Approved for 12+

Boonville Redemption (Manuscript)

In California 1906 a young girl named Melinda shares a story of hardship and forgiveness as a villain named Mason, her step-father, makes her life miserable along with her brother Zack's life and her mother Alice. She meets a young man named Shakespeare who loses his parents to an earthquake and she is happy when he is adopted by a local family. Soon her questions about what really happened to her father begins to be answered, with a few surprises.
9
Negative Rating
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SexLanguageViolenceDrugsNudityOther
0
Positive Rating
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FaithIntegrity

Dove Review

This is an interesting script. A lot happens in its 102 pages and opens in Boonville, California, in 1906. This story makes the point that only God can fix some things. The story features rich characters including young Melinda, a young boy named William who is also called “Shakespeare” who, naturally, quotes the Bard often and is considered likable but “different”. Also the story includes Alice, a woman who married the wrong guy, a villain named Mason, and still other rich characters.

This story of God’s forgiveness and His ability to fix broken lives is nicely written and told. The script features conflict, drama, suspense (Did Melinda’s real father, Thomas, really commit a crime and what happened to him?) Melinda’s stepfather, Mason, is the bad seed that Alice married. A good man in the community, Jeb, adopts Shakespeare after his parents die in an earthquake, but we learn that Jeb has a few secrets of his own.

The story climaxes well with all the plot elements resolved and everything is wrapped up and questions are answered. W are happy to award our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal to the script for ages twelve plus. It has earned five Doves, our best rating. It is really good and would make a great movie. I love the ending when Melinda says, “God isn’t who you think He is…He’s bigger.”

Dove Rating Details

0
Faith

None

0
Integrity

A man is shot and is seen lying dead on the floor; a man punches another man unconscious; a man roughly shoves a girl toward her home; a woman uses a wooden spoon and slaps girl's behind with it for making her worry; a girl is pushed away from helping a man; a boy hits a girl with an acorn; man slaps girl; a boy wrings a chicken's neck so a family can eat it; blood on the floor from an elderly woman falling and striking her head; a man in anger throws a plate; man rips necklace off girl's neck in anger; a character grabs a character; a man pulls a pistol on a man; a man is shot; man pulls gun on woman; man slaps woman across face and splits her lip;

2
Sex

Character says in a voice over that she was born out of wedlock; kissing by a couple; a married man, a drinking man with a temper, is with saloon girls and walks off with one of them; a married man says he can have all the women he wants and he does.

1
Language

Butt-1; Stupid Boy-1; Stupid-1; P-1; A woman prays, "Dear Jesus"; H (as a place)-1

2
Violence

A man is shot and is seen lying dead on the floor; a man punches another man unconscious; a man roughly shoves a girl toward her home; a woman uses a wooden spoon and slaps girl's behind with it for making her worry; a girl is pushed away from helping a man; a boy hits a girl with an acorn; man slaps girl; a boy wrings a chicken's neck so a family can eat it; blood on the floor from an elderly woman falling and striking her head; a man in anger throws a plate; man rips necklace off girl's neck in anger; a character grabs a character; a man pulls a pistol on a man; a man is shot; man pulls gun on woman; man slaps woman across face and splits her lip;

2
Drugs

Wine is being delivered to a restaurant; a man says he is not going to cry over spilled wine after bottles are broken; a man drinks and is irritable; man is drunk at saloon; an elderly woman is on medicine.

0
Nudity

None

2
Other

A character takes a ring from another character; a woman is superstitious and it is said she abandoned her faith when a tragedy occurred in her life and this church-going woman tells a girl that the Bible is full of lies yet this woman repents later on; a few people lie about knowing nothing about girl's father; a girl tells a lie about breaking a lantern; a girl has a mean step-father; a character calls believing in grace over works a "crock"; a character dies; an earthquake; grieving; boy's parents die in earthquake; a man calls a boy a cripple in a mean way; a bad man framed an innocent man but the truth comes out.

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