Reign of the Fallen (2005) (V)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

David McLeavy

Writer:

David McLeavy (writer)

Release Date:

2 April 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi

Plot:

As the Sith spread across the galaxy, subjugating planet after planet, a lone warrior seeks out a weapon of legend to save his people.

Plot Keywords:

Fanfilm | Star | Star Wars

Cast

Carlos Acuña	...	Eidolon
Maureen Isern	...	Alana
David McLeavy	...	Jaren
Jason Updike	...	Erik
Kevin Walsh	...	Oram Bren

Runtime:

USA:59 min | USA:56 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Princeton, New Jersey, USA

Company:

NL Pictures

Trivia:

The rain sequence of the final duel was filmed on a cold night in November with temperatures nearing freezing and high wind gusts flooding through the location. Director/Actor David McLeavy suffered from early stages of hypothermia.

Quotes:

Erik: I've been thinking, and I find myself wondering: what exactly is it that makes you my master?

A Good Example of a Maturing Film Genre - The Fan Film

With the ever-growing availability of good digital cameras, high quality, affordable computer graphics systems, digital editing tools and audio sampling and mixing software, we are seeing the growing maturity of micro-movie-making and the increasing sophistication of the fan-film genre. The vast, vast majority of these films are still junk, but there are a few that point to the potential of the genre and micro-movie-making: "Reign of the Fallen" is one of them.

The producer and director of this hour long movie opted to focus on character and a simpler story based in the Lucas universe, rather than spaceships, droids, stormtroopers and other merchandise wannabes. You still get to see a few light-saber battles and glimpses of spaceships, but, for the most part, the film deals with the simple story of two "brothers", an early conflict between the Sith and the Jedi and the maturing of one particular Jedi.

I will comment that the pacing could be improved and the script could be cleaned up to clarify motives and strengthen relationships, but the director has chosen to take some time with each actor and each scene, rather than jump-cutting his way to an action scene and I think it works well. One has to be impressed at the restraint shown by the director in the confrontation between Oram Bren (Kevin Walsh) and the invaders. It is powerful in its understatement and in what it chooses not to show. The producers wisely chose to keep the main cast small and were thus able to get very good performers for the four main roles. Kevin Walsh as the aging Jedi Master has a perfect calm, strong presence and Jason Updike is excellent in his role as Eriq, the other Jedi student. The weakest of the four main actors, the director cast himself as the young Jedi, Jaren. Though his performance is okay, I wish the director had cast someone else in this pivotal role, because he could likely have brought out as good a performance in the character as he was able to pull out of the other three main actors in their roles.

The producers did an excellent job of assembling music that was appropriate for the film and especially in the use of a particular music cue at the climax of the film in a confrontation that is really pretty good.

Its a fan film. Its small. It takes itself a bit seriously. Its made on a negligible budget with unpaid actors and techs, but if you are patient and aren't expecting a wild shoot-em-up space opera, I think you might enjoy this.

Come on! It can't possibly be worse then "Attack of the Clones" can it?!?!