Ink

I must say I've rarely been torn about a movie that much. First off, for a low-budget indie production, this movie is great, no doubt. But how does it compare to the Hollywood productions with similar ideas?

The beginning is very strenuous to watch. It takes a long time before you will understand anything that's going on. This will not change until somewhere between the middle and the end, and thus frustrate many viewers.

The story itself is creative and refreshing, but very confusing, I guess you could call it an adult fairy tale. The movie raises questions about family values, moral obligations, self-esteem and shame, all of them well developed and executed.

The actors are mostly doing a good job, although some of the supporting actors' (one actress in particular) emotions are a bit too extreme to be believable, but this does not really disturb the illusion and is merely a minor inconvenience.

The effects are worth their money and quite impressive for a low-budget production.

What ultimately makes this movie worth watching, however, is the truly great ending. If you are patient enough to sit through the movie as a whole and pardon the few flaws in it, you will be rewarded with an emotional, surprising and heart-warming ending.

While I have stood idly by and read others comments on so many movies, I feel compelled to say something about this one. Truly a work of art, and it's an injustice that it is not more well known for I stumbled across this movie by chance and had heard nothing of it. This is far better than anything at the theaters now a days and was so well done in every aspect of it. A must see movie for anyone who gets a chance, like an escape away from the usual routine we are accustomed to.

From the beginning this movie will grab your attention. From the subtle effects that are done just right, to the acting from all parties of the cast. A very wholesome experience. Perhaps the rest of the film industry could take a lesson or two and make a decent movie like this and not waste millions of dollars on the junk they crank out on a daily basis.

A bold, rich and very remarkable film. This is art, not entertainment. Story: This little movie defies easy categorization; there is nothing quite like it that I am aware of. For students of literature, you will find connection to the work of Dante -- in particular, The Inferno -- and other works that portray a human being losing his/her soul, for that is what this movie is about. There are philosophers (Rudolf Steiner) who believe that the world is literally divided into overlapping, parallel worlds populated by forces of dark and light (not good and evil) where each side works continuously to influence human beings leaning in one direction or the other -- the demon lying upon us as we sleep, feeding us nightmares; the angel gently stroking our forehead, comforting us as we face our deepest fears. This is an epic and continual battle in which the darkness in the world comes from those of us who have committed treasonous acts against our own humanity and suffer, in proportion, consequences for having done so. In film, I would group this with movies like Renee Missel's Resurrection or Blatty's totally brilliant Ninth Configuration. But bear in mind that you are watching an INDIE, which means limited money to make the film. Therefore, production values suffer at times: there are weak special effects, low budget costuming, limits to cinematography, etc. These should be easy to overlook given the scope and depth of this work. Jamin Winans has crafted a minor masterpiece. The ensemble acting is uniformly superb, but Mr. Kelly carries this film with a deeply felt and gifted performance. Though the story may be difficult to follow because of its unique and complex subject matter; in fact, it is tight as a drum with virtually every shot and edit building on those that preceded it, but it will take a second viewing to discover this. The direction is very fine: the film absolutely has a look and feel expressive of its content. The use of off-color green was effective and quietly disturbing, as was the black ink-like flow covering the protagonist at specific moments throughout the film. At a time when our entire culture is in danger of losing it's soul, when so many are seeking insight into something deeper and truer, this film could not be more appropriate. INK is what Independent films are supposed to be: intelligent, deep, inspired, rich, genuine, quirky, imperfect expressions that Hollywood could never make or would simply ruin because of commercial pressures. Mr. Winans -- thank you.

I regret that I watched a pirated download of this movie. It was fantastic, and it truly deserves my money. However, that said, I don't know how else I would have found out about this absolute gem of independent film-making if it wasn't for seeing it on a list of downloads and feeling curious. My ONLY quarrel with Ink is the quality of the visuals themselves. I understand the desire to create a dreamlike, otherworldly atmosphere; but blowing out all the whites and softening the image can only be tolerated for so long. In some ways it makes the movie look cheap, which couldn't be more misleading. I think it's best to go into Ink curious. I didn't really know what the film was about when I began watching it other than it dealt with the idea of parallel worlds (and I think one review equated it with The Matrix some how); but it was a pleasure to let the film unfold in front of me, never knowing exactly where it was going and letting all of the puzzle pieces eventually drop perfectly into place. Although sometimes the costuming leaves something to be desired, the actors wear them confidently and never let you feel like you're being swindled. That said, the acting was top notch. Especially from lead Chris Kelly. Keeping everything I just said in mind, I would like to reiterate that Ink is an INDIE. Those looking for a big-budget thrill-ride will be slightly disappointed. But it is a remarkable indie. It doesn't let it's budget get in the way of a great story, startlingly impressive special effects (car crash scene is top-notch), visionary directing, and chameleon acting. This IS indie film-making. And it's the furthest thing from that soft-spined 'mumblecore' that lovers of independent film have been forced to sleep through for the past decade. I can't wait to see what's next from Jamin Winans. In the meantime I'm going to track down a copy of Ink all legal-like to add to my collection. In fact, if you're reading this post and are interested in watching it, try to find it legally - only because it's worth the purchase and it lets investors see audiences appreciate intelligent independent film-making. It's well worth the purchase.

Ink follows the journey of eight year old Emma (Quinn Hunchar), who falls into a coma after she is kidnapped into a dreamworld by a mysterious monster, called Ink. In the real world Emma gets hospitalized after falling into a coma, but in the dreamworld she is being used by Ink as a pawn in a metaphysical war being fought between the forces of light and darkness.The forces of light are a group of people who give dreams to the living, known as storytellers, warriors, fighters, navigators and pathfinders. The forces of darkness, the Incubus, concurrently give nightmares to the living. Now Emma's only hope lies within her negligent father (Chris Kelly), a successful business man, as the forces of light cross over to the real world and try to alter his path to save Emma... What a crazy ride. Ink is unlike any other movie I know.Its definitely the most original movie I have ever seen and visually, it is quite stunning,the special effects really enhance the film.They're not state of the art GCI but they are tremendously effective.The soundtrack is wonderful and very suiting.The acting was good, specially Quinn Hunchar,this little girl is not only beautiful but she played her role with a maturity way beyond her age.The story its kind of a grown up fairy-tale and has an epic feeling to it,unfortunately it gets too confusing and complex at times,its one of those films you have to watch more then one time to fully comprehend everything that happened.My other complaint is the following: I think the movie is a bit all over the place.It has many great ideas and elements but it ends up being a bit messy.Having said that I'm amazed by what this director was able to accomplish with a low budget and probably not many resources.I see a LOT of great ideas here and I see a lot of potential.If Jamin Winans can do a film like this with this budget, I could only imagine what he would do with a Hollywood budget. In conclusion,Ink is a crazy and surreal journey that deserves to be seen.A very original and refreshing piece of work and the director is one to watch!

7/10