Customer Reviews

Sister Aimee: The Aimee Semple Mcpherson Story

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

As the director of this film, I wanted to share that I was offered money to make a big budget film on Sister Aimee by rigid religious Aimee adherents and loyalists who wanted me to remove from my script her overdose, breakdown, three marriages, and morals trial. I couldn't live with myself if I made a propagnada piece. Jesus said the truth shall set us free, so I decided to turn down millions of dollars and make a truthful portrayal that Sister Aimee was a conduit for the Spirit, but also a very human person. We shot on a micro-budget of a few thousand dollars, but this brought out creativity in us. I'm very proud of the cast, every one of them did an amazing job acting. We were a finalist for best feature at a film festival in Milan, we were voted the greatest guerrilla film of all time on the IGFA top 100 list, we set an attendance record at the Beverly Cinema in Hollywood, and we were honored at SAG with a special screening. Thank you to all of you who purchase the film and have supported us. I believe in our film, in our fans,and in our fantastic company of actors, so I vote five stars out of five *****. God bless, Richard Rossi (Writer-Director)

I enjoyed this beautiful and compelling film which is based on the real life of a famous female evangelist in the 1920's. Her controversial story is presented with honesty and heart. It captures the conflict between her godly and human passions and explores her sincere desire to follow God's call as well as her desire to find personal happiness. She was able to attain great success in her ministry but not in her personal life. The film unveils some of the mystery and scandal that surrounded her ministry, life, and tragic death.
The talented cast was able to convincingly portray the many colorful characters in her life. The role of Aimee was played brilliantly with a full range of emotion and drama, as her ministry was often a mixture of church and Hollywood. Creative imagery and symbolism were used effectively throughout the film and enhanced the fascinating story.
I think this film will challenge many misconceptions about the lives of those in public ministry. After all, they are only human like the rest of us. People tend to put those in spiritual leadership on a pedestal because they are charismatic or gifted. If they should fall from their pedestal, they are often harshly judged by the self-righteous instead of being lifted up into the arms of God's unconditional love and grace. I thought the ending of the film was touching and demonstrated God's love in a very powerful way.
This is a film that will make you think as well as touch your heart.

I have watched Sister Aimee a few weeks ago and I STILL have the images in my head!
If you are looking for a million dollar Hollywood production, shot in 35mm and special effects, Sister Aimee is probably not the right movie for you.
But if you are interested in a fantastic piece of storytelling told by truthful actors and directed by a man who knows how to keep you engaged, you should definitely get this movie!!!

Not bad, but after doing lots of research on Aimee Semple, and after watching the Bette Davis version, this version is just 'fair'. I find that the actress is too theatrical and 'over-the-top' and does not come across as convincing, but rather as someone having fun in the role, in particular the preaching sequences. Certain things are not well explained, like why the mother was also charged in the conspiracy. The trial scene was also greatly shortened. [My Likes] What I like is that it takes the story right to the end where she dies...the sepia photography also was good. The woman who plays the mother was excellent.

Director Richard Rossi artistically portrays the life of one of the most influential faith healer's of all time. Mimi Michaels is radiant in her representation of Aimee's struggle of living by faith in a material world, supported by a mesmerizing cast that draws you into this powerful woman's questionable life with sensitivity and compassion. Aimee's attempt to live her love and calling for God as she longed for human love and understanding will have you seeing those who serve in a different light. This is a movie you won't want to miss!

We watched the video last night, and we were majorly disappointed. The sound seemed as if the dialogue had been recorded inside a tin can. There were also times when it was almost impossible to understand. The sound was so distractng that it made it made it challenging to be absorbed by the storyline. We were working so hard at trying to understand the dialogue. If it were possible, I'd like to even get a refund. I know that PBS made a documentary about Aimee Semple McPherson's life. Now I wish that I'd purchased that instead.

I really wanted to like this film. My family were all members of the Foursquare Church for the first 16 years of my life and I'd heard the name "Sister Aimee" spoken lovingly and reverently more than I could possibly count. Even though I've long since moved on and away from my Pentecostal roots I still have a curious fascination for the churches founder and first minister, Aimee Semple McPherson.

While there have been several Hollywood films that have been to varying degrees loosely based on the life and exploits of this charismatic figure, the 1960 classic `Elmer Gantry' being the most memorable, nothing purely factional and of relative depth has yet to be presented. Thus when I came across the low budget, independent film `Sister Aimee: The Aimee Semple McPherson Story' I was more than willing to forego the usual expectations of what generally constitutes a good movie (production values, acting) in hopes of discovering an honest, intelligent, well told true life story of a fascinating 20th century icon.

I suppose the film did succeed on most levels mentioned in the previous paragraph, the story of Aimee McPherson is told in a straight forward, truthful fashion. However despite that admission my already low expectations of what to expect in terms of production values still couldn't prepare me for this movie. It was much worse than I had imagined it would be. The septitone coloring, interspersed scene descriptions, and twenties soundtrack didn't provide the anticipated nostalgic effect hoped for. Even worse, everything appears to have been filmed within the confines of one or two rooms. If the scene calls for a church simply hang a cross on the wall or if you've just arrived in China place a little statue of Buddha on the desk and you're there. See how easy it is? Ah..., the magic of cinema!

I could have overlooked all the negatives if the acting was acceptable and rang true. After all I went into this viewing already fascinated by the story of Aimee Semple McPherson so it wouldn't have taken much to win me over. Just give me an enjoyable. memorable performance and I'll go away happy. Well, unfortunately it didn't happen. The performances were flat, uninspired and forgettable. I guess my long wait for the consummate McPherson film continues on...

This woman is amazing!!! It did introduce me to her, but it is a poorly done and in some places inaccurate movie. Looks amateurish and has poor acting. Read her The Story of My Life instead.

If you've forgotten the importance of quality in a script, casting and execution of film, five minutes of "Sister Aimee..." will bring it all back to life for you. Simplistic, mundane, aesthetically unpleasant, and a waste of good film describes this movie's strengths. Too bad, too - Aimee Semple McPherson is such a compelling character of the early 20th century, and good biographies, both documentary and dramatization, are needed to tell this compelling story. This, especially because from this story come many of the principled debates of today - religion, celebrity, public scandal and political power.

This amateur production was a waste of time and money. The dialogue, when you could hear it, was puerile. The sound editing was some of the worst that I have ever heard. The acting was B-movie grade at best. It was visually sloppy and awkward. We could not finish the film, and we have sat through some poor films. There also seemed to be a very strong Christian agenda to this production. We rented it from Blockbuster and expected a secular approach to the storytelling. Instead, it was as if we spent $5 to go to a church that we didn't want to go to. It seems as though, form other sources, this person's life story provides a compelling topic but you would never know from this film. Get the PBS documentary instead. I wish that we did.