producers and Writers: Ken Horstmann, Adam Callner, Andrew Grein, Casey Wallace

Synopsis: Solomon White aka Soli (Randall Bentley, "Heroes") has everything going for him; an elite University waiting to accept him after high school graduation, a trendy girlfriend, part of the cool kids in school, etc. Upon being hit on the Lacrosse field, his whole life gets turned upside down. Suddenly, he’s having troubles with his mother, all his friends abandon him, he’s caught cheating on his English papers and he’s faced with breaking up with his girlfriend. In such a trying time, he meets a blind Christian girl,

Wren Woods (Leah Sims) who is optimistic and whose faith is unwavering in God. He becomes open to options he never considered possible as presented by his English teacher.To find his feet again, he’ll need a miracle to figure things out.

Review: A young Lacrosse player, Soli, is caught in the crossroads of decisions when a head injury flips his vision upside down. Struggling with feeling lost and falling for the blind but beautiful Wren was not something he had planned. Should he define himself by his newly acquired disability or by his teacher’s beliefs? Can he find the courage to believe in divine guidance while groping in the darkness of life? This realistic portrayal of life is worth watching.

Comment: Created by Ken Horstmann (Writer/Director and Co-founder of Spyplane Films (2008)

with Andrew Grein and Casey Wallace), the story is based on an interesting real life medical phenomenon known as “Reversal of vision metamorphopsia (RVM)”. RMV is a rare transient form of metamorphopsia where the patient’s vision experiences a 180° rotation of the visual field in the coronal plane, hence causing objects to appear upside down. Now the movie doesn’t dwell on the medical facts of this disorder but on the effect it could have on a young high school senior who has his whole life still ahead of him. He’s not only physically destabilized but psychologically affected as well. In an upside down world, the need for a sure pillar becomes essential to making it through each day. hence through this movie, we are reminded of the strength of our faith, trustworthiness of compassion and companionship. As Spyplane’s debut feature film, it holds promises of greater heart-endearing movies to come.