The Gamers: Dorkness Rising

I'm new to gaming, but I would have started MUCH sooner if this film had been around! I caught it at Gen Con last year (a trip made only as a favor to my husband) and LOVED it! Even to a non-gamer like I was at the time, it's funny and accessible--so much so that I finally relented and started sitting in on my husband's gaming group.

I don't want to give away any plot details, but if you're a gamer, you NEED to see this film--and if you're not, you're going to have a great time despite yourself. There are certainly "in" jokes, but the vast majority of the film is accessible to anyone.

My only complaints: wish it were longer and wish it were available on DVD. Soon, perhaps?...

There are few films that have had me waiting and waiting for release more than this one. This is the latest film from The Dead Gentlemen group responsible for the original Gamers film and the Demon Hunters films. This group has not been terribly active over the last few years but this film is a definite reason to try and keep things up in following their progress.

This film follows a group of gamers who are trying to finish a campaign run by a GM frustrated by his group's disregard for his story. With the help of some new blood they attempt the campaign again with hopes of finishing this time.

This movie is a breath of fresh air in the movie community and a great improvement over the original. The movie shows respect for the game much like the original movie did but on top of that this movie shows a dramatic improvement on special effects launching it above the simplicity of college films. The acting is fairly decent and the jokes are quite funny.

Unfortunately many of the jokes are in jokes so if you are not a gamer you may not find the film as funny as others. So this is why I give the movie an 8 instead of the 9 that I initially thought of. Any case if you are a gamer or know about gaming check this one out you will enjoy it.

I saw this at the screening at GenCon in Indy. I had some time to kill and decided to check it out. It played to about 1000 people in a packed standing-room-only ballroom.

Wow, what a ride! The script was tight. The action tense. The pacing perfect. The character exposition excellent. One thing I really appreciated was that you knew going in that this wasn't a big budget film. Yet it soon became obvious that the creators pushed their sets and effects as far as they could despite their limitations. And it was more than enough.

It's true that this film was targeted at a certain audience - gamers/tabletop players - the creators make no effort to hide that. But other filmmakers could learn a lot from them. For in going for the jugular in scene after scene and not worrying about if Mom who happens to be watching will "get it", they got the biggest laughs time and time again. But there's enough universality there that Mom will be laughing too, even if she's not in on every joke. I think too many times I see films that try so hard to lower the bar to the lowest common denominator so that they will appeal to the most people, but the movie just ends up suffering for it.

But not this flick. Indeed, this film was so solid that it had the audience wrapped around it's finger from the opening credits. And, while the viewers around me *really* wanted to like the film, they weren't pushovers - gamers can be among the most critical niche out there.

I'm so glad I got to see this in a big crowd. At least 10 times the audience was having such a good time that they erupted into applause at a joke or scene during the film. How often does that happen at screenings? It should be no surprise that there was a huge standing ovation when the closing credits rolled.

For my own part, I can't wait for this to be released. After it ended, one of the producers said they were shooting for a simultaneous TV/DVD release. That date cannot come soon enough.

I had heard about "gaming" and "Dungeons and Dragons" before, but I had know idea it could be like what I saw in the "Gamers: Dorkness Rising." These guys are so funny and fun to watch. Especially the guy who plays the "bard" or "minstrel" or whatever, he has a gift for physical comedy and timing. There is so much background humor and energy in some of the scenes that make you really think that at least some of it was improvised there on set. The special effects needed to be worked on a bit, but I saw it at a convention last year and thats one of the things they said they were going to redo and make better, so it's probably wicked now!

I am definitely not a gamer, but a couple people in my family and my boyfriend are. So, a little reluctantly I decided to find out what the big deal was with "fantasy stuff". I saw Dorkness Rising and thought it was HILARIOUS! It's slapstick, but not disrespectful to those that enjoy role playing games. Also, and most importantly, people who've never gamed before can enjoy it and not feel left out or lost trying to understand the plot. The acting was great and the field shots/set were believable. This makes me want to see other movies by this production company. I can't wait to see what the future holds for this group! Three cheers - well done!!