It's getting Crowded in the Dark
By Ben / 2009-06-22 13:34:38
I've no idea how this nugget of fact-gold slipped through our rooting-tootin hands, but lets rectify that now.
There are plans for a 3rd Alone in the Dark film.
Star of the second film Rick Yune, talking to Fangoria back in January, revealed that he has heard they're (Boll and friends) planning a 3rd film, but he has no plans to return as Edward Carnby
By Ben / 2009-06-22 13:34:38
I've no idea how this nugget of fact-gold slipped through our rooting-tootin hands, but lets rectify that now.There are plans for a 3rd Alone in the Dark film.
Star of the second film Rick Yune, talking to Fangoria back in January, revealed that he has heard they're (Boll and friends) planning a 3rd film, but he has no plans to return as Edward Carnby
I definitely will not be going back to play Edward Carnby again. I got involved with ALONE IN THE DARK II because I also had the chance to be a producer on it. The two writer/directors—Michael Roesch and Peter Scheerer—were very enthusiastic, and after coming off big action films, I wanted to be around people just like them. You know, guys working against the odds to get their ideas on the screen. It was a difficult process to make the second movie, and although I really enjoyed myself, I am looking at moving on to producing some more of my own projects.”
By Ben / 2009-01-18 14:49:35So here it is, finally the Uwe Boll film I’ve been avoiding writing about since I saw 20 minutes of it last year, but maybe, just maybe I was being a tad harsh.
When it comes to movie adaptations of games surely none have quite missed the point to the gargantuan level of Alone in the Dark. The games featured a bookish middle-aged man with a moustache, slowly working his way through a mansion solving puzzles and piecing together ancient mysteries. The film features a destitute man’s Indiana Jones using some Matrix style kung fu to take down symbiotes and demons. It really is hard to put into words quite how much Boll has missed the point, albeit (I suspect) deliberately so.
The plot involves Edward Carnby (Slater) who has discovered a mysterious artefact he seems to know both everything and nothing about. His girlfriend is working with linked artefacts and is assistant to the maniacal curator Lionel Hudgens. Hudgens used to work for the governments agency for the paranormal (Bureau 713), as did Carnby later, and also had a hand in Edwards childhood trauma that leaves him with no memories before the age of 10. Hudgens now, for some reason, is seeking to destroy the world by unleashing demons from the netherworld.
The plot is so full of holes I started to wonder if I’d just missed the explanation. Slater is attacked within minutes of the film opening, then again at the museum. Both times his assailants are after the artefact he’s carrying, fair enough, except that the leader of of the demons (Hudgens) is oblivious to Carnbys find, let alone that he’s back in the country. At one point Reids character asks Carnby why he never called to let her know he wasn’t dead (he’d been out of the country), Carnby’s reply is simply to shrug slightly, almost as if Slater himself is wondering why his character wouldn’t get in touch. The final moments of the film only leave more questions, questions I’ll leave for you for ask yourself should you ever have the misfortune of catching Alone in the Dark.
There must be some positive things to say right? Well it’s made me sympathise with Christian Slater, sure he’s not the worlds greatest actor, but he deserves better than this. Stephen Dorf too, both standout in roles they can play with their eyes closed, Slater even impressing by being quite athletic, far more convincing an action hero than I was expecting. That’s not to say every other performance is terrible, most are fine and one or two of the supporting cast are even good, but they have so little to work with that they are forgotten the minute they disappear from the screen.
The design of the demons is quite good, if derivative of Aliens, the execution is far less successful though, with parts looking decidedly comical. There’s plenty of action, again this isn’t all deserving of praise. The opening fight feels like it’s from another film, there’s some good moves on show, but the lack of reaction from bystanders gives everything a sense of dissociation. The gun fights fair better for the most part, although they are often too dark to see what’s going on, the stand off towards the end of the film is probably the highlight. The low light has some competition but I think I’m going to award it to the scene with the worms in the sand, I can only imagine how embarrassing that must have been to film.
For all its atrocities Alone in the Dark probably doesn’t deserve quite the critical lashing it’s received, technically there are worse films out there and there are moments of entertainment within AitD. However it’s so cynically constructed that its hard not to hate it on principle. It’s not just the disregard for the source material, that’s merely indicative of the bigger issue. AitD is derivative of a hundred different films, Alien, 28 Days Later, Indiana Jones (possibly Tomb Raider if I’m honest). It’s a series of clichés cynically mapped out to make what looks like an action film.
It’s understandable that watching a man wander around a house, occasionally being attacked by dogs, wouldn’t make for the greatest film, but to waste the freedom the claustrophobic supernatural setting affords you is such a shame. The title ‘Alone in the Dark’ conjures up enough themes on its own to inspire a better film.
So in short I’m telling you what you already knew, this is not a good film. It’s not as bad as you might expect, but when its lasting impression is a mixture of anger and sympathy it’s safe to say it might be better to just avoid it.
When it comes to movie adaptations of games surely none have quite missed the point to the gargantuan level of Alone in the Dark. The games featured a bookish middle-aged man with a moustache, slowly working his way through a mansion solving puzzles and piecing together ancient mysteries. The film features a destitute man’s Indiana Jones using some Matrix style kung fu to take down symbiotes and demons. It really is hard to put into words quite how much Boll has missed the point, albeit (I suspect) deliberately so.
The plot involves Edward Carnby (Slater) who has discovered a mysterious artefact he seems to know both everything and nothing about. His girlfriend is working with linked artefacts and is assistant to the maniacal curator Lionel Hudgens. Hudgens used to work for the governments agency for the paranormal (Bureau 713), as did Carnby later, and also had a hand in Edwards childhood trauma that leaves him with no memories before the age of 10. Hudgens now, for some reason, is seeking to destroy the world by unleashing demons from the netherworld.
The plot is so full of holes I started to wonder if I’d just missed the explanation. Slater is attacked within minutes of the film opening, then again at the museum. Both times his assailants are after the artefact he’s carrying, fair enough, except that the leader of of the demons (Hudgens) is oblivious to Carnbys find, let alone that he’s back in the country. At one point Reids character asks Carnby why he never called to let her know he wasn’t dead (he’d been out of the country), Carnby’s reply is simply to shrug slightly, almost as if Slater himself is wondering why his character wouldn’t get in touch. The final moments of the film only leave more questions, questions I’ll leave for you for ask yourself should you ever have the misfortune of catching Alone in the Dark.
There must be some positive things to say right? Well it’s made me sympathise with Christian Slater, sure he’s not the worlds greatest actor, but he deserves better than this. Stephen Dorf too, both standout in roles they can play with their eyes closed, Slater even impressing by being quite athletic, far more convincing an action hero than I was expecting. That’s not to say every other performance is terrible, most are fine and one or two of the supporting cast are even good, but they have so little to work with that they are forgotten the minute they disappear from the screen.
The design of the demons is quite good, if derivative of Aliens, the execution is far less successful though, with parts looking decidedly comical. There’s plenty of action, again this isn’t all deserving of praise. The opening fight feels like it’s from another film, there’s some good moves on show, but the lack of reaction from bystanders gives everything a sense of dissociation. The gun fights fair better for the most part, although they are often too dark to see what’s going on, the stand off towards the end of the film is probably the highlight. The low light has some competition but I think I’m going to award it to the scene with the worms in the sand, I can only imagine how embarrassing that must have been to film.
For all its atrocities Alone in the Dark probably doesn’t deserve quite the critical lashing it’s received, technically there are worse films out there and there are moments of entertainment within AitD. However it’s so cynically constructed that its hard not to hate it on principle. It’s not just the disregard for the source material, that’s merely indicative of the bigger issue. AitD is derivative of a hundred different films, Alien, 28 Days Later, Indiana Jones (possibly Tomb Raider if I’m honest). It’s a series of clichés cynically mapped out to make what looks like an action film.
It’s understandable that watching a man wander around a house, occasionally being attacked by dogs, wouldn’t make for the greatest film, but to waste the freedom the claustrophobic supernatural setting affords you is such a shame. The title ‘Alone in the Dark’ conjures up enough themes on its own to inspire a better film.
So in short I’m telling you what you already knew, this is not a good film. It’s not as bad as you might expect, but when its lasting impression is a mixture of anger and sympathy it’s safe to say it might be better to just avoid it.
PSN Update: And There's No Rain
By Ben / 2008-11-07 05:22:51
While there's nothing earth shattering
this week, the inclusion of 2 free
Sackboys would have been enough to
get me excited and make the
title.
However that was before I noticed, in amongst the Guitar Hero tracks, 'No Rain' by Blind Melon, one of the greatest songs ever written (although not actually their best song).
A quick word regarding the Sackboys, making one of them 1 week only, and charging £4 for them is disgusting.
PS3 Demos
Alone in the Dark (free)
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (free)
PSone games on PS3/PSP Stores
Theme Park (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
Spin Jam (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
PS3 Add-ons
Dead Space Obsidian Suit (free)
Dead Space Scorpion Suit (EUR 2.99)
LittleBigPlanet Rare T-shirt (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
LittleBigPlanet MotorStorm Costume (GBP 1.59 / EUR 1.99)
LittleBigPlanet Spaceman Costume (free)
LittleBigPlanet Halloween Mask (free)
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Pack 1 (free)
The rest is in the comments section.
Source: Eurogamer
By Ben / 2008-11-07 05:22:51
While there's nothing earth shattering
this week, the inclusion of 2 free
Sackboys would have been enough to
get me excited and make the
title.However that was before I noticed, in amongst the Guitar Hero tracks, 'No Rain' by Blind Melon, one of the greatest songs ever written (although not actually their best song).
A quick word regarding the Sackboys, making one of them 1 week only, and charging £4 for them is disgusting.
PS3 Demos
Alone in the Dark (free)
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (free)
PSone games on PS3/PSP Stores
Theme Park (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
Spin Jam (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
PS3 Add-ons
Dead Space Obsidian Suit (free)
Dead Space Scorpion Suit (EUR 2.99)
LittleBigPlanet Rare T-shirt (GBP 3.99 / EUR 4.99)
LittleBigPlanet MotorStorm Costume (GBP 1.59 / EUR 1.99)
LittleBigPlanet Spaceman Costume (free)
LittleBigPlanet Halloween Mask (free)
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Pack 1 (free)
The rest is in the comments section.
Source: Eurogamer
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