As of this writing, Uwe Boll has slid from spotlight. It's been about seven years since one of his movies received anything resembling a wide theatrical release in America, and in general, it seems as though the quality of his films has improved. Watching this documentary now constitutes a trip back in time to when Boll was the internet's public enemy and the biggest fear of video game fans was that he would direct a METROID or METAL GEAR SOLID adaptation. Anyone who remembers that time would probably find interest in seeing this. RAGING BOLL is an intimate albeit one-sided and ultimately tragic examination of one of the least-expected pop culture phenomena of the new millennium, and a pretty decent film despite its eventual depressing tone.
The movie chronicles a period in the life of Boll - approximately most of 2006 - wherein the pressures of limited Hollywood success and nonstop harassment from online commentators drives the filmmaker to issue his infamous boxing challenge to a handful of detractors. Basically, there's an overview of the online situation, followed by a review of his upbringing and history with film, his attempts to release IN THE NAME OF THE KING - A DUNGEON SIEGE TALE through a major studio, a buildup to and eventual montage of the fights themselves, and a quick glance at the struggle of releasing POSTAL.
How much a viewer enjoys this film may be reliant on one's ability to empathize. Boll consistently labels himself as an outsider - a claim based on his inability to integrate himself into the Hollywood system and become more than an independent filmmaker - and much of the documentary chronicles him fighting an uphill battle to have his movies shown on a large scale. It genuinely seems that making a film is a cakewalk compared to getting it into theaters for Boll, and the production does a fantastic job of capturing the stress and apprehension that he experiences while trying to convince studio representatives to take on his finished product. The scenes of him attempting to sell IN THE NAME OF THE KING are my favorite part of the film, being arguably the most dramatically-charged portion. His frustration is apparent: I kept waiting for a scene wherein agents rush past Boll and step on his feet in a frenzy to secure TRANSFORMERS ahead of his film, but even though this doesn't happen, it's probably an accurate representation of how Boll feels snubbed by the studio system.
The movie implies that this is what leads to the matches: with limited professional success to keep him occupied, Boll shifts his focus to and grants credence to his online detractors. This is the selling point of the documentary, and it shows both the worst of Boll and of the online entities in general. What Uwe experienced in the form of attacks on his character can be regarded as mobbing, and his virtual critics come across as malicious jerks. The group that eventually shows up to box is a more subdued bunch, clearly intimidated by Boll as he spars in front of them and they realize how extreme this stunt is (one of the guys literally trembles as he's taped up before his fight). Boll beats his detractors bloody, causing one to vomit. This is such a sad climax because absolutely nobody comes across as a winner; even Boll looks uncomfortable and dejected as he walks from the ring. His commentary takes a noticeable turn for the worse, and the last substantial portion of the film is a repetitious, profane bluster in which he assigns blame for his situation to everybody but himself. The well-educated, passionate doctor degenerates into an angry, delusional man who's resorted to violence out of desperation.
The movie makes me wonder about the transition from "underdog" to "victim" and how much frustration and hardship one can reasonably be expected to endure before turning cynical. Boll reaches that point, and boy does it get ugly. What we have here is a no-win situation in which moral superiority becomes a non-issue in favor of name-calling and pugilism. I appreciate Boll receiving a platform to tell his side of the tale, but while it succeeds in making his detractors look bad, it certainly doesn't make him look good. RAGING BOLL is an interesting movie, but at best, it's a pessimistic cautionary tale that doesn't make you feel good for watching.
The movie chronicles a period in the life of Boll - approximately most of 2006 - wherein the pressures of limited Hollywood success and nonstop harassment from online commentators drives the filmmaker to issue his infamous boxing challenge to a handful of detractors. Basically, there's an overview of the online situation, followed by a review of his upbringing and history with film, his attempts to release IN THE NAME OF THE KING - A DUNGEON SIEGE TALE through a major studio, a buildup to and eventual montage of the fights themselves, and a quick glance at the struggle of releasing POSTAL.
How much a viewer enjoys this film may be reliant on one's ability to empathize. Boll consistently labels himself as an outsider - a claim based on his inability to integrate himself into the Hollywood system and become more than an independent filmmaker - and much of the documentary chronicles him fighting an uphill battle to have his movies shown on a large scale. It genuinely seems that making a film is a cakewalk compared to getting it into theaters for Boll, and the production does a fantastic job of capturing the stress and apprehension that he experiences while trying to convince studio representatives to take on his finished product. The scenes of him attempting to sell IN THE NAME OF THE KING are my favorite part of the film, being arguably the most dramatically-charged portion. His frustration is apparent: I kept waiting for a scene wherein agents rush past Boll and step on his feet in a frenzy to secure TRANSFORMERS ahead of his film, but even though this doesn't happen, it's probably an accurate representation of how Boll feels snubbed by the studio system.
The movie implies that this is what leads to the matches: with limited professional success to keep him occupied, Boll shifts his focus to and grants credence to his online detractors. This is the selling point of the documentary, and it shows both the worst of Boll and of the online entities in general. What Uwe experienced in the form of attacks on his character can be regarded as mobbing, and his virtual critics come across as malicious jerks. The group that eventually shows up to box is a more subdued bunch, clearly intimidated by Boll as he spars in front of them and they realize how extreme this stunt is (one of the guys literally trembles as he's taped up before his fight). Boll beats his detractors bloody, causing one to vomit. This is such a sad climax because absolutely nobody comes across as a winner; even Boll looks uncomfortable and dejected as he walks from the ring. His commentary takes a noticeable turn for the worse, and the last substantial portion of the film is a repetitious, profane bluster in which he assigns blame for his situation to everybody but himself. The well-educated, passionate doctor degenerates into an angry, delusional man who's resorted to violence out of desperation.
The movie makes me wonder about the transition from "underdog" to "victim" and how much frustration and hardship one can reasonably be expected to endure before turning cynical. Boll reaches that point, and boy does it get ugly. What we have here is a no-win situation in which moral superiority becomes a non-issue in favor of name-calling and pugilism. I appreciate Boll receiving a platform to tell his side of the tale, but while it succeeds in making his detractors look bad, it certainly doesn't make him look good. RAGING BOLL is an interesting movie, but at best, it's a pessimistic cautionary tale that doesn't make you feel good for watching.