Released: April 2010(Germany)
Director: Uwe Boll
Run Time: 85 Minutes
Rated R
Cast:
Brendan Fletcher: Bill Williamson
Shaun Sipos: Evan Drince
Matt Frewer: Mr. Williamson
Michael Pare: Sheriff Melvoy
For people like me who love video games, the name Uwe Boll is synonymous with garbage. There’s a reason for that. Uwe Boll is notorious for directing movies based on popular video game franchises like House of the Dead, Alone in the Dark, Bloodrayne, and Dungeon Siege. These movies are universally reviled by basically just about everyone who likes video games, movies, or both. They are terribly made with lousy writing, acting, and effects. And yet, we keep seeing Uwe Boll direct each of these movies one after the other. Bloodrayne and Dungeon Siege each managed to get two sequels each. So….how do these movies keep getting made? Uwe Boll has been getting financial help from some kind of tax shelter in Germany, but some people thought and still think that it’s a great idea to take a game and make it a movie without realizing that what works in one medium doesn’t necessarily work in another. Yet, they all keep trying like fools. Boll is also notorious for speaking out against his critics in multiple ways, most notably fighting his critics in a ring. Uwe Boll has been called the modern-day Ed Wood. Well, as far as video game movies are concerned, I would agree 100 percent. There’s only one video game movie that Boll made that I really like, and even then it wasn’t that great of a movie: Postal. Uwe Boll released a video criticizing everybody in regards to KickStarter and IndieGoGo, but I’m going to address that issue in a different post. There’s stuff that I want to say about that issue that doesn’t belong here. Nope, I’m reviewing Rampage. I never thought that I would say this about an Uwe Boll movie, but Rampage isn’t a bad movie at all. Shocking, isn’t it? Let’s get into it, shall we?
The film opens in a small mid-western town as young Bill Williamson is working out and ends up getting the news that his parents are going to kick his butt out on the street. So, he goes to work only to get criticized by his boss for not working hard. After feeling dejected by everybody in town including his best friend, Evan, Bill has had enough of people and decides to go on one of the largest killing sprees in American history. It’s a very simple setup, yet it’s strangely effective and understandable. It’s helped by the fact the performances in this film are really good. Brendan Fletcher’s portrayal of Bill Williamson is really good. He does a fantastic job playing a guy who is ready to snap at a moment’s notice because of all the crap that’s been dumped on him. The supporting does a fine job, but this is Fletcher’s film, through and through. What’s interesting is that the actors were improvising their lines based on the treatment of the movie they were given. As a result, a lot of the situations feel more natural and more in line with what you would expect during day-to-day life. You generally don’t see that happen in a movie very often. Most of the time it works. The whole movie takes place from the perspective of Bill, so when the killing starts, the camera is right there with him. I’m not a huge fan of the shaky-cam technique, but it’s appropriate here. The actual killing spree starts off with the bombing of the local police department. Then, with a bulletproof suit that he built himself, he goes around town gunning down people left and right. It’s well shot, and the blood effects are not CG, which makes it a little more realistic. It’s decent action, but it has me in a bit of a bind. You see, sometimes I end up rooting for Bill to take down certain people like a coffee shop employee who is being an ass, but on the other hand, he ends up walking into a hair salon and butchers the workers. Because we can relate to how the character feels before the murder spree, it makes the violence that much more uncomfortable to witness. The film was released in 2009-10, and we had several mass shootings in the states already, so the film’s release probably couldn’t have come at a worse time. Thing is, is that Uwe Boll has never been subtle or shy when it comes to controversy. I’ll discuss more of that in a different post. There’s lots of gun-fire and big explosions, so it’s never boring.
I’m not kidding when I say this movie is violent. You see images and flashes of the massacre to come, so you know exactly what’s going to happen. Boll’s use of violence is very peculiar. While the character shows absolutely no mercy for most of the screen time, there’s a scene in which he goes into a bingo hall with a bunch of elderly folks just playing along. I was honestly expecting Bill to whip out his uzis and mow everyone down. He doesn’t. The one time the character shows some humanity is a very poignant one. While there seems to be a social commentary in the film, it seems to me that the message takes a back seat to the carnage. The style of the shots is absolutely phenomenal, and the film is well-paced. The film isn’t perfect by any stretch, there is some questionable use of computer graphics that just seem out of place, and some of the decisions that Bill has made are kind of head-scratching. Why does spare some people and not others? That’s never really explained. I’m also not entirely sure I like the way the film ends.
I honestly never thought that I would say this about an Uwe Boll film, but Rampage is a damn good movie. Yeah, it stumbles in places, but the overall quality of the film is light-years beyond anything else that Boll has released. I guess it was a matter of time before he released a good one, but he did and I have to give credit where it’s due. Uwe Boll has crafted a very solid action film with a kind of a message. It’s a controversial film to be sure, but it is surprisingly important given the state of affairs in today’s world. Rampage has garnered multiple positive reviews and even got a theatrical release in Germany. Brendan Fletcher gives a very compelling and solid performance as Bill Williamson, especially when he goes crazy. The action is hard-hitting and unforgiving, but stylish and spectacular. I just looked out my window to see if pigs were flying, because Rampage is one of the more interesting movies I’ve seen in the past ten years. And it came from Uwe Boll. Who would have thought? My final verdict on Rampage is an 8.5/10. I loved it. If Uwe Boll would give up the video game movies permanently, I can see him rebounding as a film-maker. It’s clearly obvious that he has some talent behind the camera. He really does. This is a movie I can recommend. Check it out.