Darkdrive

I always aim to be fair to movies in reviews and ratings, I always try to know what to expect before viewing, I never bail out after a certain amount of time, I try to be as succinct and unbiased as possible and be understanding of other people's opinions instead of generalising or attacking(on a side note, people can do with this and they'll be surprised at how easy it is). I gave that treatment to Darkdrive and while I have seen much worse I still didn't like it. It is not entirely irredeemable, the music manages to be memorable and fitting, Julie Benz has a beautiful face and appealing presence that really shines through and Clare Stansfield is very cool. However there is so much that is wrong. The worst asset was the story which I found impossible to follow, in fact I don't think I have ever been this confused by a movie before. As a consequence of that, and the turgid pacing too, I never had any engagement or emotional attachment to the action or characters. Any suspense, memorable action move or humour just wasn't there in Darkdrive, there were probably attempts that didn't come through, at least to me. The dialogue is clichéd and stilted while the rest of the acting is at best dire. The camera work and angles get too much, there was an attempt to tell the story through them but with that tactic everything just felt incomprehensible, and the special effects look as though they belong in a very cheap-looking movie from the 80s. All in all, not the worst I've seen but lame. 3/10 Bethany Cox

I agree that the plot is incomprehensible, but it takes you on a weird trip that can be fun. The music is worth the price of admission. The love theme was inspired, as was the entire score, by Eraserhead. It's a bit of a cross between Ennio Morricone and Angelo Badalimente. Hey, I'm not even Italian; I just love those guys. I put on the soundtrack around the house sometimes just to get into a trippy vibe. The later at night the better. I wrote this music right after Distorted Reality (composer tool) came out, and the score is a showcase of the DR samples. The true gem here is the vocal by Giancarlo. We had a great time writing and recording that song. Honestly, this is the best music I ever wrote for a film. Check it out!

Yeah yeah, I know, it isn't supposed to be in my collection but like many reviewers I bought it for Julie Benz. I have seen her perform in quite a bit of movies and of course in Dexter. Over here in the genre she's well sought after due Dexter and due her appearance at European conventions were I have met her. Why it shouldn't be in my collection is that it isn't a horror but a SF flick. But as a collector I have seen a lot of crap, from top class to Z-movies. It's a phenomena that is regular in horror to have some real turkeys. I would say that I would classify it under a straight-to-video B-flick. The effects used are typical 80's stuff like flashing lights and flashbulbs tearing down persons. They surely have watched Terminator and Blade Runner to come up with something but sometimes the acting is really wooden. The story itself is hard to follow but for many it's the scene with the 21 year old Julie that makes the film worth watching. She's seen in frontal nudity here a thing she never did again, except for Dexter and Eating Las Vegas, a parody on Leaving Las Vegas, but she shows the most in this flick. If you are into B-movies than you surely can watch this. A few years later The Matrix showed how it should be done.

When I saw the name of Julie Benz on the cover of this VHS, I have decided to see the movie since I am a great fan of her character Darla, in Angel series. Further, she has one of the most beautiful faces of the cinema industry. However, this movie is such a mess, that is almost impossible to understand the plot and write a summary of the story. The intention of this confused screenplay might be a noir version of `The Matrix', but it never works. The characters are not well developed and it is almost impossible to the viewer understand their motives. For example, who is the girl showed in the end of the story? Why Julie Falcon dies many times? In the end, the unique worthwhile scene along the whole film is when Julie Benz is showed naked, unfortunately with the presence of her husband Falcon. My vote is one.

Title (Brazil): `Fuga Alucinante' (Hallucinated Escape')

A few years ago I had an opportunity to talk to Claire Stansfield about this film. I said that I was confused about the plot and hoped she could explain it to me. She said that she was also confused, and hoped that someone would explain it to her as well. We both agreed that the film's plot made absolutely no sense and left it at that.

Perhaps this was someone's attempt to fill in the prison back story of Demolition Man (remember the VR deep freeze in that one?). The Sci-Fi premise of a VR prison has plenty of merit (c.f. The Matrix), but this movie lacked any semblance of credibility or even of continuity.

In any case, this movie is one to miss unless you are a die-hard fan of one of the actors involved. Even so, prepare to be disappointed. I was.