IRON LUNG
***
Directed by Mark Fischbach.
Starring Mark Fischbach, Caorline Rose Kaplan, Troy Baker.
Science-Fiction, US, 127 Minutes, Certificate 15.
Released in Cinemas in the UK on 30th January by Shear Entertainment.
As I said in last week's review of the Resident Evil sequel, if there is one thing I know very little about, it is video games. So thanks to whatever cosmic deity is at play here I get to review another one, this time written, directed by and starring a YouTube gaming personality who goes by the name Markiplier. It is a brave new world. Supposedly Markiplier has such a following that he was able to independently finance this low-budget adaptation of an indie game and manage to secure worldwide distribution by himself. The last time anything like this happened in the genre field on such a scale was maybe Chris Stuckman’s underwhelming SHELBY OAKS, which after crowdfunding still needed help from a major studio and supposed extensive behind the scenes help from Mike Flanagan. This is truly a one man show, but this time the results are far more interesting in a number of ways.
Any thoughts that this could be some sort of misguided vanity project are soon put to rest within minutes.The viewer is immediately plunged into an oppressive atmosphere of an overwhelming ocean of blood after an event named The Quiet Rapture, a galaxy wide event that caused the stars and planets to vanish, leaving the remnants of humanity to wander and scavenge for resources. Fischbach plays an unnamed convict, sealed into a submersible and dropped into the vast bloody sea of a moon. Upon completion of his mission, he will regain what little freedom he has, but he soon comes to realise that something else may be down there with him.
There is a cosmic horror vibe going on here that is rarely explored onscreen, giving this film an edge over other recent big screen horror video game adaptations.Fans of such films as EVENT HORIZON and the works of H.P. Lovecraft will find much to be pleased by here, whether it is the tactile design and feel of the small craft that counts as the film's mostly sole location or the glimpses and hints of a vast mysterious evil that is pulling the protagonist further and further into an eviscerating reckoning. The oppressive atmosphere, as well as its nicely shaded worldbuilding, is impressively recognised here and Fischbach does just as good a job as holding the audience's attention with his more than convincing performance.
There are flaws, mainly a two hour plus running time that lends the film a bit of a grinding pace at times and a chaotic climax that nearly collapses into incomprehensibility with blood filling every inch of the screen along with a radio static filled soundtrack that has you straining to grasp what exactly is going on here. These issues can be mostly forgiven for all the good work that has been done before. While the film has a chance of only being known as a “film made by a YouTube person” there is more than enough here that impresses, bringing to mind the likes of such low-budget, limited location sci-fi films such as CUBE. Even without his video gaming, social media background, Fischbach has done enough good work here that you are left wondering what else he could be capable of given further resources and support.
Iain MacLeod