Darkon

I found Darkon fascinating, but the subject matter is limited. There is subtle humor that I believe only a gamer would understand, and whilst I have that advantage, I can see that it could be frustrating to an outsider. However, I believe the directors gave an extraordinary effort to open up a naturally reclusive niche of individuals. The film is divided much like the people are, in two genres and styles, documentary versus Hollywood action, a fictional world versus everyday life. The balance between the two belies the truth that LARPing is escapism. Every individual acknowledged that it was a game, but when they were in the game they made the most of the fiction, just like the cinematography makes the most of unconventional documentary shots, favoring angles that are closer to an action film. The close relationships between the subject matters duality and the films stylistic duality are, in my opinion, the most compelling. Frankly, the scenes of battle are both slightly frightening, because of the full on combat that is not staged but also, and probably intentionally, humorous when you catch a glance of a score board or mini-vans.

I found the individuals endearing in there own mundane ways, it was a relief that they were not portrayed as particularly charismatic, or humorous. The intentional inclusion of daily routine, of personal insecurities, of reality places the people where one would expect them.

For myself the most compelling subject touched upon was the insecurities of the individuals in the real life, because some might expect them to be bolstered, but seeing the differences of how they act in and out of game, down to how them carry themselves, show how profoundly fictional Darkon the game is. They can be bold and brash because it is not real, failure is unimportant, but success helps many of them build confidence. And although, the subject matter of LARPing is foreign to most, if you can just use that as a vehicle to get to these themes the film suddenly is not just a bad action movie, or an esoteric documentary. Anyone can relate to it. It is an honest film documenting a fictional story with real people.

Saw this at the Santa Fe Film Festival. I knew little more than what I had read in the program and seen on the trailer. Not being a "Larper" (which is never fully explained) I never had a clear sense of the complexity of the activity. Overall, I thought that the film did a cursory job of presenting the characters and their motivations. Because the film takes itself so seriously, I felt we were laughing at the characters, not with them. All we really get from the characters is a reinforced theme of "at home I'm nobody, I'm not in control... at Darkon, I'm somebody, I'm in control" (not a direct quote).

Rather than documenting, this film seems to promote the activity, never taking the time to question whether or not participating in Darkon is always a good thing. It's more narrative than documentary, and the story simply isn't that compelling. I think this film thrives largely on the foreignness of the subject matter.

The editing is a little sloppy (the film could be about 15 minutes shorter), characters are a bit bland (give the subject, I expected more dynamic personalities), visuals range from professional to poorly shot/poorly exposed, the music is quite excellent... though it gives the film a pseudo "Lord of the Rings" vibe when it's really just Medieval Reenactment with padded weapons. Again, I felt this undermined the objectivity and made it Pro-Darkon.

The preview has all the best shots from the film, as previews often do. Most of those images have no context in the film itself, and are just visual asides.

Of course, independent film-making is no small task, so for that reason I'm giving this a 5/10. It was a good effort, but overall, I would not recommend the film. Boredom sinks in at about minute 15.

Everything a Doc could be.

Seriously... "Darkon" Directors Andrew Neel & Luke Meyers manage to cover all angles of a relatively unfamiliar topic – a full-contact adult war-gaming society – practically leaving no questions unanswered. Who are these guys? Who marries them? And what of their kids? It's all there and it's all worth it. It's also a very fair outlook on their lives, making it easy to both sympathize with them AND laugh at them. e.g. It's pretty ridiculous to watch these characters swinging foam swords 20 meters from a parking lot of minivans, and yet when the picture noticeably receives a boost in budget halfway through, suddenly incorporating sweeping crane shots, one can't help but feel happy for these guys, who are finally starring in their own epic.

www.manwithavan.blogspot.com

)Documentary on a role playing universe called Darkon. Think Dungeon and Dragons but in the real world. The people go away for a weekend and and live an alternate feudal life where anything they can imagine is possible. The film examines the game and the people who play. I found the film to be very good at portraying the people and the game, but at the same time I found it very sad and troubling since its clear that many of the players have invested a great deal of themselves into this world and the game, more than is probably healthy. Too many people relate how they are nothing in the real world but in Darkon they are great warriors, princes, princesses or what ever they have chosen to be.They exist for the few moments where they can pretend to be something other than what they are. My heart breaks for these people since in many cases they are living for the weekend. For me its way too familiar a feeling. I have known too many people in my life who have given themselves over to a game and lost all touch with reality. (of course they may understand too well the pain of life). Granted this is no different than any other mania we come across from sports to cars to Barbies to fish, but at the same time rarely is the separation between worlds as clear as with Darkon players, there is this world and that, not one unified place. Its on IFC so you may want to try it if you're so inclined, but be warned you may be struck with a severe case of melancholia, I was

One of the few non-comedic movies by gamers, about gamers, and ultimately for gamers, Darkon (Ovie Productions/Seethink Productions, 2006) is a documentary that focuses on the activities of the Darkon Wargaming Club, a fantasy live-action role-playing (LARP) group in Baltimore, Maryland.

Moreso than movies of any sort by non-gamers about role-playing gaming (e.g., the execrable Mazes and Monsters), Darkon explores the purposes, positive aspects, and benefits of the hobby and the motives people have for participating in it. While it also hints at the all-consuming effect RPGs can have on their participants, it is ultimately more of an apologia for the hobby than an examination of it.

From a technical point of view, Darkon is well filmed, excellently scored, and structurally sound. One thing it does not do, however, is explain what a LARP is. Naturally, this does not matter much as far as gamers are concerned, but the absence of such explanation severely limits the value this film could have had as a tool for telling the non-gaming world about something about which it has limited awareness and little understanding. It is also a little on the long side, with multiple, interchangeable battle scenes, some of which could have been cut in lieu of some interviews with some third parties who could have helped put LARPing and RPGing in context.

A product of its times, Darkon draws as much on the genre of reality television as it does on that of documentary, with asides to the camera by its various subjects that shed light on their motivations and relationships in and out of the game. Depending on whether one likes reality TV or not, this could be seen as either a benefit or a detriment.

Some of the costuming and props used by the Darkon LARPers are impressive, with especial kudos going to the Dark Elf players (who do not appear in the film nearly enough). Firing catapults and a wooden fortress that is actually burned at the end of a battle demonstrate the willingness of this club's members to go above and beyond in their gaming.

Overall, Darkon is worth a watch by anyone interested in seeing a particular side of the gaming genre. It is likely, however, to be just as confusing as it is enlightening to outsiders, and does not go nearly as far as it could have toward producing an understanding of the hobby to those not already familiar with it.

Darkon is 93 minutes long. It premiered and won the Best Documentary Audience Award at the 2006 South By Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas, and is an official selection playing at the Hot Docs, Maryland Film Festival, Silverdocs, LA Film Festival, Britdoc and Melbourne International Film Festival. It aired on the Independent Film Channel Nov. 12, and that might thus be a good place to keep an eye out for it.

Michael J. Varhola, Skirmisher Online Gaming Magazine