Quest (2017)
87%RT Audience Score: 75%
Awards & Nominations: NA
Simultaneously sweeping and intimate, Quest uses one family’s experiences to offer thoughtful, wide-ranging observations about modern American life
Quest” is the kind of movie that makes you feel like you’re part of the family. The Raineys are a force to be reckoned with, and director Jonathan Olshefski captures their determination and decency in a way that’s both moving and inspiring. Sure, there’s no grand narrative or point to be hammered home, but who needs that when you have a family like this? From rock-solid wife Christine’a to teenage daughter P.J., who grows up before our eyes, the Raineys are too individualized to represent anything but themselves. And that’s just fine with us.
Production Company(ies)
Armada Productions,
Distributor
First Run Features
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
TV-PG
Year of Release
2017
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:NA
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Runtime:1h 45m
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Language(s):
-
Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Dec 1, 2017 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 8, 2018
Genre(s)
Documentary/Music
Keyword(s)
documentary, music, African-American family, Philadelphia, Jonathan Olshefski, Sabrina Schmidt Gordon, Nas, James Blakely, Christopher Rainey, Tyrone Moore, Ammo, Joey Buttafuoco, box office, budget, reviewed by J.R Jones, reviewed by Bilge Ebiri, reviewed by Jonathan Romney, reviewed by Barry Hertz, reviewed by G Allen Johnson, reviewed by Sheri Linden, reviewed by Matt Brunson, reviewed by Phil Guie, reviewed by Marisa Carpico, reviewed by Stephen Saito, reviewed by Jared Mobarak, directed by Jonathan Olshefski, produced by Sabrina Schmidt Gordon, rated MPAA, family struggles, modern American life, wide-ranging observations, box office performance, First Run Features, 1h 45m, Neptune Frost, 18 1/2, H.P Lovecraft’s Witch House, Stay Prayed Up, 11th Hour Cleaning, Sh*t Saves the World, Final Caller, Girl in the Picture, Hello, Goodbye, Everything in Between, Confessions from the Hart, The Prey: Legend of Karnoctus, The Sea Beast, Moon, 66 Questions, Dreaming Walls: Inside the Chelsea Hotel, Incantation, The Road to Galena, Dangerous Liaisons, Jewel, Warriors on the Field, Fair Play, Asbury Park: Riot, Redemption, Rock ‘N Roll, Saab Bahadar, The Quiet One, Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, Betting on Zero, rent/buy from $3.99
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
James Blakely – Self
Christopher Rainey – Self
Tyrone Moore – Self
Ammo – Self
Joey Buttafuoco – Self
Director(s)
Jonathan Olshefski
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Sabrina Schmidt Gordon
Film Festivals
Sundance, Tribeca
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (60) | Top Critics (28) | Fresh (59) | Rotten (1)
Tthe family members – Quest; his rock-solid wife, Christine’a; and their teenage daughter P.J., who gains in character and complexity as she grows up before our eyes-are too individualized to represent anything but their own determination and decency.
April 16, 2020
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
The filmmakers are content to allow us to spend time with these people; they recognize the power of connection and compassion.
March 23, 2020
Bilge Ebiri
Spirituality & Health
TOP CRITIC
Ordinariness-and [Jonathan] Olshefski’s ordinary, level-headed approach to documenting their life-is the keynote of this intensely moving and involving film.
March 8, 2018
Jonathan Romney
Film Comment Magazine
TOP CRITIC
There is no grand narrative or point to be hammered home; instead, Olshefski delivers a subtle, sincere and honest portrait of barely making ends meet in modern America.
February 23, 2018 | Rating: 3.5/4
Barry Hertz
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
“Quest” could very easily have been titled “An American Family” as well.
January 4, 2018 | Rating: 4/4
G. Allen Johnson
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Through eight years of filming … the director discovers an everyday American story of extraordinary strength.
December 14, 2017
Sheri Linden
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
Filmed over the course of approximately a decade, this powerful and poignant picture moves well beyond its original niche.
July 21, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
Moments like these speak to people’s basic humanity and, combined with the Rainey clan’s refusal to suffer defeat, give us reason to be optimistic.
March 21, 2019 | Rating: 5/5
Phil Guie
Film-Forward.com
[The Raineys are] fascinating subjects to say the least and director Jonathan Olshefski couldn’t have made them more interesting if he’d written them.
December 22, 2018 | Rating: 7.5/10
Marisa Carpico
The Pop Break
The gentle, persistent rhythm of the film’s pacing subtly underlines the family’s continual push forward against all odds and since you feel so incredibly lucky to spend any time in their company.
November 1, 2018
Stephen Saito
Moveable Fest
To strip the preconceptions away and simply watch as a family prevails against the stacked deck their country sustains to keep them down is to see an honest slice of America.
October 10, 2018 | Rating: 8/10
Jared Mobarak
Jaredmobarak.com
…a story worth telling, but due to a lack of context and poor directing, that story is executed in the most boring manner possible.
June 4, 2018 | Rating: D+
Bobby LePire
Film Threat…
Plot
A ground-breaking immersive competition series that drops 8 young people into the fantastic, fictional world of Everealm, where they must save a Kingdom by fulfilling an ancient prophecy.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film follows the daily struggles and successes of the Raineys, an African-American family living in Philadelphia, and features real-life family members as the cast.
Jonathan-Olshefski.jpg
