Dark Resurrection

Production Design was really impressive! In fact, in some ways superior than those used in "Star Wars: A New Hope".

My only real issue was the really bad acting by the lead actress. It was just too apparent that she knew she was in front of a camera and was basically posing.

Actually, there didn't seem to be much of a story here and so I found myself dozing off, a really bad sign that the movie didn't have much to offer.

I also want to be fair and say that I saw this right after watching "Star Wars: Episode VI- Return of the Jedi" and so it was probably unfairly contrasted with the official canon.

Well, it's an Italian movie, and its budget was 7000€, if I'm not mistaken.

I've watched the program with the background of the Star Wars Hexalogy.

Watching this one was tiring. Sorran is some sort of a resurrected "ÜberGod" who can't even fly his own glider. Correct me, if I'm wrong, but it's not the aim of Jedi training to obliterate fear. Fear leads to the dark side. Hope, the female "paduan learner" is afraid, draws power from anger, and - I don't know - prevails, or does she? The acting would probably be C-class. This is a must avoid for every Star Wars fan. I give it 1 star, just to select anything - there is no "0". You can spend the 61 minutes in a more useful way.

While I admire all the effort that went into making this film, I'd be lying if I said I liked it.

Out of all the "Star Wars" fan films I've seen so far, this one is without a doubt the best made one on a technical level; the costumes, sets, effects, and acting are all very well done. Unfortunately, from a storytelling point-of-view, I find it very underwhelming.

First things first, I didn't like how the Jedi are portrayed in this. Not only do they come off as far too powerful -- throwing up Force fields, regenerating from wounds at an accelerated rate, etc. -- they come off as a cross between the PT Jedi and the Bene Gesserit from the Dune Universe, which -- IMO -- is NOT how the Jedi of Luke Skywalker's Order should be portrayed; the Jedi should be warmer, more human and relatable, not cold traditionalists with a pseudo-matriarchal council trying to create a genetic super-being.

Second, the main villain's regenerative capabilities -- far, far too over the top. Not only can he recover after being run through with a lightsaber, but he can also regenerate from complete incineration(!) Like I said with the Jedi above, he's just too damn powerful, only more so.

Now, as for the characters -- I just didn't care about any of them. The Jedi, like I said, are too frigid, while the Sith/Imperials just don't have defined character whatsoever beyond being typical black hat bad guys.

In regards to the plot, it was needlessly confusing in places. When the first flashbacks pop up, for example, they pop at random with no telltale transitions given to indicate that they even were flashbacks; it's only once you get through them that you realize they're supposed to take place in the past, not the present. More effort definitely should have been put into making the flashbacks look like actual flashbacks.

Also, what's with the Imperial fleet the Sith are allied with? Where did they come from? Does the Empire coexist with the New Republic in this timeframe? Is it some kind of Imperial remnant? Did the Empire somehow reconquer the galaxy? What's going on with those guys?

Now, as for the Sith themselves. I'm just going to be frank -- I don't like Sith anymore, not the modern PT-inspired incarnation of the Sith, anyway. Even if I didn't have a problem with Sith, though, I'd still have a problem with how they're shoehorned into the plot. Where did they come from? Did the main baddie recreate the Sith? Did he just join with a Sith organization that was already in existence? No info about them is revealed or alluded to at all at any point in the film. It's apparent that the Sith characters should have just been Dark Jedi.

Now, for my final issue with this film -- the lightsaber colours. I know it's the in-thing to go with the stupid RGB lightsaber colour scheme from the prequels these days, but I would have preferred more lightsaber colours between the Jedi and the Sith.

In the end, I give this film 6/10.

I watched this movie not really knowing what to expect. It seemed to be a Star Wars title that popped up out of nowhere. Seeing as there was no hype about it, and no announcements I never thought it to be original, so I figured it would be bad (the latest original ones were disappointing enough), but I was wrong. You could criticize the production values, the story-line is fairly basic, and there are some inconsistencies.I should add though, that I watched it in Italian, and only speak French and Spanish. I was able to piece together most of the dialog, but not everything.

But then consider that this was done by what seems to be some tiny Italian studio with semi-professional actors, and it is amazing. I have big budget movies that weren't half as good. The special effects are excellent, the acting is superb and the storyline is also pretty decent (in relative terms). So don't watch this movie expecting anything fantastic, but if you want to see what can be done by some small Italian production company probably with virtually no money, then it certainly is inspiring.

First the bad news. Well, it's in Italian, however, the English subtitles are excellent. In fact the subtitles are better done than many theatrical releases I've seen. The lead actress isn't very strong or dynamic. The plot is a bit murky but not so much so that you can't figure things out.

Now for the good stuff. The location in the Italian mountains is absolutely top notch. In fact I found myself looking at the scenery as much as I was watching the movie. Ancient Roman ruins are evident everywhere. That was a terrific choice. The actors are generally skilled, dynamic experienced actors. They can deliver a line and mean what they are saying. Technically the film can barely be faulted. A few scenes were overexposed but that may have been intentional for effect. This flick has a large cast. There are plenty of actors which gives it a big budget feel. The fight scenes are top notch. I guess this is just part one of a two part flick that I watched. It makes me want to watch the second part very much. Well done folks.