I'm probably going to be in the minority here, but I don't think this film works. And it's a shame because it's a variation on a genre that I like a lot: someone gets a chance to see what life would have been if they had made other choices ("Peggy Sue Got Married," "Me, Myself & I" with Rachel Griffiths, etc.).
The first half of "Dust Factory" sucked me right in: the teenage boy is a fascinating character (he doesn't speak -- that's not really a spoiler because it comes out in the first 10 minutes), the dialogue is good (the give and take with the young people is surprisingly believable) and the performances are strong, especially considering how young most of the cast is. (And don't forget: any film with Armin Mueller-Stahl is worth at least a look-see.)
But about halfway through, I started getting impatient because I realized I wasn't learning anything by living through their experience. I knew the characters were learning because they told us they were -- but I wasn't experiencing it with them. The best play or film makes the viewer look at the world in a different way. You feel you've learned something about yourself and about people in general. For example, at the end of "Peggy Sue Got Married," I had an insight about how we make choices in life. "Dust Factory" tells us things, but it doesn't let us experience them. The ending is actually kind of nice, but what leads up to it, for me, just doesn't work.
The first half of "Dust Factory" sucked me right in: the teenage boy is a fascinating character (he doesn't speak -- that's not really a spoiler because it comes out in the first 10 minutes), the dialogue is good (the give and take with the young people is surprisingly believable) and the performances are strong, especially considering how young most of the cast is. (And don't forget: any film with Armin Mueller-Stahl is worth at least a look-see.)
But about halfway through, I started getting impatient because I realized I wasn't learning anything by living through their experience. I knew the characters were learning because they told us they were -- but I wasn't experiencing it with them. The best play or film makes the viewer look at the world in a different way. You feel you've learned something about yourself and about people in general. For example, at the end of "Peggy Sue Got Married," I had an insight about how we make choices in life. "Dust Factory" tells us things, but it doesn't let us experience them. The ending is actually kind of nice, but what leads up to it, for me, just doesn't work.