The Gamers

Make no mistake about it; The Gamers is not a perfect movie. The script is wrought with hackneyed dialogue, predictable situations, and fan-boy in-jokes that serve to alienate most while entertaining few. But beneath all that is something you can't find in any Jerry Bruckheimer blockbuster or Michael Bay monstrosity; genuine enthusiasm of storytelling. Every person involved in every element of this film clearly loved what they were doing. The sheer joy for the material leaps out of the screen and into the faces of the audience. You can't help but smile the whole way through this energetic and ebullient film. And for those of us to whom the film is directed, the current and former members of the cult of nerd, this film is a real treat.

The film is funny, not in the shocking way of a teenage sex comedy or the schmaltzy way of a romantic "comedy," but in the same way that real life is funny. You laugh at this movie for the same reasons you laugh at your friend's bad jokes; the humor touches a nerve at the collective subconscious of all geeks.

If you are now or have ever been a nerd, geek, dork, or dweeb, do yourself a favor and find this movie. And if you aren't, see it anyway. You may catch yourself laughing along with the rest of us.

This little movie is vastly better than it had any real right to be. When sitting down to watch a movie made about fantasy roleplaying by gamers on a shoestring budget, I was ready to cringe. Instead, the whole thing was well-paced, always funny and professional in every way (given the budget constraints). The DVD purchase is highly recommended. I eagerly await the next Dead Gentlemen production.

I am a gamer, and this movie had me cracking up for the entire 48 minutes. It's short, but it gets its point across. From the looks of things, a comedy troupe made this movie. They obviously had a very low budget. The sets looked very fake, but it was okay. It sort of added to the humor.

Sometimes, with higher budget movies featuring big stars, the actors seem wrong for the parts. The guys in "Gamers" seemed exactly right for their roles, as if they really ARE gamers in real life. Each actor played two roles: a gamer, and his character. The gamers were funny at times and argumentative at others, just like real live gamers. The characters - a barbarian, an archer, a mage and a thief - were cheesy and overdramatic, just like the characters played by a lot of real live gamers. The film might as well have been a documentary about players of role-playing games. As I watched the silly drama unfold, all I could think was "This is how my gamer friends and I look to outsiders!" The idea made me laugh.

I'd bring this movie to a party or friendly gathering. It's not too long for the subject, it's funny, and it's almost true to life.

Anyone who was hazarded into the world of gaming will appreciate this movie. But you need to either be a Gamer or know a Gamer to get any of the humour in this ... film ... I hesitate to call it a film because it's more like a long video skit then anything else. Production values are about as low as they come but they are more than made up for through enthusiasm and the genuine portrayal of all characters through the neophyte actors.

In the film you follow an all male group of D&D players as they Game in the campus dorm. You see them in real life joking around, annoying the hell out of their Dungeon Master by arguing rules, and getting harassed by the non-gamer female neighbour because of their over-enthusiastic role-playing (ie. yelling battle cries and victory dances). The real charm of this film lies in the portrayal of the D&D characters as they act out the actions of the table-top game. It's an opportunity for Gamers to see just how ridiculous some of the things they do in table-top sessions would be in an actual person were to do them in real life. For example, you cannot help but laugh as the thief steals the clothes off of a bar-patron without the man noticing simply because he has so many points in the skill that he cannot possibly fail.

Inside jokes aimed at the gaming crowd are the heart of this film. That heart beats fiercely and never misses a beat.

Warning: This movie is rife with quotable quotes. If you buy this DVD for a significant other who games be prepared to listen to hours and hours of quotes from this movie for the rest of your life. I'm not kidding.

Ending a movie about gaming is probably the biggest challenge the writer of this script had to face. The games Gamers play can go on forever so how do you wrap it up all nice and tidy for a feature film? Brilliantly that's how. The ending of this film is unexpected and simply brilliant.

This film is destined for the Cult Vault. Not very many people will see it -- but it will find a devoted following in the species known as Gamer.

If you've played D&D, or just about any other role-playing game, check this out. The acting is for the most part, terrible (except the young lady: she conveys anger fairly well...). The special effects are not very special. The script is not too bad, though a little on the silly side. But, the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts. The characters in some of the scenes could be replaced with nearly anyone who has played a role playing game in the past. And that's it's real charm. You can picture yourself in it. You've experienced it before. You can watch it and say to yourself; 'I've been there before.' Though, if you've never played a role-playing game before, then this film is nearly a complete waste of time. Also note: there is some strong language, so parents beware. Violence is implied, but not shown.