Changing the Game (2012)

This story is in two parts. The first part deals with a poorly developed friendship between Darell (Sean Riggs) the smart kid and drug dealing Dre (Dennis L.A. White). This loosely sets up the second half where Darrell obtains his business degree and gets involved in some bad investments using the drug money. For some reason because it was his money, he is being investigated because his hedge fund investor (Brandon Ruckdashel) lost it. Go figure.The setting is in Philadelphia with broken dirty streets. The film likes to use and quote Machiavelli in order to look intellectual, because the acting and directing wasn't going to hack it. The acting was especially sad. They called it in.What was with giving Tony Todd two different roles, one as disfigured pimp and another as an FBI agent? Didn't Ed Wood think we would notice? The plot had continuity issues especially at the end.The film tries to go deep, but doesn't achieve. Brarality J. Dowdell, wrote and directed this film. It is his first attempt from his cushy college days.Recommend "Life of a King" or "Money Matters" instead.Parental Guide: F-bomb, N-word, brief sex, side breast nudity..

This movie was so real, that it made me cry... It's all about knowing what's right & wrong. I give it 5 plus stars! It was so good that I watched it twice! !! The main character's grandma reminded me a lot of the conversations I have had with my 3 sons, and that's why I cried, it hit home run with me. THANK YOU GOD, for another awesome grassroots movie with substance, heart, and soul. No big budget here, but good acting and resources to quality scenes made you forget its grassroots. Fantastic beginning, middle, and end. And none of them predictable. And to top it off, the actor who played "Candyman," Tony Todd, played two very symbolic and memorable roles!

One of the major keys to a great film, is a solid story directed by an able hand, since if the plot is delivered adequately the viewer is almost able to visualize internally without a screen. Fortunately in the case of the Rel Dowdell directed film, "Changing the Game," the viewer is granted the benefit of a well crafted screenplay (Rel Dowdell & Arron R. Astillero), delivered by an able cast, captured with entrancingly and captivating visuals, which echo back to such early independent classic black films as Larry Cohen's "Black Caesar" and Ivan Dixon's "The Spook Who Sat By the Door." "Right now I'm on my way to your trough to eat your breakfast, since you don't have sense enough to eat it yourself." Templeton Set in the colorful yet gritty North Philadelphia backdrop, Changing the Game begins with a young Darrell Barnes (Jakobi Alvin), adeptly reading the above quote from E.B. White's children's classic "Charlotte's Web" in front of his mildly attentive elementary class, while doting instructor Mrs. Davis (Suzanne Douglas) looks on admiringly. It is Mrs. Davis interest in Darrell's background, added with her compliment heavy motivation, which gives the sense that she was integral in shaping Darrell's early academic aspirations. Forward to the drug infused, crime ridden mid 1980s, Darrell (Sean Riggs) is now an accomplished and intelligent high school senior with intentions of attending college for business. It is at these formative beginnings, where Barnes's life and death circumstances and personality shaping people, such as his shrewdly tactical, highly ambitious, long time friend and street hustler Dre (Dennis L.A. White) as well as his morally influential and religiously devout guardian Grandma Barnes (legendary Irma P Hall), begin to give the viewer a more concise image of the potentially multi dimensional character Darrell may truly be.I do not wish to give many of the plot details due to the fact that Changing the Game is a film that must be watched carefully in order to understand the nuances and depth of Darrell's and his surrounding character's roles in the story-line. I will only share that this is a not the typical cliché shoot em up, hood tragedy flick. Not only does it subtly touch upon the struggles and ills of a desperate impoverished ethnic community, it also ventures off into the social and political dynamic of higher learning institutions, the typically white male dominated American corporate boardroom and the more ethnically and culturally diverse international business environment. There is an interweaving of classical literature such as Machiavelli's "The Prince," which only embellish and compliment an already intriguing story about a not so common man, facing all too familiar circumstances with an intelligently creative and militarily calculated ambition. Those aforementioned qualities alone have made this a film that must be watched more than once to gain full appreciation of how dynamic Darrell Barnes' character is. 8/10

"Changing The Game" really surprised me. The characters instantly won my heart. I found myself crying within five minutes of the start of the film. That does not happen every day. Love and compassion for humanity jumped off the screen from the start. The film was well written and the cinematography was exceptional. The tone was properly set at the beginning. I must commend the writer on a job well done. The characters were well developed. People from all walks of like should be able to relate to them. I was able to follow the film, but was unable to predict what was going to happen. The film made me reflect on societal issues and the roles we play. It gave me hope in knowing we have power to change the game. Everyone should see this film and celebrate those who dare to dream.