Mythica - Der Totenbeschwörer

'Mythica: The Necromancer' continues the fun, fantastical chronicle of enterprising mage Marek, ever growing in her powers, as she journeys forth with her friends in a great quest. There's no questioning that these pictures fall below the big-budget standards of major feature films, yet it's easy to get swept up in the adventure and just have a good time. That said, there's a distinctly darker tone at hand here as the series goes on.

Once more, technical aspects of this entry are quite fine. Wardrobe and costume design above all looks outstanding, but filming locations, set design and decoration, props, makeup, hair, prosthetics - it all does so much to build our engagement. Visual effects may not be top of the line, but they certainly exceed what we generally expect from "second-rate" would-be blockbusters. At that, I think there's even still more improvement over predecessor 'Darkspore,' let alone the first film 'A quest for heroes.'

As was the case with the first two movies, the writing is direct and fast-paced with intent to advance the plot. However, I feel like from the very beginning we see dialogue of greater intelligence, and characterizations with considerably expanded depth and complexity. I've previously found the cast to be quite capable, if inhibited by the screenplay. Yet as the writing feels notably better this time around, the actors are afforded more opportunity to explore their roles.

That's true of the secondary supporting cast, yes, but moreso of the principals. Melanie Stone again performs admirably as chief protagonist Marek, showing a range and strength of personality that goes beyond the limits of the parts she most often takes on. Co-stars Adam Johnson, Jake Stormoen, and especially Nicola Posener share in that increased illustration of acting aptitude, if to a marginally lesser extent (admittedly appropriate to their status as major supporting characters). Matthew Mercer gets more screen time as overarching antagonist Szorlok, and it's a joy to see him here. New to the ensemble for 'Necromancer' is Philip Brodie as shady oppositional figure Betylla, giving the heroes a complicated companion for some of their trek.

As with the prior films, the narrative here very much bears the air of a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, brought to life. Just as the production values seem to have obtained a level-up for this third 'Mythica' feature, the characters also show more of what they can do. The party members show improvement of their skills, boosted not just with experience but arguably with training akin to multi-classing. We get dialogue of a high-level wizard supporting character/NPC instructing their relatively fresh-faced protege to NOT to rush to seek out the end-game villain. The story here centers on a surprise B-plot that distracts the party from their long-term goals and destiny - yet which ultimately dovetails into that larger picture. We see spells or abilities echoing D&D staples like Illusory Wall, Light, or the wild intuition and bond with animals of a ranger. With that perspective in mind, it's ever easier to get caught up in the story being told.

The overall saga progresses ever further toward a grand showdown, and the increasing stakes carry with them heightened drama and emotional beats. This portion of the tale is unmistakably grittier, yet that shift in atmosphere works to keep us invested.

This series is a passion project, guided not by multi-million dollar studio backing but by heart and will. As such, it's a fair guess that no one will be watching 'Mythica: The Necromancer' who hasn't already committed to its antecedents, but even so, it's a fun fantasy adventure worth checking out for any fan of the genre.

Not going to bother with the story line, there really is not that much to say for it, more or less a D&D session made into a movie, with a sub-par DM as director/movie maker.

Production value makes the standard Scy-Fy Channels stuff look stellar by comparison. Effects are as cheesy as it gets. Dialogue is laughable at best.

The actors may as well be D&D players doing this movie for free. It's that bad.

And just to underscore how bad this is, some troll decided to bot the crap out of the ratings, spamming it with 10 star ratings.

I enjoyed watching Mythica: The Necromancer. It escalates the conflict between the forces of good and evil nicely, and it develops the relationships between the characters quite well too. I thought the story was interesting and I did like the new evil character the team has to work with for most of the film. Szorlok finally makes an appearance too.

The negatives are not very many. There were a few story elements that seemed to be taken from The Empire Strikes Back. It hadn't occurred to me before but the comparison seems obvious now. Gojun is Obi-Wan. Marek is Luke, etc. Although I'm taken with Mythica, it's not in the same league as Star Wars. I always seem to find something I'm not entirely happy with in scenes involving Gojun and Marek, the same was true in this one too. The theme song didn't work for me this time either. It's great when they are singing it in Hammerheads near the start of the film but the version at the end feels very flat. It needs to be much more upbeat!

And so the saga continues - a saga I thoroughly enjoy for its beautiful locations and the adrenaline of adventure with obstacles thrown in around every corner. The photography and visuals seem to get better as the series continues. I did miss Adam Johnson (who plays Thane) during the action sequences, due to him being captured in the beginning of the film, and the film is actually a quest to save him. A very determined character, Betylla, is introduced in this film, wonderfully portrayed by Philip Brodie. The evil inside Marek surfaces more regularly as the series continues, again very well played by Melanie Stone.

This was yet another great action adventure film.

When I picked up this DVD for £3 at my local supermarket, I knew I was in for a classic tale of mediocrity, sub par effects, and budget filmmaking.

I was not disappointed.

Acting: I've never seen death and hardship be portrayed in such a dead-pan and wooden manner. Thane's character was under-utilised as his screen presence was quite strong. The bad guys did a good job, but sometimes their writing wasn't believable - for example one of them seemed to be a really bad guy at times, but seemed to develop a kind of stockholm syndrome with the good guys, and this betrayed not only his character but the sense of antagonism and tension within the main 'party' of characters.

Story: A good overall storyline, actually very well paced. Ultimately, the fact that I watched the film in windowed mode while playing Guild Wars 2 speaks volumes about my interest in the on screen action. The introduction was very disappointing as nothing much really happened.

Visual effects: Obviously this is not a huge budget blockbuster, and so the effects are going to reflect this. Still, there was some skilled camera-work which helped mask some of the rougher edges.

Music and Sound: Unfortunately one of the weaker points of the movie. Some of the synthesised effects were very out of place for this genre of film. Also, for the first half there is this unusual helicopter synth sound that is pretty intrusive and goes on for several minutes. I don't know how this sound effect is at all related to progressing the narrative or reflecting the on screen action, it only served as an annoyance.

Conclusion: Why not? Just don't pay top dollar for it.

Also, that one 10 star review on here is obviously fake, right? I mean it has to be fake.