s o n · o f · m a n  was directed by local jim burer, and had many of the hallmarks of what might be called the "atlanta style": an obssession with gothic or bizarre family relationships, christian theology re-worked as a horror-film prop, dusty interiors splashed with golden light, kistchy, trailer-park design in subdued browns, beiges, and greens, and flat, poker-faced acting in comfortingly unprofessional accents.

it tells the story of a large, quiet young man who apparently has miraculous heailng powers, as he and his mother discover when he brings his dying father back to life. the film makes a great deal out of its quiet, tense atmosphere, and its use of a televangelist's sermon as background noise is quite effective. one wishes it had more substance and were able out to draw and define its family relationships carefully, instead of being so caught up in its supernatural weirdness.

as a portrait of a messiah's coming of age, it is airless and stale, but as a snapshot of a family waiting for its patriarch to die, it frequently catches one's interest.