Reaction & Review | Legend

 

Welcome, one and all, to an all new Reaction & Review. Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I'm gonna be covering a fantasy film from 1985. That movie is "Legend".

Now, I know very few things about this movie. I know that the movie was directed by Ridley Scott, who also made the "Aliens" movies and "Blade Runner". I haven't seen "Blade Runner", and I don't really care to see any of the "Aliens" movies. So this will be my first experience with Ridley Scott's work. I also know the film stars a young Tom Cruise as the main character, and the villain is played by Tim Curry. So, chances are, if this movie ends up being terrible, at least Tim Curry will make it worth watching. I'm not really a huge Tom Cruise fan, but I'm still gonna give him a chance here, especially considering that this was one of his earlier roles.

The only other thing that I know about this movie is based off of speculation more than anything else. But from what I heard, this movie inspired legendary video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo to create The Legend of Zelda series. Again, that's just from what I've heard, and I have no idea how accurate that rumor is. But it is something that I have heard, and I felt like mentioning it here. So, you just have to take it for what it's worth.

I honestly have no idea what to expect from this movie. I'm hoping that it's gonna be good, but I'm not totally sure if it will be. The only way I'm gonna find out for myself, is if I shut up, and I push play, and I'm gonna do that right now. So, without further ado, it's time to kick back, relax, and check out "Legend".

18 minutes later

I am willing to say this much, guys. So far, the score in this movie has been really good. The story here hasn't really picked up yet, but I will say, again, that the score has been really helping enhancing this movie's atmosphere. It really is that good.

19 minutes later

You know, guys, a thought just occurred to me. So earlier, when the world started to turn into winter, we saw that couple in the house that Princess Lily was interacting with get frozen in time. Yet, everybody else, including these elves and dwarves, are not frozen. So why exactly are they still moving around? Moreover, why is the princess not affected by being frozen in time either? I'm really curious about this, and I have a feeling that it's gonna continue to bug me throughout this entire movie.

20 minutes later

You know, guys, this movie has been surprisingly dull for, almost, the entire hour since it's started. I'm genuinely hoping that it's gonna get better as the movie continues, and I'm certainly hoping that it does get more interesting. But, as of right now, this movie hasn't really given me a whole lot to work with. And being that we're almost an hour into this thing, that's not a good sign.

19 minutes later

Guys, I'd really like to explain what's going on in this scene. But even I have no idea what the fuck is going on here. The best way I can summarize it is that Princess Lily is dancing with this...thing. But I really don't know why this is happening. Oh...now she's become that thing. All right, well...that was certainly strange. And, so far, it's the only interesting thing that has happened in this movie.

4 minutes later

Well, guys, this probably shouldn't come as a surprise, but Tim Curry as Darkness is fucking great. Even though he's only been in the movie now for about a few minutes, he's already the best character in this entire movie. And considering that it IS Tim Curry playing this character, it makes his performance all the more creepy and intimidating at the same time. And I'm loving it.

The Review

Well, guys, that was "Legend". Let me shut the movie off...OK. Wow, um...where the hell do I even start? You know, I am a little bit disappointed. I really thought this movie was going to be a lot better than I had hoped, but...ugh, let's just talk about the film itself, and I'll try to explain further.

Looking back on the year that this movie came out, I have noticed that fantasy films were a HUGE hit back in the 80's. Because there was just a lot of well known fantasy films that came out during that decade. Let's see...I can think of things such as Jim Henson's outings with "Labyrinth" and "The Dark Crystal". I can also remember things such as "The NeverEnding Story", "Krull", the Conan movies, "Red Sonya", and I would even include "The Secret of NIMH", because that definitely would fit in as a fantasy movie. Thinking about it now, my favorite fantasy film of all time is "The Last Unicorn", which also came out in the 80's. Now, while I haven't seen all the movies that I listed on here, I know that a lot of them are, as I stated, very well known. Fantasy films were definitely a huge market from that time period. And the genre wouldn't really be popular again, right up until about the Peter Jackson "Lord of the Rings" movies came out a couple of decades later. Now the reason why I bring up this tidbit of information is that I feel that this movie might've gotten lost in the shuffle somewhere during all those releases in the 80's. Allow to me explain. I have a theory about something. And, mind you, this is all just a theory, so you have to take it for what it's worth. So, as I just stated, I feel like this movie really got lost somewhere during the time that fantasy films became a huge market. And I think I know why it got lost into obscurity. Because this movie, unfortunately, falls into a trap that I feared it was going to go. Now again, I haven't seen most of the movies that I listed in regards to the fantasy genre, but if they're not doing anything new or different, then they pretty much fall into the category of being generic. Basically, they would just be a safe, standard, been there done that, fantasy film. And that's what this trap that this movie falls into. Now, in case anyone might ask this, the two fantasy films that I have seen that were listed that came out in the 80's were "The Last Unicorn" and "The Secret of NIMH". And the difference between those movies and this one is that both "The Last Unicorn" and "The Secret of NIMH" were not following the same, standard bullshit of save the world from some dark overlord before he/she conquers it entirely. They were doing completely different stories. Granted, those movies were based off adaptations from their books, but still, they were doing something different within the fantasy genre. "Legend", on the other hand, is taking the most basic route of just being a standard, by the numbers fantasy film where it's not doing anything new or different in regards to it's story. Now for most people that are into fantasy films, they're not gonna mind that. Because I know a lot of people really like this basic storyline of saving the world before it falls into permanent darkness.

However...that being said, even with this basic storyline, what brings it down the most are the characters. And I can FINALLY talk about the writing for this movie. Straight up, the writing is incredibly weak. And as I just stated, it has to do with our characters. Specifically, it has to do with our main character Jack. Jack has no personality or depth to him whatsoever. And that's kind of a shame, really, because we are forced to follow him and his party of elves, dwarves, and his fairy companion, as they try to rescue the lone unicorn that's been captured, along with the princess. And that would be all fine and dandy, except you want to have a reason to care about these characters. And unfortunately, all of them, and I'm talking about the elves, dwarves, and fairy, are one dimensional in character depth. They're really just there for the sake of being there. There is another issue involving these characters that I do have a problem with, but I'll get into that later. I want to stick with Jack for a moment. Earlier, I mentioned that rumor that this thing inspired Shigeru Miyamoto to create The Legend of Zelda series. And I've even some people compare this movie with Zelda in some fashion. Well, I'm gonna make my own comparison. You see, the difference between Jack and Link is that, depending on the writing in those games, Link actually has some kind of backstory that you can care about. And while the character himself might not be able to talk, what helps his character immensely is the supporting cast he interacts with, along with whatever story that's taking place in said certain game. Jack, on the other hand, has none of that. The only thing we know about Jack is that he lives in a forest. Funny, it kinda reminds me of Ocarina of Time. In fact, this movie, I believe, is what helped Ocarina of Time to exist. Because the story is kinda similar to Ocarina of Time, with the only difference being that there is no time travel in this movie. Jack has a fairy companion, much like Link and Navi. We have a princess, much like Princess Zelda. And we even have a villain, much like with Ganondorf. So yeah, I can totally see the similarities with this movie compared to Ocarina of Time. The only difference is, again, the characters. Most of the ones, such as the main cast involving Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, towers above our lead cast of characters for this movie. The only exception to this is Navi, because our fairy companion in this movie, Oona, is not an annoying fuck-wit, unlike Navi. But setting aside the Zelda comparisons, because I've done plenty of that already, our characters in this movie are just bland and generic. The only exception to this is our villain, but I'm gonna save that for when I talk about acting.

Speaking of this movie being generic, as it hasn't been made known already, we have our standard cast of fantasy creatures. I'm talking about creatures such as elves, dwarves, unicorns, goblins, and our one lone fairy for this movie. And I want to touch upon an issue that sorta bothered me, and I brought this up as I was watching the movie. So, early on, when this never ending winter started to rise, we could see Jack, as he was trying to find Princess Lily in this dark winter. He stumbles inside a house that Princess Lily had visited earlier that featured a man and woman living together. And when he sees the man and woman, they are both frozen in time. So when Jack later ends up waking up near a campfire, he is greeted by an elf. And we come to find that there are more allies with him, such as the the dwarves and fairy. I want to touch upon this, because this sorta bothered me a bit. So, because the princess was supposedly responsible for causing all this to happen, the unicorn's magic was able to cause the never ending winter to break out, thus stopping time. So my question is that why were those two people I mentioned a moment ago ended up getting frozen in time, but not anyone else? Why exactly are the elves, dwarves, and fairy still moving around in this winter? Is it because that they are mythical creatures, and that they are immune to being frozen in time? If that is the case, then that's just the basic equivalent to fuck you, that's why. Setting aside them, why exactly is Princess Lily immune to being frozen time, but not the two people that she met earlier? I mean, she's just a human much like those people, so what is her excuse? Is it because that she's a princess and that because she's royalty, she can get a free pass of not being frozen? Well again, the basic answer to that would be fuck you, that's why. Now, I can give Jack a pass on this, because he was busy swimming underwater trying to retrieve Princess Lily's ring that she threw into the river. But again, I'm really curious why Princess Lily is immune to being frozen in time? And I probably won't get a straight answer, so I'm probably gonna have to stick with my own tried and true answer of fuck you, that's why.

So yeah, the writing in this movie is incredibly weak. And even with this movie's basic fantasy storyline, it drops the ball with it's characters, and it drops it hard. But what about the acting? Well, the acting from, almost, the entire cast does a really solid job here...minus the film's main star Tom Cruise. Now, I've stated earlier that I wasn't a huge fan of Tom Cruise, as an actor, but I was still hoping that he would turn in some kind of a showing that would be worth caring for. Well, that's certainly not the case, because he was a HORRIBLE choice to play as our main character. He really sounds wooden most of the time, thus is the reason why he phones in a showing such as this. Now, that, in part, has to do with the script he was given, because he really didn't have much to work with, considering that his character was just bland as all hell. But I can kinda see why he was cast as the star for this movie. Because he definitely looks the part of a young fantasy hero. At least, to me, he does. So I can kinda see it from a casting perspective. But here's the thing: Looking the part and acting the part are two VERY different things. And unfortunately for Cruise here, the latter is where he drops the ball on. As for the rest of the cast, they were actually able to turn in really good showings, especially for the parts that they were given. Special mention has to go to Tim Curry as our main villain Darkness. He really was the best part in this entire movie, at least for me. Now while I don't think it's one of Curry's stronger roles, he was still able to turn in a really good showing. Mostly because, he had more to work with. Especially when you consider that he wasn't in the movie as much as Tom Cruise was. And that's rather sad when you consider that the villain was able to turn in a better showing than Cruise did as the film's main hero. That's just classy in of itself, guys.

Moving along to special effects. I'm mostly going to be talking about the makeup effects and costuming. Makeup effects look great. And I'm talking about everyone that was either an elf, dwarf, the fairy, goblin, and Darkness. Speaking of which, I need to talk about the villain for a moment. Now again, makeup effects on Tim Curry's character look fucking awesome, and the costuming on him looks mostly great...but I need to talk about his horns. First of all, I should mention that the horns on him are made of fiber glass. So I can imagine that this must've been a pain in the ass for Tim Curry to work with. And while he mostly does a really good job with those horns being on him, it's when during the final climax that I start to notice the horns again. And the reason why I noticed them during that moment is when Tim Curry first starts to run towards Jack. And the horns themselves during that bit looked INCREDIBLY wobbly. And it doesn't really stop there, either. During the final fight between him and Jack, his horns continued to move around a bit, which kinda makes the intimidating factor of his horns look rather silly and fake. Now again, I can't really blame Curry or the people in charge of the costuming, because I'm sure there was some issues trying to get those things to stay on his head during those sequences, but it is still very noticeable. And you're probably bound to notice the horns looking wobbly as well, if you ever get around to watching this thing. But setting aside the questionable horns, the costuming looks great. Just about everybody here looks like they came out of a fantasy setting. Our sets here are pretty good, too. So, most of the special effects and costuming look great, save for maybe the horns on Tim Curry's head.

Camerawork here is really good. I will also say that the cinematography, in certain shots, looks amazing. Mostly towards the end of the film, but it still looks really good. Lighting here is lit very well. Our sound-mix is competent. The music here, in terms of the score, is great. One thing I should mention is that the version of the movie I watched on DVD is the Director's Cut, which includes music from the late Jerry Goldsmith. And it fits the tone and atmosphere of the movie very well. I really liked what was here for the score. But then again, Goldsmith always knew how to make good music for whatever movie he had a part in. Whether it's something like a Western in "Rio Lobo" or using really good licensed music for "Looney Tunes: Back In Action", Goldsmith knew what he was doing, in terms of music. So yeah, the score here is great. I will also make mention that on a few occasions, the actress playing Princess Lily was also able to sing in this movie. And she does a pretty good job with her singing voice, so I can add that as a another positive to both music and acting.

So, with all that being said, can I recommend "Legend"? Um...man, uh...I'm gonna be honest, guys, this is probably one of the hardest recommendations I ever had to make for a movie. Because there is so much here that looks and sounds great, but the quality of the writing itself is so fucking basic, it almost hurts. Um.........OK. If you are a fan of fantasy movies, and you don't care how standard, or generic, it really is, then you're probably gonna end up loving this. Because again, I know a lot of people who are into fantasy movies, and they really enjoy this basic storyline, even if it's something that has been done time and again. However...if you are looking for something that is new, unique, or different for fantasy movies, then you're probably not gonna want to watch this. This movie offers nothing new or different for it's genre, and it just ends up being a standard, by the numbers, fantasy movie. Again, those people that are into that basic stuff are gonna love it. For others that want something different in their fantasy films, this movie is an automatic skip. As for myself, I really don't know if I would even want to watch this thing a second time. As I stated at the start of this review, I really wanted to like this movie. I really thought it was going to be something unique and awesome. Unfortunately, I think I may have set my expectations a little high on this one. And I guess that's what I get for doing something like that. Now...I'm gonna go watch a better fantasy movie. And I just mentioned it earlier, but I'm gonna watch my copy of "The Last Unicorn". That, to me, is still the best fantasy movie I have ever seen. So I'm gonna go do that, after I'm done putting this review together.

Anyway, guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all later. Peace.

Reaction & Review | Dr. Caligari

 

Welcome, one and all, to an all new Reaction & Review. Tonight, ladies and gentleman, I'm gonna be covering an erotic horror comedy from 1989. That movie is "Dr. Caligari".

I'm gonna be honest with you, guys, I've been wanting to watch this thing since I first discovered it on YouTube, probably, about a year and a half ago. And I've been wanting to find an opening for this thing on the schedule, however, other movies I've wanted to watch started to get in the way of that, so I had to keep pushing it back. And eventually the movie had gotten taken down. However, I thankfully bought a copy of this movie online quite a ways back, even before the movie had gotten taken off of YouTube. And after all this time, I finally get a chance to cover this movie tonight.

Now, from what I can tell you that I know about this movie is, honestly, not a whole lot. I've heard various things from the people who have watched this movie, saying that the movie's weird, it's strange, it's fucked up, and as much I hate using this word, it's trippy. So it kinda ranges from those words. Which probably isn't saying much, seeing as how they all sound similar to each other. But still, it makes me curious to see how much this movie lives up to those standards. I've also heard that this movie has a bit of a cult following. Which certainly raises the chances of this thing being good. I mean, people often considered "Killer Klowns from Outer Space" to be a cult classic, and I ended up loving that thing. So again, this movie has that chance.

The one thing I can tell you about this movie I do know is that this movie is kinda, sort of a sequel to a silent horror film from 1920 known as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". And this movie's main character, as shown on the front cover, is related to him in some way. Now, since I haven't seen "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari", any comparisons with this movie to that one is not going to play a factor here. In fact, I don't even know if this movie's gonna reference that movie in any way, but I'll find out when I fire up the movie.

I'm just hoping, above all else, that this is going to be good. Now, even though this movie does have a cult following, there is also the possibility that this movie might end up sucking hard, if it turns out that way. I'm really hoping that's not the case, but I won't find out unless I quit stalling and I actually watch this thing for myself. And I really want to watch this that badly. So, the only way I'm gonna find out if this thing is any good at all, is if I shut up, and I push play, and I'm gonna do that right now. So, without further ado, it's time to kick back, relax, and check out "Dr. Caligari".

1 minute later

Well, guys, I can already say that this opening music here is...kinda creepy. Mind you, the music is really good, but that creepiness factor is what really adds to it. I'm sorta digging it.

7 minutes later

You know, guys, the more I look at that doll baby's face, the more I'm getting a little bit uncomfortable as he's...very slowly humping this nude woman. Like seriously, that thing could be the stuff of nightmares! I just wanted to let you guys know.

6 minutes later

You know, it's weird. We're not even a quarter of the way in, and this movie has done something that I didn't think was possible. I kinda understand what's going on in this movie. And yet, at the same time, I am totally lost on what's happening here. Again, I didn't think that this was possible, but this movie's already accomplished that real quick. Holy shit...

5 minutes later

OK, this is a minor thing, but I kinda wish this movie would make up it's mind on how to pronounce Dr. Caligari's name. Because this older guy is pronouncing her name as if her last name was spelled "Gary" instead of "Gari". Mind you, the other people that are talking to him to do pronounce her name as "Gari" when saying her full name. It's just kinda bugging me a little bit, you know?

6 minutes later

So this weird, creepy dude is telling this story to Dr. Caligari that the girlfriend he killed, he cooked her in a stew pot. And he didn't bother to take off her dress while he was cooking her...? I don't know, it seems sorta weird that he would leave the dress on before he dropped her into the stew. Then again, I'm not in this weirdo's fucked up mind, so hey, what do I know?

5 minutes later

You know, I never thought I'd say this, guys, but this movie has, probably, the most tongue action I've ever seen. I don't think ANY movie I've seen has ever topped this much tongue action. And I don't think it ever will.

12 minutes later

Oh...so that's what happened to Eleanor's arm after if was horribly burned. I have no idea what the hell that thing's suppose to be for her arm, but I will say that it looks really fucked up and kinda nasty. I really wish I could describe it, but I can't. It just looks incredibly fucked up for words, you know?

18 minutes later

You know, guys, being that we're a majority into the film right now, I think I should probably mention this. The dialogue in this thing is so bizarre, yet...kinda interesting at the same time. It's hard to describe why, but I'll try to explain once the movie's done.

The Review

O...K...well, guys, that was "Dr. Caligari". Let me shut the movie off...OK. Wow...um...what do I even say about this? Well...I guess I should mention early on that this movie was known to be strange, weird, fucked up, and all that. And yeah, it totally lives up to all of those claims. But now I gotta figure out what to start with?

I guess, maybe, I should start with the writing. Since I just mentioned that this film is so strange and weird, I should probably state that if you go into this movie, and if you're expecting some sort of a deep plot, there's honestly not much of that here. Because while there is something resembling a plot here, it's not really something that you're gonna be focusing on. But let me try to explain what kind of a plot we're dealing with here. So, this guy named Les is married to a woman named Eleanor. And at one point, they were suppose to live happily ever after. At least, according to Les. But then somewhere along the way, his wife became incredibly obsessed with sex. So much so that it causes Les to send his wife to an insane asylum. Not just any insane asylum, but it's creatively known as "Dr. Caligari's Insane Asylum". I find this to be a bit odd, because I thought Les would take the more common sense approach and get his wife to a therapist of sorts, so that they can work out their issues in regards to sex. I don't know if it would've helped the situation any, but that's what I would've thought of doing first if my wife or girlfriend were obsessed with sex. However, that is just me. Now, as I just stated, Les sends Eleanor to this insane asylum. And from there, it's just a weird, fucked up, train ride that the movie's going to try to suck you into. Because the movie is just blooming in it's own creativity. Now I could totally imagine someone watching this, and they turned it off because it wasn't making a ton of sense. And I wouldn't blame you. Because the movie, like I said, doesn't really have much of a plot. Well, there is one other side to this. There are these two assistant doctors named Ramona and Adrian, and they believe that Dr. Caligari's experiments are going too far, and they try to convince the director to release her, to which he denies. So, even with their requests getting turned down, they gotta find a way to stop her themselves before her experiments go any further. However, and I'm gonna spoil this a bit, it doesn't really go anywhere. And it ends in a rather strange way that, I can't really describe it without going too much into spoilers. I could also mention this serum that Dr. Caligari uses, in which she can swap someone's brain fluid with other patients, and that also plays a factor towards the end. However, again, I can't really go too deep into that without having to spoil it. Because, you know what? Even though this movie doesn't have much of a plot, what is here that I mentioned does kinda work in it's own twisted way. Where if you could overlook the strangeness of this movie, you might find something here in terms of the writing that might keep you invested. Again, provided you can over look the sheer amount of weird bullshit that goes on in this movie.

Now, another thing I should mention is something that I brought up before starting the movie. Earlier, I mentioned that this movie was sort of a sequel to "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". And I wasn't sure if this movie was going to make any references to that movie or not. Well, they actually do mention a couple of things I can mention here. One thing is that our main character, Dr. Caligari, is the granddaughter of the original Dr. Caligari. And the movie's opening credits shows still images of shots from "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". I'm not gonna go any further into the references, because some of them do get mentioned later on, which would also tie into spoilers. Now even though I have never seen "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari", after watching this, I'm more than interested in checking that movie out, because I'm curious to see how this movie was able to play itself off as kinda, sort of, a sequel of sorts. But getting onto other things, I do have a few problems with this movie. As I stated earlier, the look and style of this movie is it's biggest blessing, but also it's biggest curse. Since this movie like's to be in it's own world with this insane asylum, it could also be a problem for those that are looking for more of a story here, rather than just be mesmerized by the sheer amount of insanity that goes on here. And since I stated that this movie is not really serious with it's plot, you're probably going to be turned off by this movie. Mainly because, this movie is just doing it's own thing. And I believe it knows what it wants it to be. Then again, I also have to consider the fact that this IS a B movie, after all. And in most cases, B movies never usually have serious plots anyways. And coming from someone that enjoys B movies, I was kinda expecting this thing to be weird and goofy anyways. However, I will admit that it also has a lesser focus on it's plot, not that I've stated that already, but still. And looking back on certain B movies that I covered for this series, I think of stuff such as "Killer Klowns from Outer Space", "Pro Wrestlers vs. Zombies", and "Chopping Mall", I noticed that those movies usually try to focus on it's plot, while also knowing that they're horror comedies at the same time. However, with this movie, not only is the plot a little less focused on, but it also doesn't really have a lot of comedy. In fact, for a horror comedy, I didn't really get much of a laugh out of this thing. However, if you are able to view this movie with a peculiar set of lens, then you'll probably find something here that is just fucking funny as shit, and you're probably going to get a laugh out of it. As for me, it didn't quite work as a horror comedy. However, at the same, I can't deny that I didn't get some enjoyment out of this movie. So, it's sort of a give and take situation here.

So overall, writing here is rather schizophrenic. It's certainly not the strongest with it's story, but it still has something here that fans of B movies are going to enjoy. So, what about acting? Oh boy, um...the acting is a very strange thing for me to talk about. Because it ranges from either being incredibly stilted, to being very hammy in some places. And in most cases, I would say that any movie that has stilted acting like this would be considered terrible. But...this movie is sorta stopping me from doing that. Because this kind of acting makes the film kinda lovably cheesy. And that's really the best way I can sum up the acting is that it's not great, but it actually makes the movie kinda fun to watch. Because every actor just seems to be in their roles, and they know what they're doing with it. Most of them are just playing the patients at the asylum, and they don't really have much to work with beyond that. Which is perfectly fine, because you're not expecting mountains of depth from insane asylum patients anyway. But anyway, the acting here is the kinda stilted dialogue that you might actually get a laugh out of. Because, like I said, it's the kinda cheesy, stilted acting that you're probably going to really like. Again, provided that you even like cheesy acting in the first place. As for me, I'm fine with cheesy acting, as long as it's not trying too hard to be overly cheesy. But regardless, the acting from everybody works good enough, and their delivery on these roles certainly establishes that.

I want to touch upon the sets, because this is where the movie truly shines. You see, as I made mention earlier, this entire movie is set within "Dr Caligari's Insane Asylum". And insane is an understatement. Because right from frame one, you are going to be sucked into the sheer amount of bizarre weirdness that this movie offers you. And for almost the first 10 minutes or so, there is no dialogue going on. It's Eleanor going through this weird shit as she's seeing this guy in a doll mask, as he's slowly humping either a corpse or a patient, it's not really quite clear there. And it just doesn't stop. The insane asylum is filled with shit like a wall that might be alive and has it's rather large tongue sticking out at Eleanor. And Eleanor, being the sex crazed maniac that she is, attempts to kiss it with her own tongue. I am not joking about that, and that is only the tip of this iceberg. We have props that look like they came out of a game show from either the 70's or 80's. While I'm on this subject, I may as well dig into special effects. Just about everything here, save for one exception, are practical effects. I'm talking about stuff such as blood effects, which there aren't much of anyway. There's also an effect where I mentioned that wall just a moment ago with the huge tongue. Well, as Eleanor was busy kissing and licking the tongue, the wall splooges out something that looks like it might've been either chopped vegetables or fruits, but I couldn't tell you why. My guess is that the wall might've caused an orgasm. But again, that's just a guess. Also, I never thought I'd get to say that a wall might've orgasmed. So yeah, that's...something new. Anyway, there's also one bit of digital effects involving electricity, and it looked rather cheap. But then again, this was all filmed on a low budget, so you have to make due with what you got. And seriously, this movie looks great with the sets that they worked with. Just about all of it is creative, and it seriously makes the movie shine very well with it's atmosphere. Makeup effects are also pretty good, as is the costuming.

Camerawork is pretty good. Lightning is mostly decent. Sound-mix is here mostly good, save for one scene. And it's during one scene right towards the beginning of the movie after the 10 minutes of no dialogue goes by. So, there's one scene where Eleanor is talking to somebody on this television. I don't know if it's suppose to be a warped and twisted version of her or what have you, but the woman that's talking on the television set has inaudible dialogue. Now you could make the argument that because the TV was filled with static, it was suppose to make her dialogue that way. However, I couldn't hear shit throughout almost her entire dialogue, right up until she started to come in clearer with her in what she was trying to say. Which is weird, because Eleanor was somehow able to understand what she was saying, yet I, as a viewer, wasn't. So, that was, like, the only issue I had with the sound-mix. However, in terms of everything else in regards to the sound-mix, it was fine. The music in this movie is very eerie and rather creepy at times. And it gives off that sense of weird and creepiness very well. So, the score here works rather well.

Ultimately, guys, can I recommend "Dr. Caligari"? I would say if you are fan of B movies, yes. This thing has a strange vibe to it that it can be worth viewing, at least, once. This thing, at least to me, is probably one of the weaker B movies I've seen. I'm not totally sure if I would end up watching it a second time. But I will also say that if you're looking something new and different, well shit, you're actually going to get a lot of that here. Now I can't guarantee that you'll end up liking it because it has that weird and bizarre look to it, but I still think it might be worth watching once. And I will also say, again, that this movie made me interested in watching "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari". I don't know if I'll cover it for this series, or I'll watch it on my own time, but I am rather interested in checking it out at some point. As for this movie...well, like I said, I don't know if it's something that I would watch a second time. And the reason why I say that is because if I do end up watching it again, all of that weird factor that I got out of watching this movie might not be as impactful as my first viewing of this movie. But I will consider whether or not I will check it out again at some point. For now, though, I'm kinda in the mood to watch another B movie. I think I'll go watch my copy of "Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D.". Because I need to relax my brain with something after watching this thing. So, I'm gonna go do that after I'm done putting this review together.

Anyway, guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all in the near future. Peace.

Reaction & Review | Spriggan

 

Welcome, one and all, to an all new Reaction & Review. Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I'm gonna be covering an animated film from 1998. That movie is "Spriggan".

Now, I have a bit of a story about how I got my hands on a copy of this movie. You see, about a year or so back, I was searching for anime subscription services. Now, when I say that, I'm not referring to any streaming services like Crunchyroll. I'm talking about physical stuff you get in mystery boxes. Because I use to be in that sorta thing years ago, until the fad for it died off and I stopped it altogether. Well, I was then thinking about seeing if there were any services that offered anime DVD's. And there was one I came across called Boxuchan. For those who don't know what Boxuchan is, they are a subscription service box where they sell you either anime DVD's or Blu-rays (your choice). And they send you the type of movies and series based on your tastes. For example, they have genres involving action, adventure, horror, comedy, musicals, magical girls, etc. They have a LOT of genres. And depending on your tastes, you will get a movie, series, and a bit of merchandise that's centered around your interests. For example, when I first got this service, the extra merchandise I got was a pack of Yu-Gi-Oh! cards. Which was pretty cool, even though I don't really play the trading card game anymore. And I should mention that nobody is going to get the exact same thing everyone else gets. As I said, it depends on your tastes in anime, and the plan you get along with it.

So, with all that in mind, what else did I get with this service? Well, I ended up getting a series called "Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit". Which was a series that I vaguely remembered watching on Adult Swim. And this was way back before they brought back Toonami. Long story short, I watched a few episodes of it, and it was incredibly dull. One thing I didn't remember about it was that it involved this kid, that the main character protects, that also possesses a water demon inside his body. I do not remember that happening at all when I originally watched the series on Adult Swim. However, it could be because the dialogue in that show was so boring that I probably never picked up on that fact. But anyway, I'm just blabbering on about a series that I didn't care about to begin with. So, I ended up getting that series on DVD. And the other thing I got was the main feature movie that they always put in their boxes. And the movie that I got was "Spriggan". I had never heard of this movie before, and when I read the plot on the back of the case, I was sold on it because it sounded rather cool.

Now, what I can tell you about the plot to this movie is that there is a treasure called Noah's Ark. And that there are two teams that are after it. One of them wants it to enslave the human race. The other wants to destroy this artifact. And it's a race to see who gets it first. Which sounds rather interesting, and I'm really hoping that the movie's gonna end up being good in the process. However, I could also see this movie end up sucking massive balls. Because I remembered covering "Death Trance" a couple of weeks ago, and it had a very similar premise, only instead of an artifact, it involved a coffin with indestructible power. And that movie had no plot or characters worth caring about. So, I could easily see this movie having the same problems as "Death Trace". I'm hoping that's not the case, though. And the only way I'm gonna find out how good or bad this movie could possibly be, is if I shut up, and I push play, and I'm gonna do that right now. So, without further ado, it's time to kick back, relax, and check out "Spriggan".

8 minutes later

Well, guys, this movie's just started. And already, we have our first death via a suicide bombing from a high school student. That's...certainly different. Not totally sure WHERE he got the bomb vest from, but still, at least we're off to an explosive start. And yes, that pun was totally intended.

12 minutes later

All right, well, you know what, guys? I am willing to say that the music in this movie, so far, has been pretty good. You guys can't hear it for obvious reasons, but I'm really digging the score in this movie. The story, so far, has been kinda slow right now, but I am still interested enough to keep watching and see where this thing goes.

19 minutes later

Well, guys, the good news here is that the movie's actually going to focus on Noah's Ark. Bad news? It took the movie almost 40 minutes to get to this point, in a movie that's only about an hour and a half long. The pacing on this thing is a...little bit glacial, I'm gonna be honest here.

16 minutes later

This is rather sad, guys. We just got done with an action scene, and somehow, I just couldn't bring myself to care about it. This movie is doing something that I didn't think was possible for an action movie, but the action scenes are actually taking away what little story is here. And mind you, the story here could be great, but the actions scenes are not giving it enough time to develop. And that's a damn shame. I'm hoping the next half hour or so is going to get better, but I fear that it's gonna be too little, too late.

18 minutes later

You know, it's really cool that we're finally getting a backstory on our main character Ominae. Unfortunately, I just feel like all of this comes in too little, too late. And that's a real shame, because this story is just boggled down by it's horrendous pacing. I know I'm beating a dead horse by this point, but it seriously is becoming more and more clearer with each passing moment, as this movie goes by, that the pacing is just KILLING this movie. And I honestly can't wait for it to end.

The Review

Well, guys, that was "Spriggan". Let me shut the movie off here...OK. Wow, that was...rather disappointing. I guess if my reactions are anything to go by, yeah...this movie was just a huge letdown.

I guess there's no other way to start this review than by talking about the writing. I want to start with pacing. I know that I've hinted at this before I got to this point, but the pacing in this movie is just awful. And it really has to do with the movie's action scenes. You see, guys, I've commented before in the past about how action movies don't really need a deep, complex story. I am not expecting that for a lot of action movies. But you see, your movie just can't consist of action. You need some kind of interesting story that's gonna draw the viewer in. And we do have that here involving this artifact about Noah's Ark that's able to control the weather, and the person that controls it will be able to play God with it. Which again, sounds really cool. Now since this is an action movie, you also want to balance your story and action scenes enough to where you can get something out of both of them. In fact, as I was reading the back of the DVD case before I started up the movie, I noticed a blurb on the top of it. Well technically, there's 2 blurbs, but the second one below it is the more important one. I'm gonna read you the first sentence, which comes from E! Online. It says that it's a compelling mix of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and James Bond. Now, while I haven't seen "Raiders of the Lost Ark", I have seen quite a bit of James Bond. In fact, I'm gonna replace "Raiders of the Lost Ark" with Lupin the 3rd, since it's easier to make my comparison. Now, do you know what those two franchises are able to do that this movie doesn't? James Bond and Lupin the 3rd are able to balance their action scenes with their story. They're not just going gung-ho with their action scenes like a lot of plotless action movies like to do. They actually are able to tell really good stories, while also knowing how to balance out whatever story that they're trying to tell. This movie, however, relies a little too heavily on action. And that wouldn't be so bad, except most of these action scenes don't have any real meaning behind them. For example, there's this half-man, half robot general named Fattman, who is storming the Spriggan base, along with his soldiers. And we get hit with a plot point in which our main character, Ominae, knows him and says that he should've been dead. Now this plot point doesn't get answered until very late in the film where we get dumped with Ominae's backstory. And this doesn't really matter in the end, because, a bit of a spoiler here, Fattman gets killed by him shortly after Ominae finds out he's alive. And it really has no impact, because this is before we actually get to our main plot, which involves Noah's Ark.

I should note that the first 40 minutes of this movie could've been condensed to about 15, maybe 20, minutes tops. Because that's where the pacing issues really start. It starts off when one of Ominae's friends gets killed with a bomb vest attached to him, and a message that's written in blood on him saying that "Noah will rule all", or something to that effect. And then it leads Ominae to Istanbul, where we have a chase scene in which Ominae is on the run from the people that are after him. Now this chase scene is actually OK, because it gives you an idea of what our main character is able to do. But then after that ends, we get about a 3 minute montage of him traveling to the mountain where he needs to get to. And this montage serves no purpose in this movie, because it drags the movie down to a screeching halt. The only thing that kinda helps this montage is the music, which I'll get to in a bit. But then we get to the next scene, in which Ominae is climbing up the mountain to where he needs to get inside a base. And he's dodging security camera's on the mountain, until he's able to see the base. And he ends up getting shot at, because the people at the base thinks that he's an enemy. To which Ominae yells at them that it's him, in hopes that they'll stop shooting. Mind you, this entire scene was taking place during sundown. And then it cuts to nighttime, where Ominae's in handcuffs as he's being lead further on into the base until he gets stopped by a couple of scientists that he knows. I guess it was fucking pointless to show Ominae getting into the base on the mountain, because none of that served any real purpose in this film, other than to pad itself out for time. Like I said, you could've cut this entire scene of Ominae trying to get into the base on the mountain, and you wouldn't have missed a thing. And if that's not enough, like I mentioned earlier, the action scene I mentioned a moment ago where Fattman and his soldier try to invade the base also drags itself out, because there's no reason for any of this to happen. I guess it was meant to bring some sort of closure between Ominae and Fattman, but you really won't end up caring about it, because you don't know why these two have a grudge against each other until towards the end of the film when we're hit with Ominae's backstory. It's not until after ALL of that with the conflict of Fattman ends, where we finally get to our main plot involving Noah's Ark. And like I said, all of that takes up 40 minutes of a movie that's only an hour and a half long. Now, mind you, the second half of the movie is certainly an improvement, but it still suffers from pacing issues because it cuts back and forth between the two scientists, who lead our main villain, Colonel MacDougall, to where Noah's Ark is being held, to another action scene involving another half-human, half robot and another Spriggan named Jean. And much like a lot of things in this movie, the pacing is what also brings these scenes down quite a bit.

While I'm on the subject, I may as well get into the characters. Like I said, the only character who gets any real background is Yu Ominae. When you first see him in action in Istanbul, he's athletic, he's strong, and he's able to put up a good fight when cornered. But you don't really know much about him until we get towards the final act in which we're dumped with a backstory about Ominae that almost comes out of nowhere. And I would probably care about this, if we had some hint of it early on. And I'm not going to count the encounter he has with Fattman, because you didn't know shit about him until much later on. As for the other Spriggan, Jean, he has no real character in this movie, other than the fact that he's French, and he's fast... whoopie. And then we have our villain, Colonel MacDougall. He's this kid that's related to Ominae, in a matter of speaking. Again, this all ties into the backstory of Ominae, and it really shows why the character depth in this movie is incredibly wasted. Because you could've hinted at something involving our main character's backstory before the final act, but we really don't get much of that. The only thing we knew about him was that he was one of Spriggan's top operative's. But aside from that, not much else about him is known. Now, I know I've said time and again that you don't really need mountains of character depth in action movies, because those movies usually can get away with lack of character depth, but that doesn't mean that you should skip out on giving your viewers a reason to care about your characters. If you want an example of how not to do this, try and watch shit like "The Ninja Mission" and "The Russian Ninja", two movies made by Swedish filmmaker Mats Helge Olsson, who doesn't know how to write characters or a story that's worth caring for. Or if you want a recent example, like I mentioned in my review of "Death Trance" a couple of weeks ago, that movie had no actual plot and characters with no names to begin with. At the very least, this movie tries with a story that could've been amazing, and it actually gave a shit on naming their characters. But that's still not enough. If you decide to not give a reason to care about the characters until very late in the film, then it just comes across as rather hollow and empty. And by that point, it's just too little, too late. And you're not going to end up caring about any of these characters by the time the film's done. If they had, maybe, put some of this character development somewhere in the middle of the movie, then it would've helped the movie tremendously. Not totally sure if it would still help the pacing on the action scenes, but it still would've helped a lot. However, this is what we ended up getting, which is disappointing to say the least.

So, writing here is a massive disappointment. What about the acting? Well, I opted to watch the English dub of this movie, and, uh...I have a question about something. Now it might just be me that noticed this, but why are there so many characters in this movie that are whispering? I ask this, because about a third of the dialogue in this movie has characters whispering their lines, and I don't know why that is. Because it does sound like it was recorded in a normal booth. So why is it that I'm hearing whispering from a majority of these actors? Was it because they were either holding back from trying to overact their scenes? Was it because of the voice direction from whoever directed this English dub? Why is it like this? I don't know, but it was definitely noticeable, at least, to me. And it was rather distracting at times, because certain characters have this habit of sounding like they want to raise their voices, but they couldn't, because the actors were either told to do so, or maybe it was because that's how they naturally sound. Again, I have no idea. And I understand that this may sound like a trivial thing to most people, and they probably won't notice this, but it was something that bothered me quite a bit. As for the dub itself...it's OK, I guess. It's certainly not great, but it's nowhere near the worst dub I've ever heard. So, yeah, the dub is rather average. However, it probably would've been better if some of these actors didn't sound like they were holding back.

Animation in this thing is damn near great. The art style is great to look at. The color palettes are used very well. It really is a great-looking film. But I have to admit, the picture quality is a little bit sketchy at times. And it's mainly during one scene where our two scientists, and Colonel MacDougall, are at the core of Noah's Ark. Now, during all this, you can kinda notice the graininess on the character's faces whenever a shot is focused on them, and something tells me that this wasn't entirely a clean process when they put this movie out on DVD. Perhaps it might've been a technical hiccup on ADV Films end when they put this movie out on DVD, but it was kinda noticeable. However, the rest of the film looks great, and I didn't notice any graininess for any of the other scenes. CG also looks pretty good, especially for 1998. There was, maybe, one shot I noticed that looked rather questionable, and it's during the scene in Istanbul, when Ominae was on the run. And during one shot, it focused on this one guy who turned his head, and I couldn't tell you if it was done in CG or if it was rotoscoped. It was something I noticed, however, I doubt many other people will notice that, unless they went into this film like I did. Other than that, the 2D animation looks great, and I would even say it looks great even by today's standards.

Sound-mix here is mixed well. The music is also another positive that I will give this movie. It's mostly the score, but it's a really good score, and I would totally say that the music is what helps carry this movie a bit.

Ultimately, guys, am I able to recommend "Spriggan"? Um...God, I'm trying to think of a way to answer that. Well...if you can find this movie cheap somewhere, be it on DVD or Blu-ray, then sure. But I would only recommend it if it's, like, $5 or less. Anything above that is not really worth it. Personally, I would say you can find better action movies to watch. Stuff like I referenced earlier, such as the James Bond films, or any movies involving Lupin the 3rd. Granted, I've only seen two Lupin films, but still, I would say watch any of those. This film is just disappointing, overall. Like I said, we had a story here that should've been awesome. But the pacing is what ultimately kills this entire movie, and that's what hurts the most, because this movie should've been amazing. I really wanted to like this movie, but the glacial pacing is what stops me from keeping this movie entirely. Now, normally, I would end it here. However, I'm going to do something a little bit different. Seeing as how I got this movie from Boxuchan, I'm going to give them a shoutout. If you want to get your own Boxuchan, just head on over to their website that I'll leave a link to this description, and you can get your own box there. They have different plan options for boxes, and they also leave links for surveys in their descriptions. Remember to fill that out, so, that way, you can get whatever anime films and series that cater to your tastes. Some of it is a little bit pricey, but if you can look past that, then you'll definitely get a bang for your buck. Especially if you are a fan of anime. Now, while I will admit, that the film they sent me wasn't exactly great, I'm still not going to knock on this service, because I had never heard of "Spriggan". And I would've not known if it was worth watching, had Boxuchan not sent me a box. So, I want to give a thank you to Boxuchan for sending me this movie. And when I have the time and money, I'll definitely come back and give this service another try. Now...with all that being said, I kinda want to watch a better action film. And you know what? I think I'm gonna go and watch my copy of the first "National Treasure" movie, because it's been a while since I last watched it. So I'm gonna go and do that, after I'm done putting this review together.

Anyway, guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all later. Peace.

Reaction & Review | Arcade

 

Welcome, one and all, to an all new Reaction & Review. Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I'm gonna be covering a sci-fi horror movie from 1993. That movie is "Arcade".

Now, I stumbled upon this movie a couple of years ago on YouTube. And this was back when the movie was still up on YouTube before it got taken down. And when it was still up there, I was somewhat curious about the title, and I wanted to find out more about it. And upon doing the small amount of research on this thing, what I uncovered made me all the more interested in checking it out.

What I can tell you right off the bat is that this movie was put out by Full Moon Features, which is an indie film studio that is mostly known for putting out the "Puppet Master" series. While I'm on the subject of Full Moon, I noticed that I haven't covered a film from this studio since I reviewed "Tourist Trap"...which was way back in early November of 2020. So...it's been quite a while. I suppose the reason why I haven't covered a Full Moon film in that long period was because, as I just mentioned, the last film that I watched from them was "Tourist Trap". And since both that movie and "Zombies vs. Strippers" were so bad, I had to give myself a break from covering anymore of their films for a while. But tonight, I'm finally gonna break that long streak and cover this movie.

One other thing I call tell you about this movie are a few names of the cast that they advertise on the front cover. We have Peter Billingsley, who is the star of "A Christmas Story". We have Seth Green of "Robot Chicken" fame. And then we have Megan Ward, who is listed as the star of "They Live". About that last one...I'm going to assume they are talking about John Carpenter's "They Live", because when I checked this actress's filmography on IMDB and Wikipedia, I didn't see any mentions of her being in "They Live". Now maybe she was an extra in that movie that I wasn't made aware of, but I do not recall her name ever being associated with "They Live". Now, that's just a minor thing in the long run, but it was something that caught my eye, because I just don't remember her being in that movie at all.

But anyway, I'm just stalling at this point. I'm really hoping that this movie is going to be good. But I also have to be aware that I haven't found a good movie from Full Moon, outside of most of the "Puppet Master" movies. Well, save for "Curse of the Puppet Master" and "Puppet Master 8: The Legacy". Those movies sucked balls. I'm hoping that this movie is going to break that streak tonight. But the only way I'm gonna find out if this thing is any good at all, is if I shut up, and I push play, and I'm gonna do that right now. So, without further ado, it's time to kick back, relax, and check out "Arcade".

9 minutes later

All right, that has got to be one of the homeliest-looking video arcades I've ever seen. Guys, I have been to quite a few arcades and casinos in my time, but I don't recall any of them having this much blue lighting. It just looks rather off-putting to me. Just thought I should mention.

11 minutes later

Wait a second here. So, Alex went to check on Greg, only to find him missing. The only thing she found was the botched picture that he took with her with his camera. Mind you, he's only been playing the game, Arcade, for about, what, a minute? And when she asks the others where he's been, they think he just left because he got "bored". Wouldn't they have possibly seen him leave? Or better yet, if Greg had survived the game, he would've already came back to them to tell them about his experience. I'm sorry, guys, but it just seems a little bit weird to me that Alex didn't pick up on this first, when she found the picture, you know what I mean?

12 minutes later

So, after Alex told Nick to call their other friends, the phone goes off and says that they're all busy. And Nick, somehow, doesn't think that this is suspicious? Because, you know, after 3 attempted phone calls, and getting the exact same responses, that is in no way considered coincidental. I'm sorry, guys, but I would be rather concerned if I got nothing but busy responses after experiencing the Arcade game telling me that my boyfriend's soul was trapped in the game. But hey, maybe that's just me.

18 minutes later

So...hold on a fucking second here! So after getting all this information on how to beat Arcade from the programmer himself, and how exactly the game was even built, his advice to our main characters is to not play the game. What possessed John de Lancie's character in even hiring this guy to begin with?! If the game was so hard to beat, why not just do a recall of all the home versions of Arcade and terminate the game entirely? I understand that the idea of a recall would probably not matter at this point, seeing as how all of the people who've played it have pretty much died. But still, it would be something that I would at least consider.

17 minutes later

You know, guys, I think now is a good time to mention this as any. The CG for these Arcade worlds, along with the Screamer monster, looks pretty cool for something that was made in 1993. I will get more into this later, but I do think the special effects involving CG are pretty good for these standards. I will say that much.

The Review

Well, guys, that was "Arcade". And that was...certainly an interesting ending. Let me go ahead and shut this off...OK. Well, I think I should start by saying this. Earlier, I commented about how the last several movies I watched from Full Moon Features have not been exactly to my liking. Two of which, I covered for this series. And both of those movies were so bad that they ended up being on my worst movies I covered for 2020. And I wasn't sure if I was going to find a decent film from Full Moon, that isn't tied with the "Puppet Master" series. Well, after almost two years, I believe I have found the movie that actually ends that losing streak. "Arcade" certainly towers over bullshit like "Tourist Trap", "Zombies vs. Strippers", and "Hell Asylum". Now, mind you, this film does have it's problems, but I will say that they are mostly minor compared to the problems I found in all those other movies.

So, with that said, let's get into the writing. I will say that the concept is certainly really cool. There's this arcade game simply known as...well, Arcade. Granted, the name is incredibly generic, but that is just a minor thing. So, the game itself is sorta unique. Basically, the game rules are that there are seven levels. And with each level, you have to find these green keys on each level with a given time limit. And with each level that you pass, the time in which you need to complete it gets smaller and smaller. And the game gets progressively harder as well, obviously. And basically, Arcade itself is alive and that it pretty much communicates with the people that plays it. And according to Difford, which is John de Lancie's character in this movie, with each player that fails to complete the game, Arcade itself changes depending on how the player themselves played the game. However, since we're dealing with an AI that is "alive", it pretty much takes the players souls whenever the Screamer catches up to them if they're not fast enough to complete the level. Now, I know people who are into anime will probably hate me when I make this comparison, but I want you to imagine "Sword Art Online", with the only differences that you don't have the time to complete a level and you are trapped into the game world if you lose. Now, I did say that the people who played the game were pretty much dead, however, I kinda learned later on that it wasn't really the case. Plus also, another difference between this and SAO is that, if you die in SAO, you die for real. Again, that's not really the case for this movie. It's just that they are trapped in the Arcade game until someone beats it. And for those that are wondering, I'm basing this comparison off the first season of "Sword Art Online". I know in later seasons it changes, but that's neither here nor there. So anyway, the concept here is pretty cool. At least, when it comes to how the game of Arcade is played. And to be honest, I would actually see this kinda game being played in real life. Granted, it would obviously be fine-tuned and the game wouldn't take your soul if you lost. However, I would still imagine that this game could be a decent hit, seeing as how it uses virtual reality and that some people still use it. Granted, I'm one of those people that think VR games are a pointless fad, however, if this game did somehow make it to where you didn't need to use stupid VR goggles in order to play it, then I still think it would be a decent hit. However, that's just me theorizing about bullshit that probably isn't going to happen. But still, I felt like I wanted to mention that.

Now, with all that being said, I do have one problem when it comes to this movie's writing. And that's how the game was made. Now, I'm gonna try not to tread too deeply into spoilers here, because I don't want to spoil this movie for you guys. So at one point, Alex and Nick are at the company that made the Arcade game after their friends have disappeared from playing the game. And they end up getting to meet the game's programmer. And rather than go for the direct approach and ask about the game's questionable development, they ask about the game's secrets, such as how to beat it and what to do. To which, the programmer does do this. However, he doesn't reveal everything about it, until Nick brings it up and asks it himself. Basically, Arcade, the boss of the entire game, was built using a dead kid's brain cells. I shit you not, guys, that is what he says. He says that the company did this so that the game's boss could become, well...more realistic when communicating with the players. Instead, it pretty much acts on it's own and is making the game much more deadlier than usual. Now, I could ask a ton of questions about this. The most obvious one being how the hell do you use someone's brain cells for the development of your virtual reality game? I would love an answer for that question, because that just floors me on how asinine that idea sounds. Furthermore, if this programmer knew that the game was going to be dangerous, why didn't the company just do a recall of the home versions of the Arcade game? Because then, you could avoid a ton of lawsuits from parents and others that their kids are disappearing because this game is making them disappear, almost without a trace. While I'm on that subject, Alex, at one point, calls Greg's mother to see if he had come home. And she says that he hasn't. By the tone of her voice, it doesn't sound like she's worried at all that Greg hasn't come home, especially considering that Alex tries to call him at 12:30 in the morning. And when Alex goes to Nick's house to try and call their other friends, they don't get any other answer then that their phones are busy. Don't their friends have parents of their own? Why didn't Alex or Nick try to contact them and ask to see if their friends are at home? Unless if they have the same singular phone number, then it's possible that they could've gotten a hold of any of the parents. Then again...thinking about it now, I guess that wouldn't be possible, seeing as how this movie came out in 1993, and cell phones weren't really a thing back then, so I guess that kinda answers my own questions. But still, it is something that I think would be worth asking about.

So, beyond all of that, the writing here is still decent. The only thing that might hold this thing back for you is that if you do think about those issues for too long, then you might think that this movie sucks. However, if you can ignore those minor problems, then the movie is still pretty good. And really, it's not going to be a huge issue in the end, because the movie is still going to keep you interested. And it does a good enough job to where you can follow where the story is going. Our characters are, admittedly, not the most developed. Like, the only two that I can think of right at the top of my head are Alex and Nick. Nick really is just kind of there, and Alex has issues at home. And in Alex's case, her mother killed herself last year, and her dad is a depressed drunk that doesn't care about her. And that's kinda it for the dad, because he only appears in one scene, and that's it. I kinda wish we got more out of it, but, oh well, the movie does still a decent enough job in making the viewers care about our main character. And that's really the best I could ask for.

Now, with all that said, I may as well just jump straight into acting. The acting here is pretty good. There was one actor, in particular, I was curious about. And it wasn't any of the actors I mentioned at the beginning of all this. The one actor I'm talking about is John de Lancie. For those who don't know, John de Lancie was mostly known for playing the character of Q from "Star Trek: The Next Generation". And in case you're wondering, he plays the gaming company's CEO, who we also see at the beginning of the movie as he showcases the Arcade game to the people at Dante's Inferno. Now I will say that his performance in this movie, while decent, is not all that memorable. He's only in the movie for about 5-10 minutes total, and that's about it. Which is a bit disappointing in retrospect, however, I would also be foolish in trying to compare his performance here with his character from "Star Trek: The Next Generation". Because obviously, there is no comparison to be had. But I will say that what little time he spends in this movie is still pretty good. And as for the rest of the cast, most of them turn in pretty good showings. Even the ones that don't really get a lot of screen time, barring John de Lancie, still turn in decent showings. So, I can say that the acting here is good, but none of it is great.

Now let's get into the special effects. For the practical effects, the only thing I can mention is blood effects. Which there aren't really a whole lot of in this movie, but what is here is pretty good. But let's get to the meat of the special effects by talking about CG. This movie has a lot of CG, mainly for the Arcade virtual reality game. And the CG for a lot of things here such as the Screamer, the face of the Arcade boss, and the gaming worlds for each level. Some of these levels are provided with blue screens/green screens (whatever you prefer) as the characters are there in front of them. And the blue screens on these worlds look pretty good. You can kinda see some of the blurs when the camera is zoomed in on the characters, but it's not really that noticeable unless if you were actively looking for them. And, well, I did. So you just have to take it for what it's worth. Now, I should make mention that since this movie came out in 1993, I have to view this thing by 1993 standards. And by those standards, the special effects involving CG and blue screens look pretty damn good. Now obviously, if I were dumb enough to compare the special effects by today standards, I would say that they look cheap and dated as shit. However, as I just said, you have to be a complete fool to try and compare this movie's special effects by today's standards. So yeah, the special effects are here pretty good, especially for the standards of 1993.

Camerawork here is pretty good. Lighting is mostly good, save for one scene. And that's when our characters first enter the video arcade known as Dante's Inferno. When they first enter this place, the entire room is almost lit with bright blue, and it really pales in comparison with the darkness, because you really can't see much of anything when the camera is trying to get a shot of our characters inside the video arcade. I have no idea why this is. I'm going to take a guess here and say that maybe it's because some of the arcade's are giving off a bright flash that, for whatever reason, it gives off a blue lighting. I really have no idea, but that whole scene of them when they first enter the video arcade just comes off as overly lit, thanks to the bright blue lighting. Sound-mix is mostly good, save for one scene, again. And it happens right around at the beginning of the movie when Alex and her friends first get together. And the sound quality during that whole scene is horrible. Because there is so much background noise that I could barely hear what the characters were saying at times. It probably would've helped if the actors tried to loop in their dialogue, so that way we didn't have to deal with the unnecessary sound that almost drowned out their dialogue. Beyond that though, sound-mix is fine throughout most of the entire film. Music, I couldn't really tell you a single memorable song in the movie, and the score is just there to exist. Mind you, I wouldn't really call the score bad, but it's also something that you're not going to remember this movie for.

So, when all is said and done, am I able to recommend "Arcade"? Yes, I mostly can. Provided, of course, you are into B movies, and you're able to overlook the minor problems this movie has when it comes to the writing. If you're not into B movies, then there's obviously no way in hell I can recommend it. However, if you're looking for something that's kinda, sorta different, especially when it comes to sci-fi horror movies, then go ahead check it out. And if you're into Full Moon films, then I can almost instantly recommend it. Now, mind you, this thing is nowhere near as good as most of the "Puppet Master" films, but I will say it is better than the two films I mentioned before I started up the movie. And as a standalone Full Moon film, it's probably one of the best. Now again, I'm basing this off the few movies I've seen from Full Moon that are just standalone films. Such as the ones I mentioned earlier, like "Tourist Trap" and "Zombies vs. Strippers". And I was rather skeptical going into this movie, because I bought it off a Valentine's Day sale that Full Moon was advertising last year on their website, and I bought it for around, maybe, $13. And I can officially say that this was most certainly worth the $13 I spent to buy this. This movie was pretty good, and I'm definitely going to be holding onto this movie for my DVD collection. Now...I'm kinda in the mood to watch another sci-fi film, and I think I'm gonna go watch my copy of "Promare". It's been a couple of years since I last watched it for this series, so I think I'm gonna go do that after I'm done putting this review together.

Anyway, guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all later. Peace.