The Posthuman Project

We popped in the Blu-Ray and the menu came up as expected. What wasn't expected was the amount of work that went into the menu alone, and this surprise set the tone for what we'd soon discover was true of the entire movie! If I only had one word to sum up this film, it would have to be this: impressive. It delivered an entertaining and engaging story with a fairly high production quality for a tiny fraction of the budget of a mainstream production.

There are some really funny moments of writing in this film. When Gwen says, "Us in charge of the world. What could possibly go wrong?" and then we cut to Denny's teacher writing "Mutually Assured Destruction" on the chalkboard. Tasty. Or when the assassin spits out "Shoot an unarmed man? You don't have the..." (nut shot) "Balls!" I laughed out loud. Or when Archie tries to disappear but belches instead. Too cute. I appreciated the silly moments like these in a film that doesn't take itself too seriously.

As for the film's other accomplishments, here is a modest list: the opening credits, chapter titles and transitions, and the special effects were each masterfully executed, and indistinguishable from those of any mainstream blockbuster hit (though the green screen scenes in the car were fairly obvious). The soundtrack was a pleasant surprise, and the car scene with everyone singing along was just too precious and reminded me of that classic "Tiny Dancer" singalong on the tour bus from Almost Famous. The filming locations were varied and interesting--abandoned fairgrounds? Yes, please. The choreographed fighting and accompanying sound effects were fairly convincing to me. The cinematography was reminiscent of J.J. Abrams with his stunning use of light. One of my favorite moments on film was a gorgeous, slow-motion flashback to a bygone Halloween that sucked me right in with a full dose of nostalgia. It melted me.

There is one major fault of the film that can't be directly attributed to the low budget: with the exception of the main star, some of the performances from each of the actors felt forced from time to time. Naturally, that pulled us out of the story. I'm not in the industry, so I may be wrong, but I don't think this can be attributed to budget because the rest of their performances would suggest these were fully capable actors. With an extra take or two, I think the poorly-delivered lines could have been re-shot (though I'm sure that would probably have its own costs). In my opinion, the relatively high production quality and the original premise and creative script were enough to overlook those occasional insincerely-delivered lines and missed opportunities for directorial intervention.

to think that this movie was made by a handful of high school kids in Oklahoma. this movie far exceeds its own hype. I can't wait for this to be released on DVD. I want to see some behind the scenes stuff on this one. and props to Mr. Lucas Ross on his cameo. I saw this movie for the first time on a small TV news program here in Oklahoma City a few months ago. they were talking to some of the stars about how they shot the movie on such a low budget and I thought the story was awesome. I love that they shot some of it in their actual high school and I recognized a lot of the scenery around Ft. Sill and Lake Altus. The scene where Gwenn is getting picked up from her house was my favorite because it was shot in my neighborhood. I almost flipped right there in the theater.

Where does one start. Low budget film making at its best followed up with acting that is worse than the comedy that is porn. The idea behind the movie is actually pretty good. The execution however is another story. It's like honors kindergarten, got together to write a movie. Then took a diaper load on top of it. The best part is the sound track from the 80s. Finding out this was made in 2014 is comical. If you told the world this movie was made in the 70s it may pass as a movie worth watching. Unfortunately It's not and I wanted an evening of my life to this colossal steaming pile of bile and dung.

This is a movie where you quickly start thinking, "I hope this is a movie where everyone dies." It's just that bad... But based upon the viewer ratings it seems the cast and their immediate families were all very impressed. The acting is unbelievable on the worst level, but everything in this movie is equally stupid across the board. Nothing feels organic or real in this movie. The characters and situations are not quite as fake as something like Birdemic, but it is close. I tend to find that once a movie sinks below a certain threshold of natural delivery or organic characterization, I start to wish everyone would just inexplicably die under horrific circumstances, just to redeem itself for the effort given of trying to watch it.

Normally I am willing to extend a little lenience to low budget and DIY made movies but this was hard to watch. Additionally I tend to have a soft spot for sci fi films, which typically require a little more suspension of disbelief. But there are no redeeming qualities here. The dialogue varies from awkward to cringe inducing and the acting is somehow even worse. It's difficult to single out any of the actors as the worst as none ever come close to believable and most boarder on laughable. Admittedly the script and direction seem equally to blame and at best verge on a rip off of other sci movies, most notably "Chronicle." However the comparison is almost unfair as the FX here are cheap and add an element of unintentional comedy. The soundtrack and music are all over the place and mostly ill fitting. The driving scenes are absolutely hilarious and recall the same level of authenticity of 90's sitcoms.

Ultimately even as this looks like it was shot and made by a local group of kids- film making has become so easy and accessible this is no longer a valid excuse. Not only would I advise against watching this, even with a Hollywood budget I think the results would be the same. And such, everyone involved should avoid film making altogether.