Bigger Than the Sky (2005)reviewed by Benn "Where's the Humanity?" Farrell
"Bigger Than the Sky" is about a man learning to 'find his light,' as those of you who have done theatre would understand. Peter, played by Marcus Thomas (Cowboy Up), is dumped by his girlfriend and searches for a new way to meet new people and become a part of something exciting. Peter soon auditions for the Portland Community Theater's production of "Cyrano de Bergerac," where he is unwillingly cast in the lead. Now he must find his stage legs and watch the community of actors' lives unveil themselves before him as opening night draws closer. The picture's greatest strength is its vehicle and identifiability. Right away, we identify with the lost feeling we have for Peter, and hope to see him have a little fun in the theatre. The vehicle, being the production of Cyrano, was a cute way to throw this average man into a world of panache he's never known. Marcus Thomas was this side of horrible as Peter. I couldn't believe the director allowed his stiff demeanor to carry as long as it did in the story. At first, I bought it cause the guys heart was broken, and he was a shell of the person he wanted to be. Then as the movie progressed and Peter made friends, Thomas' performance didn't change. He stuck out as a very dull soar thumb among a rather good cast. John Corbet (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) plays Michael, the best actor Portland community theatre has to offer. Sean Astin (Rudy) has a small role as an actor who THINKS he's the best around. Amy Smart (Outside Providence) plays Grace, a cute and talented actress cast to play Roxanne, whom Peter sort of falls for, but he soon realizes there's no such thing as REAL love while working on a play with someone. The picture's weakest aspect was the directing and the sound. There was SO many scenes where I missed lines and exchanges cause the sound wasn't mastered well at all. Director Al Corley had a handful of choices which resembled a high school director's work. This was his first feature film that wasn't made directly for television and it shows. Simple camera movements like following an exiting character out a door would have made the picture better, but Corley opted to lock down the camera in those instances and have the character exit out of the bottom of an awkward frame. Why not follow? He must have had a small crew that day. Overall, if you've done community theatre or are interested in it, you should really like "Bigger Than the Sky." There are a handful of jokes only a theatre person will catch, and it gives the picture a charm, but it may alienate viewers who haven't done a community production or two. I could compare the inside humor to "Waiting for Guffman," but they are completely different movies. Benn - Where's the Humanity?
This movie has a cute little story and a fairly ample cast, but it simply lacks the craft of a better filmmaker.