Recon 2022: The Mezzo Incident

You can bet any review that says something good about this film was written by someone with a personal stake. Especially if it mentions something specific. The sound mix is horrible, the editing is amateur, the cinematography is unexplainable, the directing is non-existent.

The story and writing are so hack and derivative of other films, that I recommend the best way to watch this movie is a game where you have to shout out what movie each line or prop is based on, in turn. The guy who brakes the chain drinks.

These guys have made half a dozen feature films, how is that possible? That is a HUGE accomplishment, who gives these guys money.

This movie is like watching a paintball club playing out a scene from a star trek movie.

Personally I enjoyed this movie and it's sequel ( I haven't seen the first one yet). Yeah it's a B movie but nobody ever said it was supposed to be the next Dark Knight. It's a B movie and never apologizes for what it is. It's low budget with no name actors and not so special effects. Despite all this, they do a good job trying to bring the story to life and making you somewhat care about the characters. After the debacles that were Star Trek, Wolverine, Terminator Rise of the Machines and Transformers, Those movies make Recon 2022 look like James Cameron's Aliens. The bad thing was that those movies had multi-million dollar budgets and big name actors! That's another rant for another time though.

The best character in this movie is Dr. Anderson. Putting a Gynecologist as the company's medic is a stroke of comedic genius and the actor plays the part to a sleazy hilt. No i'd never pay to see this in a theater but it's nice to have on Netflix. Nothing wrong with a good B movie you can laugh at and just enjoy for what it is, a movie for a slow Friday or Saturday night that you can laugh at. On that note, I can't wait to see what happens in Recon 2024!

Woefully minuscule budget drags down the promise of this film. I DO understand why this movie is rated very low; among other things the sound quality is horrendous which in some spots makes it virtually impossible to follow the dialogue. Turn it up so you can hear one part of the conversation then the other participant blasts your eardrums--and the soundtrack for most of the movie is downright annoying.

There are some decent bits here--the dialogue isn't bad for the most part, and neither is most of the acting(I obviously disagree with some of the reviewers here). I think the acting is negatively affected by the sound issues and bad editing. As it is, I was particularly impressed with the leads and some of the characterizations were interesting. There are a few original bits here that you don't tend to see in films of this type--such as the acknowledgment of PTSD. bereavement, loss and the ongoing problems of sexual harassment (which unfortunately apparently all continue even far into the future). I would have liked to have seen an expanded view on their interactions and the effects on a population after a large portion has been wiped out and forced into hiding, but instead we get a focused and all-too familiar picture of Marines in the future working with the strangely anachronistic tech of 2016 (anachronistic for the far future anyway).

The story is familiar and straight forward. Sure there are the usual clichés, and the FXs were more like something you'd see in the 90s instead of 2007, but overall it's a bit of entertainment to while away an hour or two that didn't make me feel as if I wasted my time. This is (nominally) a science fiction film but it plays more like any war movie and even the settings, technology and relationships are far too fixed in today's time period--which detracts from the story line and shows a lack of imagination.

I imagine budget constraints prevented any real play with the tech but the script could have demonstrated at least SOME advancements in soldiering (at minimum treatments for the psychological issues--just a little research into cutting advancements could have served as inspiration) and how they deal with life and death challenges. They did this very well in "Aliens" as an example--tech played only a small part in updating the military force--the soldiers were familiar and yet their interactions and tactics were believably updated for that future). I'd love to see what the creators could do with a real budget.

Take it for what it is and it'll keep it in perspective for you. It's not J.J. Abram's Star Trek, Michael Bay's Transformers, James Cameron's Aliens or Terminator but it's a decently fun sci-fi action film. It's a low budget creative movie. The acting is decent, action is decent and the film pays homage to a lot of sci-fi classics. You have the super bad female soldier, the tough leader, etc. You'll even see familiar creatures and familiar space vessels from films like Big Trouble in Little China and Aliens as well as other creations.

I think one problem with movie watches today is everyone's trying to be a critic. They seem to have the false impression they could suddenly do a better job if given a low budget and actors to direct.

I'm not going to lie, it doesn't take a genius level to find small problems in the plot or decision making of the characters, but if you're not trying to be next Roger Ebert, Gene Shalit, or Leonard Maltin...you'll be OK.

I enjoyed the film and if you'r not a super critic you might too.

If you saw the 1st Recon movie, you'll know what to expect from this one! Yes, the sets and the costumes are better than in the first movie, and the special effects (while throwbacks from the 70s or 80s) are better in the sequel. Viel tries to continue the story of Earth's decimation by an alien race and the subsequent journey of humankind to the stars to fight what seems to be a never ending battle against the creatures that are determined to wipe them out.

This is beyond a low budget film, it is a sub-level budget film. The dialog is painful at some points and overly predictable. The acting is.... well, there were actors in the film. NONE of this however stops Viel from bringing this story to a video store near you, and thankfully so. If you like really bad "B" movies, this one is for you! Viel and his troop of actors don't just go through the motions, they really are trying to bring the story to life. Unfortunately, they just don't have the resources to do the job. Should it stop them? No way... while not a multi-million dollar blockbuster, it's nice to see people making a movie because they WANT to. It's worth a rental just to support the fun they are obviously having. A 5 for effort, if not for delivery.