THE SECRET ART OF HUMAN FLIGHT – A Review by Jenn Rohm
The loss of a spouse is, sadly, something many humans in the world will experience. It is one of those topics that brings up emotions that can be difficult to deal with. How can a director and writer present a story that supports it is ok to not be ok? H. P. Mendoza and Jesse Orenshein have brought us one option with The Secret Art of Human Flight.
Ben (Grant Rosenmeyer) has unexpectedly lost his wife and artistic collaborator, Sarah (Reina Hardesty). He is frozen in his grief and unable even barely to function. His sister Gloria (Lucy DeVito) is trying to care for him. She leaves him on a chair on his lawn to take a trip with her husband Tom (Nican Robinson) and finds Ben still in the chair upon their return. With her pushing he tries to find something of interest to him, and he stumbles across a social media clip of a man flying. He goes to the dark web and orders a guide on the so-called secret art of human flight. The guru named Mealworm (Paul Raci) delivers the guide and waits while he takes the first steps before inserting himself into Ben’s life. Wendy (Maggie Grace) was in Saray’s writing group, and having suffered the loss of her first husband, she reached out with a pie. She has since remarried and offers Ben friendship and support, having experienced similar struggles. At the same time, there are questions about his wife’s passing, and Detective Reyes (Rosa Arredondo) is investigating. Gloria and her police officer husband are concerned about Ben’s mental state and Mealworm’s true intentions.
The cast is strong, and I found all but one believable in their role. It may be due to the direction provided or the story itself leaving gaps, but the character Detective Reyes came across as more of an out-for-vengeance action film character. I may also have found this story thread took me out of the film.
Ben transforms a room in the house following the instructions in the training manual. He paints it sky blue and hangs clouds around the room. The clouds are connected to lights that mimic the weather outside during one scene. Creative set design like this sticks in my memory and inspires me for my own home.
Although the film has its deeper moments of grief, it is also broken up with humor, hope, and fantasy. It will be available on demand starting August 23, 2024.
Director: H. P. Mendoza
Written By: Jesse Orenshein
Cast: Grant Rosenmeyer, Lucy DeVito, Paul Raci
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Fantasy
Selig Rating: 3.5 stars
Runtime: 1h 47m
On-Demand Release Date: August 23, 2024
Trailer: The Secret Art of Human Flight trailer
The Selig Rating Scale:
5 Stars – Excellent movie/show, well worth the time and price.
4 Stars – Good movie/show
3 Stars – OK movie/show
2 Stars – Well, there was nothing else…
1 Star – Total waste of time.
