Friday, April 13, 2018

Homeschool Review Crew: Watchman Pictures Presents Princess Cut

Watchman Pictures

Watchman Pictures recently sent us an excellent movie called, Princess Cut, to review. We received a physical copy of the DVD in the mail.

Synopsis
Princess Cut is a Christian film categorized as a Romantic Drama. It is Dove Approved for children ages 12 and up. Although, I believe it is appropriate for mature children ages 10 and up with adult supervision.

The heart-warming love story is about a modest Carolina farm girl in her 20's named Grace Anderson who struggles with the dating scene before marriage and learning the meaning of true love. She has a strong desire to get married and hopes to one day wear a Princess Cut diamond ring on her finger. The film began with her looking at engagement rings, because she thought her boyfriend, Stewart, of 15 months was going to propose to her but that ended badly. I thought it was a little weird when he actually proposed to someone else from his circle of friends. The movie unravels her journey to find true romance and love. After several failed attempts, she learns to wait for God's timing to discover her long lasting love.

The movie is close-captioned and lasts approximately 97 minutes. When you begin the DVD, you can choose to watch the movie with or without English subtitles under Set-Up. You can also choose whether you want stereo or regular sound.

Princess Cut contains 12 chapters in addition to the Special Features. The movie's special features consists of The Making of Princess Cut, Deleted Scenes, Blooper Reels, Behind the Scene Footage, Set Apart Girl Promo, and Movie Trailers for princess Cut and Love Covers All. These features can be found under the Menu options. The chapter divisions help if you want to replay certain segments to discuss with your family as you watch the movie. My daughter loves watching blooper and deleted scenes so she was thrilled when she saw that they were included as features. 
Princess Cut The Movie

How We Used It
I watched Princess Cut one evening before bedtime with my 10-year-old daughter, Alyssa, for family movie night. I decided to make the moment a special one. We made special snacks and popcorn together before snuggling on the couch under a heated blanket. We watched the movie with regular sound quality and no English subtitles. After the film ended, we watched the special features. I did preview the movie in advance to check for appropriateness.   

We discussed the underlying themes of the story's plot. We thoroughly discussed the following topics in depth during and after the movie: Love, Family, Truthfulness/Honesty, Relationships, Forgiveness, Happiness, Trust, Modesty, Purity, Morality, Righteousness, Contentment, Romance, and Marriage.

After watching the movie together we had an earnest conversation about marriage and the importance of saving her heart for the "right" man that God sends her way in His timing. We talked about what the word respect means and how it can be seen in a loving relationship. We like to call this discussion time together our Couch Conversation. This is a private, open conversation about special topics.

There was a Discussion Guide found under Resources on the website. We used its questions as prompts to start our family conversation. I was impressed and pleasantly surprised by my daughter's responses and I can only hope she'll continue to live a righteous life the older she gets especially when faced with temptations. She also realized the importance of prayer and having a deeper relationship with God. I told my daughter that I've been praying for her future and her husband since the day she was born. 

My Final Thoughts 
This is a movie that will spark conversations about relevant and profound life issues. I think this was a great movie for me to watch with my daughter being a single mom jumping head first back into the dating scene. It's been 3 years since my divorce and I want to model appropriate dating behaviors. We were able to compare my dating habits with the movie. My daughter and I had a serious discussion about what Godly characteristics I would look for in a man when dating. She was curious enough to ask me after watching this movie. She also shared qualities that she felt were good for someone hoping to marry in the future.

Being raised in two completely different homes can be confusing for a child especially if the parents aren't on the same page about how to raise the child. I believe our discussion will help her think before acting when she gets older and begins to date. I also believe that this movie had a huge impact on her thinking. It will enable her to make wiser, smarter choices as she continues to grow into a beautiful young lady when faced with peer pressure or seeing irresponsible behaviors from others. 

The main and supporting actors gave a solid performance. They are not well-known actors and actresses but they played their parts well. Ashley Bratcher (Grace Anderson) and Joseph Gray (Clint Masters) were our favorites! We truly enjoyed watching their friendship develop. Jenn Gotzon playing Brooke McClaren, who is Clint's ex fiancé, added a little more excitement to the story's plot.

There were a few parts that seemed predictable and several times the actors seemed robotic as if reading the lines from a script, but that didn't have an impact on my feelings about the movie's message. The sound quality of the movie was decent and the actor's words were spoken clearly. The settings and backgrounds of the movie were absolutely beautiful. I appreciated how the director showed what life was like living on a soybean farm. I also really the idea of the soybean seed packet that was given to Grace. What is this you ask? Well, you'll have to watch the movie to see the meaning and purpose behind it. The director also showed the importance of following your parent's advice and listening when they offer guidance. The relationship of the family unit was a positive one that emphasized love, unity, and communication.     

This was a clean cut movie. There was no nudity or foul language. However, there was some violence. There is a scene when two men are fighting and one man attempts to hit the other with a shovel. One of my least favorite parts was when a therapist suggested that Grace live with her boyfriend before marriage to see if the shoe fits. I did appreciate that the director revealed Grace as a strong character who dismisses this advice and chooses to follow her own Christian beliefs as taught by her parents. She didn't let anyone else's opinions impact her choices in life. This shows our children that they can take charge of their life and make their own choices while reminding them that they don't have to follow the actions of others. 

Overall, I enjoyed watching this movie with my daughter. The only part that I didn't quite understand or see the relevance of was the ring burial scene. The movie reveals a different dating perspective than what's seen in MOST movies on the market today. Many movies today contain too many risky, intimate scenes when it comes to dating. These movies send out the wrong message to our children. Princess Cut offers an approach to dating that is pure and loving based on friendship. It gives everyone a sense of hope that commitment and real romance can be a reality.

Alyssa's Thoughts
I loved watching the Princess Cut with my mom. After seeing the movie, I do believe love is worth the wait. We shouldn't rush into things and we should wait for God to send us love. I learned to be safe and stay modest. I also learned not to date pushy men or ones that cheat when I get older. I felt bad for Grace when Stewart introduced his fiancé to his friends and it wasn't Grace. My favorite part was the happy ending but my mom says I shouldn't tell you what happens. A funny part was when her brother placed the ad in the newspaper about Grace. The guys that showed up were NOT good choices. My mom and I laughed so hard during this part. The only thing I didn't like was how pushy Jared was with Grace. I wouldn't change anything in the movie.  

Recommendations
I recommend this movie for parents with pre-teen and teen daughters. This is the perfect movie specifically for girls around 17-18 years old who are beginning to date. I firmly believe this should be watched together as a family so that you can have a conversation about the issues addressed.

Boys can benefit from watching the movie too so that they can learn about gentleman manners and behaviors that good women are looking for in men when searching for true love. The character, Clint, modeled appropriate behaviors for other boys to emulate in a dating or serious relationship. The movie will appeal to Christian families as there are several references to God and the Bible.

I highly recommend this award winning movie for your family night. You'll want to preview it first to decide whether it is appropriate for your younger children to view. The profound message was of importance to me so I allowed my ten-year-old daughter, Alyssa, to watch it with my supervision. This is a personal opinion. I encouraged her to ask questions while viewing it. She wasn't shy about sharing her thoughts with me. She knows that she can come to me and talk about this topic anytime in the future.

Price
Princess Cut retails for $14.99, but is currently on sale for only $9.99 in their online shop. Different packages are available for purchase. 

Social Media 
Facebook
Twitter Tag: @PrincessCutFilm
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Instagram Tag: paulmungernc
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Visit the Homeschool Review Crew blog to read more Crew member reviews about the DVD titled, Princess Cut: True Love is Worth the Wait.
Princess Cut {Watchman Pictures Reviews}
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