Indie Game: The Movie
Plot: Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky examine the creation and distribution if independent games in today’s world. They interview and follow Jonathan Blow (“Braid”), Phil Fish (“Fez”) and Edmund McMillen & Tommy Refenes (“Super Meat Boy”) as they create their games and deal with the trials and tribulations at hand.
Review: Remember awhile back when I reviewed “PressPausePlay” and I complained it focused mainly on the music side of the independent world? You’d think going into “Indie Game: The Movie”, I’d have the same complaint, right? Wrong! Pajot and Swirsky tell you firsthand what they’re focusing their attention on.
David Dworsky and Victor Kohler made it seem they covering all areas, not just the music scene. Attach this film to that one and maybe I’d appreciate Dworsky and Kohler’s film more.
Actually, I’d probably feel the same way about “PressPausePlay”. The reason “Indie Game: The Movie” works so well is because it dives into the artists’ passion and mindframe, as opposed to simply discussing the differences between the studio heavyweights and the independent underdogs. You grow to care about the people involved, making their battle all the more enriching. You may find it hard to completely sympathize with Blow and Fish, as the former is a bit egotistical (he spends a good chunk of the film complaining about positive reviews of his game) and the latter can come across as a jerk (though I feel he had a right to be). McMillen and Refenes balance this out as being two of the nicest and heartwarming men I’ve ever seen interviewed! Tommy can change some people off guard with his depression and woes, but Edmund is so uplifting and cheerful that you can’t help but root for him.
Pajot and Swirsky do a tremendous job of editing the three stories together into a cohesive documentary. Each one plays out at the same time, bouncing from one creator to the next. The creators of “Super Meat Boy” are the most enjoyable to watch given their charm and uplifting story. Blow and Fish may be harder to stomach, but that’s the point. Fish especially has gone through so many obstacles (his game has been in production for over four years and he’s dealt with breakups both romantically and in business) that the viewer may feel a punch in the gut. It’s an ingenious way of playing with the viewer’s emotions while injecting them with new information. More documentaries need to be like this!
There are a few times where “Indie Game: The Movie” drags. They come mostly near the backend, where some of the suspense being built up falters. Jonathan Blow seemingly becomes an afterthought after awhile, though that may have been for the better. McMillen and Refenes seemingly get the most screen time, which is a plus and a minus. A plus because their story if the most engaging; a minus because Blow and Fish’s seem weaker in comparison. That’s the only true fault this film has going against it. That is a plus more than it is a minus.
Final Rating: B+
The Babymakers
Plot: Tommy (Paul Schneider) and Audrey (Olivia Munn) are trying to have a baby. As it turns out, Tommy’s sperm count is too low. He finds this unbelievable, as he donated sperm years ago to pay for his engagement ring. Recounting this gives him an idea; rob the sperm bank to obtain his final sample and impregnate his wife.
Review: It surprised me while watching “The Babymakers” that Jay Chandrasekhar and the Broken Lizard troupe were responsible for the very funny “Super Troopers” and “Beerfest” films. If they could churn out those comedy hits, how could they fail so badly with this? Then I noticed that the writers responsible are Peter Gaulke and Gerry Swallow, who wrote “Black Knight”, “Say It Isn’t So” and “Ice Age: The Meltdown” (I’m surprised by that last one, too).
This means I can solely blame those two, right? Wrong! Chandrasekhar and company may not have written “The Babymakers”, but they certainly directed and starred in it. They also brought along Paul Schneider and Olivia Munn, two actors devoid of chemistry or charm, as well as a few of their friends. The only casting choice I liked was Aisha Tyler, who gets very minimal screen time. They had to make room for insensitive and lame jokes somewhere.
I was set on coming into this review and complaining about the wide array of racist, homophobic, sexist (to both parties) and vile jokes made during the ninety-eight minute runtime. Then, I stopped myself and asked, “Would I be complaining about these jokes if they were funny?” The answer is no. While they may still be offensive, they would have gotten the point across and made me laugh (the whole point of a comedy). Many comedies, including “Super Troopers” and “Beerfest”, used offensive humor successfully. The problem with “The Babymakers” isn’t that the humor is offensive. It’s that it’s not funny.
Having Kevin Heffernan roll around in semen isn’t funny. Having Jay Chandrasekhar do a terrible Indian accent (despite being of Tamil descent and not sounding racially offensive) isn’t funny. Having Paul Schneider getting hit in the groin repeatedly isn’t funny. Having Olivia Munn say nasty dialogue isn’t funny. Having a gay man offer his sexual services in return for his sperm isn’t funny. Men masturbating to pictures of cantaloupe isn’t funny. The list goes on and on.
“Super Troopers 2” is going to become a reality very shortly, I hear. As a fan of the first one, I’m excited to see it. After Chandrasekhar’s last few stinkers (“The Dukes of Hazzard” and “The Slammin’ Salmon”) and now this, I’m becoming worried. Has he run out of steam so quickly? Or is he, along with his pals, saving it for the long awaited sequel? Only time will tell. I just hope “Super Troopers 2” doesn’t misfire as badly as this!
Final Rating: D
Last Days Here
Plot: Don Argott and Demian Fenton document former rocker Bobby Liebling’s current battle with depression and drug abuse. He’s trying to get his life back on track and possibly start a reunion with his band, Pentagon.
Review: I knew nothing of Pentagon before going into “Last Days Here”. They’re the pure definition of a cult band. They’ve been playing since the early seventies, but only had one album officially released. They’ve developed a following over the years through word of mouth, which reached music lover Demian Fenton. His love of the band inspired him to take up music producing and he not only released a bunch of the band’s unreleased tracks, but also became Bobby’s manager and close friend.
While that in and of itself sounds like a dream come true, Bobby’s life is nothing short of a nightmare. He’s in his fifties, but still lives at home with his folks. He’s dealing with years of drug abuse which have made him believe he has a rare parasitic disease plaguing his skin. He’s had many opportunities at success, but has blown them. KISS came to his neck of the woods when he was a youngster to watch his band perform, but weren’t impressed (two of his band mates were late due to their plumbing jobs). Pentagram was able to bounce back and get a studio recording, but Bobby’s egotistical attitude screwed them over. It’s quite honestly a depressing story.
“Last Days Here” doesn’t ever feel truly depressing, though. There are certainly moments where it breaks the viewer’s heart (simply watching Bobby struggle with his demons will do so). It’s handled with so much love and respect for the man and the band that it always has this abnormal uplifting spirit. This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise considering the co-director and producer, Demian Fenton, has devoted his life to the man. That’s not to say he cuts him slack and worships him. He, just like everybody else, deals with Bobby’s attitude and hardships, which come close to breaking him many times. Yet, he sticks it out due to love.
I stuck this movie out, so to speak, because I loved the tale of Bobby Liebling! It’s not always the most exquisite, but it can be heartwarming and inspiring. It helps that Pentagram is a tremendous band that could have gone far had Bobby’s demons not gotten in the way. I may not have been a Pentagram fan going in, but I’m surely one coming out!
Final Rating: A
Detention
Plot: A killer named Cinderhella is picking off students at Grizzly Lake High School. Wanting to catch the killer, Principal Verge (Dane Cook) traps a group of students/suspects in Saturday detention in order to prevent the killer from striking again.
Review: If Joseph Kahn thinks making pop culture references and taking shots at changing fades makes him clever, then he’s got another thing coming. Making references to films from the nineties and ragging on the changing youth (from punk to boy band to today’s digital age) is beleaguering and trifling. It’s about as brilliant as proving that water is wet.
I blame “Scream” for all of this. While that film was good, it opened a floodgate of filmmakers whose sole intention is to poke fun at clichés, then perform them anyway. Don’t mistake this subgenre for parody. Films like “Airplane!” and “The Naked Gun” cleverly poked fun at clichés by wrapping a story around them and actually being funny. Films like “Detention” are like those annoying film geeks that point out every cliché and goof instead of sitting back and watching the film.
“Detention” is in a league of it’s own, though, I’ll give it that. While many “Scream” knock-offs simply called out films for the predictable rides that they are, Joseph Kahn throws everything against the wall. Body swapping mother and daughter, time traveling bears, UFOs, Dane Cook. All of this gets hurled at the audience in the vein hope they’ll laugh and applaud Kahn for his subversive style filmmaking. I just rolled my eyes and continually checked my watch. It was a long ninety-three minutes.
Here’s a hint to any filmmakers attempting to make a film intended to poke holes in clichés. Watch “Scream” and “Cabin in the Woods” and take notes. Actually, don’t do that. Those were made by talented filmmakers and, even then, were both lightning in a bottle. I suggest simply making a film that stands on it’s own two feet. I don’t even care if it’s good or not. As long as it’s not “Detention”, I’ll be fine.
Final Rating: F