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Reviews
Tunnel Rats (2008)
A blunt, brutal and uncompromising film about the horrors of the Vietnam War.
When controversial German director Uwe Boll (HOUSE OF THE DEAD) first announced that he wanted to shoot an absolutely uncompromising, blunt and brutal movie about the cruelties of the Vietnam War, not just a few critics shook their heads in disbelief and predicted a major failure on all levels as they just couldn't imagine that infamous filmmaker, who once knocked out four internet bashers in a boxing challenge, to tackle such a serious subject with the needed amount of tactfulness and sincerity. And I gotta admit that even though I'm quite a huge fan of Uwe Boll's work, I personally wasn't 100% sure either what to expect from a project like this...
But now that I finally got my hands on a DVD of said film and ultimately got to see TUNNEL RATS (I missed the flick's short theatrical run here in Germany), I can say with a clear conscience that all those badmouths were once again a bit too fast with their criticism and concerns, cause apparently TUNNEL RATS turned out to be a pretty neat and well-done war movie, whose intensity and brutality will not leave you cold.
The film, which is set in the jungle of Cu Chi in 1968, tells the tragic story of a group of young American soldiers lead by the hard-boiled Sgt. Hollowborn (Michael Pare) who get orders to explore and secure a complex tunnel system which the Vietcong use to move through the jungle without being heard or seen. As soon the GIs step down into the dark and narrow corridors, however, they gotta learn the hard way that their enemy is way more accustomed to the unusual surroundings and skilled in the antics of guerrilla warfare than they are and hence it doesn't take long until one GI after the other has to face a merciless death and the defeat of the whole platoon seems almost inevitable
In an early interview, Uwe Boll once said that one of his main intents for TUNNEL RATS was to show the absurdity and senselessness of war.
Those guys who fight for their country with guns in their hands are all young, vital and full of hopes, dreams and ambitions. They got their whole lives ahead of them, but earlier than they've bargained for, they have to realize that in a game like this there's only losers but no winners. And when they're left to die all on their own a thousand miles away from home, they don't feel like heroes at all and pride and glory are about the last things that they think of
The whole pointlessness of war is a constant and reoccurring theme in TUNNEL RATS and just like war itself ain't exactly fun and enjoyment, this film is also far from being your typical good time bubblegum blockbuster
TUNNEL RATS is very slow-paced, very raw, very dirty, very brutal, very pessimistic
and very honest. It surely lacks the epic proportions of "big" war movies such as PLATOON, APOCALYPSE NOW and FULL METAL JACKET, but it makes up for this with sheer intensity and a great dose of suspense; the latter being mainly the product of Uwe Boll making really good use of the perilous environment throughout the whole course of the movie. No matter whether the GIs are marching through the thick green hell of the jungle or crawling through the claustrophobic constriction of the tunnels, you can't help but feel a constant uneasiness and uncomfortableness, which ultimately finds its climax in a devastating and truly shattering finale that you won't soon forget.
Being more of light-hearted kind of guy, I have to say that I personally didn't enjoy TUNNEL RATS as much as I enjoyed Uwe Boll's action-packed, over-the-top no-brainers such as HOUSE OF THE DEAD, BLOODRAYNE and IN THE NAME OF THE KING, but this doesn't change the fact at all that TUNNEL RATS is still one of Uwe's most atmospheric and coherent films so far and definitely worth watching for all fans of unsparing war movies such as JOHN RAMBO and Co.
Far Cry (2008)
An over-the-top action feast in the tradition of vintage classics like "Universal Soldier", "Invasion USA" and "Commando".
Germany's most notorious director, Dr. Uwe Boll, has stricken again and just unleashed his next action-packed adaptation of a popular video game, namely Ubisoft's best selling ego shooter "Far Cry". And, of course, a lot of self proclaimed preservers of good taste will now scream bloody murder once again and ask themselves the same old questions, namely why in god's name is the "Ed Wood of the 21. century" still allowed to make movies after all the atrocities he committed in the past and why couldn't he have chosen a game that's at least a little less popular and well respected than the legendary "Far Cry".
I, however, have stopped to listen to the complaints of the naysayers long ago, cause not only have I more or less enjoyed almost all films that Boll directed since his infamous first video game adaptation "House Of The Dead" in 2003, but also do I believe that even those flicks, which I personally do not hold in the highest esteem, like "Alone In The Dark" or "Bloodrayne II: Deliverance", are still quite a bit better than the bashers say they are.
Anyway. As a fan of most of the eccentric director's work, I personally couldn't wait for his new action smasher "Far Cry" to hit the silver screens here in Germany on October 2nd, 2008. Of course I went to see it on the opening day and when me and my pals arrived at the cinema for the midnight screening of "Far Cry", we opened a bottle of beer right away and prepared ourselves for a little more than 90 action-packed minutes full of explosions, car chases, gun fights, punch-ups, stunts and even more explosions.
And, you gotta believe me, "Far Cry" did indeed live up to all of my expectations. It's of course not up there with the big summer blockbusters like "The Dark Knight" or "Iron Man", but it's nevertheless a helluva lot of fun from start to finish. If you're lookin' for a fast-paced, tongue-in-the-cheek no-brainer in the tradition of vintage b-movie classics such as Van Damme's "Universal Soldier", Chuck Norris' "Invasion USA" or Arnie's "Commando", "Far Cry" is definitely the right film for you to watch.
If the cuts had been a bit slower during the action sequences and if the camera had been a bit less shaky during the fight scenes, I would almost have believed that I'm watching a cheesy cult flick from the past and not a movie that's been shot in 2007. Except for a few minor reservations, Uwe Boll has indeed succeeded in combining the special charm of the action flicks of the 80s with modern techniques, spectacular effects and an up-to-date look.
Sure, just like the afore-mentioned classics, "Far Cry" does also not really have a profound story, deep characters and clever dialogues, but then again, I really doubt that anyone in his right mind would expect a campy flick like this to come up with any of these things. If you're going to watch "Far Cry" in cinema or rent it on DVD, you wanna see lots and lots of stunts, fights and explosions and the film does certainly not fall short on any of 'em.
You get a see spectacular pursuits by car, speedboat and foot as well as lots of jeeps and helicopters being blown to pieces, soldiers being beaten up or shot to death and tons of other cool effects and stunts.
When the former elite soldier Jack Carver (Til Schweiger) and the ambitious reporter Valerie Cardinal (Emmanuelle Vaugier) set foot on a secluded island where the mad scientist Dr. Krieger (Udo Kier) is working on the creation of an army of genetically engineered super-soldiers, all hell breaks loose and bullets and fists are about to cut the air at minute intervals.
In Dr. Krieger's secret labs the laws of physics and gravity seem to be no longer valid and hence we get to see a lot of cool and totally over-the-top action sequences that make us laugh and giggle almost as much as the corny dialogues and (unintentionally) funny incidents (you have to see the hilarious build-up to Jack's and Valerie's love scene, for example).
The only things I didn't really like about "Far Cry", apart from the afore-mentioned fast cuts and shaky camera work during the fight scenes, are the fact that throughout the whole movie hardly any blood squirts out of the wounds when people get shot and the annoying character of Chris Coppola. He plays the sniveling cook Emilio, who's unfunny jokes and constant complaints about his hurting back make him quite a pain in the ass whenever he is on screen.
But these are only minor points of criticism and all in all I really enjoyed "Far Cry" for it's over-the-top action sequences, vintage b-movie charm and tongue-in-the-cheek humor. Neither the film itself nor the stars, like Til Schweiger and Udo Kier who both deliver really cool performances, take themselves too seriously - a point that really adds to the overall enjoyment of the flick.
To cut a long story short, I'd finally like to recommend Uwe Boll's "Far Cry" to all those of you who are still into the old action hits of the past. If you still enjoy your vintage tapes of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren, Michael Dudikoff & Co every once in a while, there's a good chance you might enjoy "Far Cry" quite a bit as well. Check it out and give it a fair chance... it's really a kick ass movie from start to finish and a helluva lot of fun to watch!!
Shock-O-Rama (2005)
A highly entertaining ride with the b-movie roller-coaster.
Ever since I won a copy of the haunted house shocker "Drainiac" about two months ago, I consider myself a fan of the New Hampshire based cult filmmaker Brett Piper.
And since "Drainiac" was not enough to quench my hunger for spectacular low budget horror, I didn't hesitate to send a couple of bucks to Shock-O-Rama/EI Cinema to order Brett Piper's flicks "Shock-O-Rama" and "Bacterium" on DVD. And since I was especially excited to see "Shock-O-Rama"which Brett Piper himself had already introduced to me as his best movie so farI put the disc in the player right after I got it. And what shall I say, after I've been watching "Shock-O-Rama" for hardly more than a few minutes, it already appeared to me that this flick would indeed turn out to be a highly entertaining horror comedy with real cult potential.
Just like classics such as "Creepshow" or "Tales From The Crypt", "Shock-O-Rama" is also divided into three individual episodes, that are tied together by a funny, tongue-in-the-cheek background story. In the first episode called "Mecharachnia", a group of tiny little aliens shipwrecks on a run-down junkyard and terrorizes the macho yard keeper Jedd Callahan and his bitchy ex-wife Linda. Things get even worse when the uninvited guests from outer space build a giant killer robot out of scratch metal overnight and henceforth try to blow the quarrelsome ex-couple to pieces.
In "Zombie This" we'll then get to see scream queen Rebecca Raven (played by Misty Mundae) being attacked by a bloodthirsty zombie, who has just risen from the grave and now wants to feast on the sexy actress' soft and tasty flesh. At first it doesn't look too good for Mrs. Raven, but then she finds a chainsaw in an old tool shed and all of a sudden the situation takes an unexpected turn and now it's the zombie who's gotta run for his rotten life.
And last but not least there's also an episode called "Lonely Are The Brain". This freaky and visually very appealing sequence is about a giant brain from the future, which controls the naughty dreams and sexual desires of a whole bunch of scantly clad hotties, who henceforth find themselves right in the middle of the weirdest fantasy scenarios. But be aware, what might look like the kinky product of a naughty girl's imagination at first, may turn into a bloody nightmare just a couple of moments later...
As a devoted b-movie maniac you will most likely have realized by now, that there's hardly a horror- and science fiction cliché which Brett Piper does not use in "Shock-O-Rama". From start to finish, this flick is nothing but a wonderful homage to the long forgotten monster movies of the past, especially the drive-in classics of the 50s and 60s.
To keep "Shock-O-Rama" in proper old-school style, Brett Piper has almost completely abstained from using CGI and instead unleashed a true feast of cool, handmade effects. Throughout the course of this movie you'll find tons of awesome stop motion monsters, latex masks, horror makeups and miniatures, as well as beautiful sets and locations occupied by hilariously over-the-top characters, who deliver one funny line after the other... and, as the icing on the cake, "Shock-O-Rama" does also offer lots and lots of bloodshed and nudity for our greedy 'lil eyeballs to behold.
To keep a long story short: "Shock-O-Rama" is a wild, colorful and highly entertaining ride with the b-movie roller-coaster, which every scifi-, horror- and cult film fan will surely enjoy a lot. Fans of trash icons such as Roger Corman, Frank Hennenlotter and Lloyd Kaufman will definitely get their money's worth with this DVD, especially since not only the film itself, but also the package with lots of cool specials such as interviews, behind-the-scenes footage and an informative audio commentary do hardly leave anything to be desired.