DEADLINE Movie Review

  "Deadline is a story of murder, family, race, and of redemption — for a small Southern town and for Matt Harper."  Steve Talley and Academy Award nominee Eric Roberts star as Matt Harper and Ronnie Bullock in Deadline. An African-American teen is murdered in a small Alabama town, but for nearly 20 years that crime has been "uninvestigated, unsolved and unpunished". But when Nashville Times reporter Matt Harper meets an idealistic young Trey Hall (Lauren Jenkins ), she convinces him that it is time to uncover buried, but not forgotten, secrets. His neglected fiancée (Anna Felix), a pompous publisher, and his father's cancer diagnosis are just a few of the deterrents in his search for justice. 

Deadline premiered in Nashville on Feb. 15, 2012, but will be showing in other theaters soon. Click HERE for other Deadline benefit premieres. Check out the official trailer too:

When this film was first mentioned to me, I was prepared to dislike it. I live in Alabama and the tarnished image of my state can sometimes be a bit of a sore point. So, I thought, "Great! Here is another cliched, stereotypical story about 'backwoods, racist, ignorant Alabama'!" Are there stereotypes and cliches in this film? Absolutely! I rarely see a film that doesn't have a few of those. Is there a good storyline, humor, some rockin' music, and a few surprising twists? Absolutely!

I soon didn't care that some of the characters were the types that would normally have me rolling my eyes, because it did veer into unexpected directions at times and a few of the lines made me laugh out loud. (A smile or my eyes getting a bit moist are usually as emotional as I get when watching a film. I hate to admit it, but I also cried during one scene) The story kept my interest, and I cared about what was happening with them. Dave Perkins blew me away with the musical score! Some great music in this film! Speaking of great music, I loved seeing J D Souther (writer of outstanding songs like Heartache Tonight, Best Of My Love, etc.) in the role of Lucas Harper.

Bottom line is that there are some flaws, and some of the acting isn't top-notch, but there was also no nudity, obscenities, or scenes I would have been embarrassed to watch with my grandparents...or grandkids. Overall, though, I think director Curt Hahn and writer Mark Ethridge, along with some very fine actors, have a film that shows where we've been, how far we have come, and what a difference truth and light make instead of simply burying our shame and fears. This film is also adapted from Mark Ethridge's novel Grievances. Ethridge is a former managing editor of The Charlotte Observer. Deadline will be released in theaters nationwide on April 13, 2012. 

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