I am so addicted to this film. I watched it awhile ago on Star Movies and I thought it was über boring but IT SO WASN'T. I loved it. It starred Ryan Kelley as Ryan Flynn and Hayden Panettierre as Melanie. So here goes the synopsis:
SYNOPSIS
"The Dust Factory" is an adventure about the love and friendship between two teenagers who help each other through a difficult time in their lives.
Ryan Flynn (Ryan Kelley) is a wondrous young boy who hasn't spoken since witnessing his father's death at the age of nine. Even though his world is silent, Ryan, now thirteen, has formed a unique bond with his best friend Rocky (Michael Angarano), his mom Angie (Kim Myers) and his step-father Lionel (Peter Horton). They all respect the world he lives in, never treat him as though he's different, and encourage him to find the things in his life that he enjoys.
It seemed like any other summer day. Ryan and Rocky have taken off for a day of fishing at the lake nearby. With Ryan on in-line skates and Rocky on his bike, they race to their favorite fishing spot. The shortcut to the lake is over an old rickety bridge that Rocky is always hesitant to take. Ryan, on the other hand, races across. Tragically, the rotted wood gives way, and Ryan falls into the water below. Underwater, Ryan has been knocked unconscious and is magically transported to a fantasy realm known as The Dust Factory. A place Ryan will soon find mirrors his fear of mortality.
As Ryan swims to shore, Rocky is nowhere to be found. He rushes home to find the house he grew up in quiet, his mom absent, and his grandfather sitting quietly in his bedroom. They speak, which surprises both of them. Grandpa Randolph (Armin Mueller-Stahl) has been suffering from Alzheimer's and hasn't spoken a word in years. This sparks curiosity in Ryan. Where is he? Is he dead? The young boy who hasn't said a word in years is now having a conversation with the grandfather he hardly knows and thought he had lost forever.
What follows for Ryan is a journey of courage, and it is built on dreams.
In this strange yet familiar world, Ryan meets Melanie (Hayden Panettiere), a precocious young beauty, who steals his heart. Together they embark on an adventure where they confront their fears and develop a friendship built on trust and love.
Melanie explains this enchanted new world to Ryan and introduces him to The Dust Factory: A big top where attempting a triple flip from the trapeze can send him back to the life he left behind--a life of uncertainty and fear. Ryan finds himself caught between "taking the leap" and staying in The Dust Factory with its endless days and the comfort of an unchanging landscape.
For awhile, The Dust Factory seems to be the perfect fit. Melanie and Ryan teach one another to dance and laugh again, both finding a renewed joy in life. Ryan also spends time with his grandfather, who imparts his wisdom and knowledge to help Ryan make the right decisions for his own young life. Ryan, Melanie, and Grandpa all have different experiences to share with one another, and they are all in a place, somewhere between heaven and earth, with a very important decision to make. Ultimately, they all need to face the challenge of finding their way home.
THE QUOTES/LINES I LOVED
Ryan Flynn: When I die, I don't want it to hurt.
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Grandpa Randolph: Once upon a time there were three men who decided to climb the tallest mountain in their country.
Ryan Flynn: Which mountain?
Grandpa Randolph: The tallest - that's the point. These fellows knew if they succeeded, they would be showered with wealth and power by the king.
Ryan Flynn: For climbing a mountain?
Grandpa Randolph: This happened a long time ago, when climbing a mountain wasn't a weekend sport. They even referred to the mission as a "quest for paradise."
Ryan Flynn: This is an honest to goodness fable, huh?
Grandpa Randolph: You'll see. Now, the king had a beautiful daughter, and he promised her hand to the bravest of the men.
Ryan Flynn: So even if the guy was an ugly toad with fart's breath, she'd have to marry him.
Grandpa Randolph: Yes, yes. Halfway up the mountain, one of the men turned to the guide and said he couldn't justify the strain of another day's hiking just for the king's good blessings.
Ryan Flynn: Go on, Grandpa.
Grandpa Randolph: Go on, go on, go on. Next morning, the second man decided to climb was foolish. Even if the king were offering pails of gold, he figured it wouldn't be worth spending from his deathbed. So, off he went. The last man... The last man was chipper as a fox in a chicken coop! Already counting his good graces... Anticipating wealth, wench, happiness!
Ryan Flynn: The guy's stylin'.
Grandpa Randolph: Guys stylin', yes. Well, his excitement was short-lived as the guide outlined the final day's journey. Treacherous. This fellow just shook his head in disgust. I mean, for a spoiled child bride, it would take all the king's money to keep her happy, anyway. So, without even a proper fare-thee-well, he turned on his heel and left the young guide alone. And you know what the guy did then?
Ryan Flynn: Bailed?
Grandpa Randolph: He went for it.
Ryan Flynn: Cool.
Grandpa Randolph: Cool! Yes.
Ryan Flynn: So, then what?
Grandpa Randolph: After two more days, he reached the precipice and discovered a weathered bench looked out over the countryside... cupped his hands and shouted, "What paradise is this?" He was answered by a beautiful voice. "What paradise do you seek?"
Ryan Flynn: The Fair Footed Flekk?
Grandpa Randolph: Yes, she skipped through the clouds as is she were light as air itself. She explained how the men he'd started with were glory seekers expecting paradise, but disappointed. Disappointed at the price. The young man was touched and moved as he looked out over this tiny piece of the world seeing with a clarity he'd never known. And a word trembled from his lips... Paradise.
Ryan Flynn: And the Fair Footed Flekk?
Grandpa Randolph: Gone... into the clouds. Memory.
Ryan Flynn: Climbing the mountain was his reward?
Grandpa Randolph: Climbing was his paradise.
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Melanie Lewis: Make me a promise?
Ryan Flynn: Sure.
Melanie Lewis: If you decide you want the four seasons again...
Ryan Flynn: That mean jumping at the big top. Forget it. I'm never going home.
Melanie Lewis: But if you change your mind, promise me you'll tell me first?
Ryan Flynn: Why?
Melanie Lewis: I might consider going is all.
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Melanie Lewis: You know, I can still do everything better than you can. Faster - always will. Ryan Flynn: You can't always win. Melanie Lewis: I'll always beat *you*. Ryan Flynn: And I won't mind... I'll never forget you, Mel. Melanie Lewis: ...you will. Ryan Flynn: No, I won't. See ya later. Melanie Lewis: Not later. Just see you.
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Grandpa Randolph: Dust is a funny thing. It's everywhere all at once, like a teeny, tiny snowstorm, in every ray of light. Even the moon is just a big dust ball. But you know, it's all in the way you look at it. Not this way or that way, not forways or backways. Just believe before you look. The man in the moon has a magic all his own.
