There is so much that can said bad about this film that it could take up a whole novel and to which many other people have already spoken and written much about but is there any good to this Uwe Boll film? You damn right there is.
Writer/producer/director Uwe Boll is this generations Roger Corman and despite the growing animosity towards this man I continue to go to the multiplex to watch his films. I saw HOUSE OF THE DEAD, BLOODRAYNE, and this film at the multiplex knowing before hand that they wouldn’t be any good, so, why did I go to see them? Well, like many audience goers I like to be not only entertained but mentally and psychologically taken on a roller coaster ride. Such films as THE EXORCIST, ROSEMARY’S BABY, ALIEN, David Cronenberg’s THE FLY, and John Carpenter’s THE THING to spring mind which are just great horror films no matter how you look at them, but close to my heart are also THE EVIL DEAD 2, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, HORROR EXPRESS, CARNIVAL OF SOULS, DEATH RACE 2000, and FRIDAY THE 13th; all of which are mindless, entertaining, horror film fun. Are these last few films “good”? By no means not in the classic since of the word but they are “cult classics” and films you can just watch over and over and over again; I love THE EXORCIST but I don’t know if I can watch it over and over and over again. Can you?
Boll has made it his business to make films that may not always make any sense but entertain nevertheless. Not all Corman’s films made sense – THE TERROR comes to mind, but they were entertaining and continue to entertain and be loved even to this day. Who didn’t have fun watching a bunch of zombies be annihilated at the end of HOUSE OF THE DEAD or love watching Michelle Rodriguez get killed in BLOODRAYNE? I particularly liked ALONE IN THE DARK because it gave Christian Slater another staring role in which to create havoc and have fun (i.e. KUFFS or HEATHERS or even PUMP UP THE VOLUME). Hundreds of alien creatures killing military personnel was actually one of my favorite highlights and Stephen Dorff over acting his ass off and thinking he’s in charge brought to heart memories of his character in the first BLADE film. Although everyone criticized Tara Reid’s performance in the film I hate to admit that she’s extremely attractive and in these types of films the hero needs an attractive co-star; this is one of the reasons why a female character was included in most sci-fi and horror films of the ‘50s and ‘60s just prior to the slasher boom of the ‘80s (in which female characters became the leading character).
Boll continues to churn out these types of films – i.e. BLOODRAYNE 2, SEED, POSTAL, ALONE IN THE DARK 2, and countless others, and they continue to pander to the lowest common denominator but people continue to go see his films. The fun of seeing a Boll film is knowing that he isn’t trying to achieve high art but rather create the best low-brow Roger Corman knock-off that entertains and never become predictable (because the plots usually don’t always make a hell of a lot of sense) and which has some of the best over-the-hill actors still working in the business.
I’m a huge Corman fan and as long as Boll continues to entertain and create that nostalgic feeling from those old double-bill drive-in classics (albeit on a bigger budget) then I’ll continue to go see his films. Knowing, of course, before hand that I’m not waiting for him to try and achieve some sense of high art.
Writer/producer/director Uwe Boll is this generations Roger Corman and despite the growing animosity towards this man I continue to go to the multiplex to watch his films. I saw HOUSE OF THE DEAD, BLOODRAYNE, and this film at the multiplex knowing before hand that they wouldn’t be any good, so, why did I go to see them? Well, like many audience goers I like to be not only entertained but mentally and psychologically taken on a roller coaster ride. Such films as THE EXORCIST, ROSEMARY’S BABY, ALIEN, David Cronenberg’s THE FLY, and John Carpenter’s THE THING to spring mind which are just great horror films no matter how you look at them, but close to my heart are also THE EVIL DEAD 2, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, HORROR EXPRESS, CARNIVAL OF SOULS, DEATH RACE 2000, and FRIDAY THE 13th; all of which are mindless, entertaining, horror film fun. Are these last few films “good”? By no means not in the classic since of the word but they are “cult classics” and films you can just watch over and over and over again; I love THE EXORCIST but I don’t know if I can watch it over and over and over again. Can you?
Boll has made it his business to make films that may not always make any sense but entertain nevertheless. Not all Corman’s films made sense – THE TERROR comes to mind, but they were entertaining and continue to entertain and be loved even to this day. Who didn’t have fun watching a bunch of zombies be annihilated at the end of HOUSE OF THE DEAD or love watching Michelle Rodriguez get killed in BLOODRAYNE? I particularly liked ALONE IN THE DARK because it gave Christian Slater another staring role in which to create havoc and have fun (i.e. KUFFS or HEATHERS or even PUMP UP THE VOLUME). Hundreds of alien creatures killing military personnel was actually one of my favorite highlights and Stephen Dorff over acting his ass off and thinking he’s in charge brought to heart memories of his character in the first BLADE film. Although everyone criticized Tara Reid’s performance in the film I hate to admit that she’s extremely attractive and in these types of films the hero needs an attractive co-star; this is one of the reasons why a female character was included in most sci-fi and horror films of the ‘50s and ‘60s just prior to the slasher boom of the ‘80s (in which female characters became the leading character).
Boll continues to churn out these types of films – i.e. BLOODRAYNE 2, SEED, POSTAL, ALONE IN THE DARK 2, and countless others, and they continue to pander to the lowest common denominator but people continue to go see his films. The fun of seeing a Boll film is knowing that he isn’t trying to achieve high art but rather create the best low-brow Roger Corman knock-off that entertains and never become predictable (because the plots usually don’t always make a hell of a lot of sense) and which has some of the best over-the-hill actors still working in the business.
I’m a huge Corman fan and as long as Boll continues to entertain and create that nostalgic feeling from those old double-bill drive-in classics (albeit on a bigger budget) then I’ll continue to go see his films. Knowing, of course, before hand that I’m not waiting for him to try and achieve some sense of high art.
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