Audience Member
RATING (0 to ****): ***
"I'd splash water on you, but I'm afraid you'll turn into a little girl," says Kei (Jen Nikolaisen) to Nick, the geek she's currently hitting on. "Just so long as you don't turn into a panda bear," he responds, blossoming a new, promising relationship that turns his life away from computer games and into the real world.
Welcome, folks, to a new generation of screenwriting. We've endured a plague of action movies this decade that seem far too inspired by video games, but finally, there is a film that gives geeks their Quentin Tarantino. John-Michael Thomas's "Corpse Run" is at its happiest when in its nerd trivia contests (the above reference is for the anime "Ranma 1/2"). Writer-director Thomas also happens to play Nick, and luckily for us he provides plenty of delicious voiceover that will certainly remind you of "Thank You for Smoking" in its cynical commentary.
All is not perfect in the world of "Corpse Run", however; the screenplay lacks a clear focus or a primary storyline, and the picture stops cold every time it cuts away from Nick and Kei. The dialogue turns from amusing pop culture laced dialogue to pseudo-philosophical rants and stereotypes, and many of these scenes could have been sacrificed. As much as it tries to cover the culture of online gamers (which Nick is struggling to leave through the film), the relationship is the reason for watching the film.
Being his first feature, Thomas may hopefully stick with shots and even scenes longer, although that's almost a compliment to say "Corpse Run" runs too fast whilst most independent films run way too slow. And although the screenplay has aforementioned focus problems and can be frustrating, when it's good it's great, and it's an absolute delight for gamers, ex-gamers, anime fans and miscellaneous nerds alike (the biggest surprise is that Thomas is not, and was never, a gamer).
It also always looks great, with beautiful digital cinematography day and night to never make the film an eyesore. Shot with Panasonic "P2" high-definition cameras, like the even better "Two Million Stupid Women", the clear, colorful image is remarkable and I am completely convinced that these are the miracle for independent filmmakers, as opposed to the legendary Red One.
The musical score, which takes the hint and resembles 8-bit and 16-bit era video game music, is also fun. And the film ends very well; for those of you who thought a certain "Super Mario Bros." line could only ever be frustrating, and the title theme to "The Legend of Zelda" could bring tears of nostalgia but never be a little poignant, rest assured that if (and when) "Corpse Run" gets picked up for distribution, it will open a universe of fresh pop culture for the movies to re-examine and re-interpret.
The best part of the film, however, is "none of the above". It's in the opening credits sequence, done in the style of an 8-bit RPG, which introduces every cast member and character in appropriate form, that the applause is almost inevitable. The filmmakers also frequently apologize for using terminology obscure to them, but my one-word review fits very much in that category:
Nerdgasm.
MPAA: Not Rated (but would be R for language throughout)
Runtime: 1 hour, 42 minutes (95 minutes of "real movie", with clips within and after credits)
[size=1]This film is playing at San Jose Cinequest Film Festival (February 25 through March 8).[/size]
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/21/23
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