Deadland

Most of the action of the film takes place 5 years after apocalypse in the forest. The main character who before the apocalypse was a cubicle worker survives 5 years in the forest and looks like just left the gym after heaving his hair trimmed. Neither his body or spirit are affected by the catastrophe. So maybe he is a superhero? Surprisingly all of the people are like that. As a result we have a fully nourished individuals chasing each other in the forest. Pretty much happy time? No, because there are a bad guys, paramilitary groups who supposedly rule the area, rape the women, take prisoners and have the cruel labor camps. Again the women kept by a the militants and gang raped multiple times look in the film like they just left the shopping mall on Saturday afternoon. The whole scenery as well as the plot make the film into something in between of Christian preachy film (with obvious not complicated characters) and porn (where people seem to be detached from the background they are put on). What could save the film? Probably more acting. It would be nice to watch a person trying to survive in the forest instead of a dude who just went for a walk to the park. Also women should have feelings, if not crying then with the mask of angry lesbian... anything.

Where will you be…what will you do… and how will you protect your loved one's in a post-apocalyptic world? The sci-fi action/thriller DEADLAND plunges you into a world of martial law, and takes you along the journey of Sean (Gary Weeks) a survivor of World War III's nuclear strikes on the U.S. A pandemic reigns as many survivors were infected by a fatal nuclear plague and separated into different concentration camps by Officers of the New Provinces. The quest starts when the protagonist finds evidence that his missing wife (Emily-Grace Murray) may still be alive in the new United Provinces. His determination to find her is equal to his personal war against the cruel Officers of the New Provinces. Jax (Brian Tee) an unexpected ally brings a bit of humor to the realistic struggles in the action filled drama. DEADLAND visually demonstrates our fear as well as our hope in a post-apocalyptic world.

Director Damon O'Steen, and writer/producer Gary Weeks, present a fantastic post-apocalyptic thriller considering their budget. All aspects of the film were impressive with excellent cinematography, moving score, superb acting, and great direction. You will not be disappointed in this indie film that visually portrays a depressing yet hopeful future. I found this gem at the Derby City Film Festival February 2010 and loved it! -3rd Dog Script aka Betsy Malone © 2010

Deadland is proof that you don't need a big budget in order to tell a compelling post-apocalyptic tale. Sure, special effects may help depict the terror that will undo the world, but if it's a post-apocalyptic tale you're telling, the emphasis should be about what happens after t...( read more)he destruction. And this movie does so very well.

Don't be fooled by its shoe-string budget or cast of unknown actors. The movie is full to the brim with great action, suspense and drama. The story of a man in search for his long-lost wife after the seeming decimation of society is a classic tale of overcoming adversity.

It's no "Road Warrior" neither in it excitement nor originality, but I imagine this would have been a very successful big budget film had it ever gotten that chance, not great, but worth watching.

As my summary states, the beginning of this film creates a lot of expectation. OK, I am a fan of nuclear holocausts and post-apocalypse (or, well, used to be, since the latest releases -the book of eli, the road, deadland...- have been quite disappointing). This said, a quarter of an hour into the movie I found myself looking through the window instead of at the screen. The search of the man's woman becomes tedious, slow, boring and lacking action or direction. I like the Asian looking character who befriends him, although his weird attitude doesn't really save the film. Then I decided to watch it at double or triple the speed since I had a bad feeling of wasting my time. I set the speed back to normal towards the end, however the "climax" was nothing of sorts and the overall feeling when the end credits started to roll was that of what have I done with my life for the past hour. Considerable attempt that stayed in failure.

The relatively low rating (4.5, as of my review) led me to lower my expectations on this low budget, independent movie. I thought it could do with a little more editing and a tighter script, maybe with a bigger payoff at the end. After watching for nearly two hours, the subdued climax wasn't very filling.

Anyways, the meat of the movie concerns a muscle guy looking for his estranged wife, who left him just before World War III broke out. Strangely enough, the muscle guy is supposed to be cubicle worker, I think, and he never really does much hand-to-hand fighting. That leaves me wondering exactly how to classify this movie. I was expecting a scifi/martial arts/adventure movie, like JCVD's Cyborg or Universal Soldier, but this seems to have some pretensions toward being a scifi drama. Unfortunately, the story never really goes anywhere very exciting or interesting, though it kept my attention. If there had been more fight scenes and better stunt work, it would have been a good, poor man's JCVD movie. With a more intelligent script and better direction, it could have been a good, poor man's John Carpenter movie. In the end, we're left with what it is -- entertaining, yet not quite fulfilling. I was admittedly a bit generous in giving it a 7/10, but I think it was good attempt, even if it doesn't quite live up to the potential.