‘No Ordinary Love’ explores power, authority and domestic abuse at its Orlando Film Festival debut

We don’t often see the full stories of domestic violence featured on the big screen. However, a new independent feature film called No Ordinary Love was written to send a bigger message to the women and men trapped in abusive relationships.

The film had its world premiere last Tuesday at the 2019 Orlando Film Fest, coinciding with October’s Domestic Violence Awareness month.

No Ordinary Love features a young police officer who lashes out at his wife and then works to gain her forgiveness with gifts, lies and promises that “it will never happen again.” The movie also follows the life of a pastor who insists on his wife’s submission and abides by the biblical roles of men and women, and whose marriage spirals downhill with verbal insults.

“So many of us know someone, or are someone, who has experienced abuse in a relationship, whether that be physical or verbal,” said writer and director Chyna Robinson.

Ultimately, the filmmakers aim to bring awareness to the signs of abuse between partners, so victims can see the potential danger they face by staying in an unhealthy relationship.

The film captures life for those in professions with the highest amounts of domestic violence, like law enforcement officers and other positions of authority.

One woman who saw the film in Texas had recently left an abusive relationship and was struggling with returning to her partner. After watching the film, she could never go back again.

“Abuse is all about power and control,” said executive producer Tracy Rector. “The goal of our message is to let women [and men] know that there are resources in place that can help. We hope this film has the power to save lives.”
Rector also said that one woman who saw the film during their showcase in Texas had recently left an abusive relationship and was struggling with returning to her partner. After watching the film, the woman told Rector, she could never go back again.

“I wanted to create a film that was completely accurate and true to the experience of abuse between intimate partners,” Robinson said,”because this is a complex issue of not knowing when to leave, or how to leave a relationship.”

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This article appears in Monster Squad: Orlando’s Horror Drag Queens.