Plot:
Three prisoners are investigated to find out why their cellmate would commit suicide. As it turns out, it began with a late night poker game in a prison cell and ended up with a series of violence when the losing prisoner refuses to do what they had decided upon.
Our Thoughts:
The only person in the world to ever be more hated than Adolf Hitler has to be Uwe Boll. The german filmmaker who has became infamous all over the world for his bad film adaptions of video games such as "House of the Dead" and "Alone In The Dark". In fact though, the only reason people think this guy is the worst is because they know about him. He found a way to become a success at failing. There are far worse directors, and I mean that with all of my heart. "Seed" and "Postal" were probably the first films not to be hated completely. people knew the point of "Postal" was to fuck with you. What's interesting though is what has happened after "Postal". Slowly some people admit to enjoy even more of his later efforts. "Tunnel Rats", "Rampage", "Darfur", and of course the film I am here to tell you about. "Stoic". I think "Stoic was a great movie. The flaws are few and I don't think a terrible director (or the worst in the world) would be able to make a film like "Stoic".
It begins with the suicide of a prisoner. What follows is the investigation of what really happened to him, and what drove him to take his own life. We get to hear the lies the three cellmates tell all while we're shown what really happened. It started with a heated poker game where the loser had to eat a tube of toothpaste. Of course, our victim loses but doesn't want to follow through with the deal, and this upsets the other prisoners. Later that night they beat him up and it all goes down hill from there.
It's a really dark prison drama that doesn't rely on anything else but realism and the actors. It sort of reminds me of a prison version of "Eden Lake", where our antagonists go further with they violence than they probably had planned to from the beginning. They get carried away with the anger and they're soon pushing things too far. This is something that makes the film pretty hard to watch at times, but it's also here you can find the small flaws of the film. I personally felt like some things grew too fast and felt a bit over-the-top. This doesn't stop it from being effective though. Much thanks to the wonderful cast.
The two that I feel stand out the most of the four actors are Sam Levinson and Edward Furlong. Sam pulls off playing a guy who really understands that what they are doing is wrong and he begins to regret it, but is too scared of the other two to put a stop to it. Edward Furlong is a personal favorite of mine who I almost always delivers an outstanding portrayal because he does it in his own way. He has a way of making it seem less like acting and that's a talent. Growing up with him in films like "Terminator 2", "Brainscan" and "Pet Sematary 2", three films I think he's superb in, it's really fun to see that he still has it in him. Of course, he looks pretty shabby in comparision to his old slim self, but considering his battle with the drugs and being a childhood actor, it's not a surprise. "Stoic" and "Jimmy & Judy" are two more recent films of his that I hope will get him more attention again as it's some of his best work. Seeing how much of the film apparently is improvised, it makes me appreciate their work even more.
Considering this is a film that only takes place in one room (plus the investigation interviews) and with four actors, and made by someone who is suppose to be the worst director ever, I think this film deserves awards. It's definitely up my alley as far as dark drama / thrillers go, and it's just one of those films that makes you feel slightly more dirty after seeing. I recommend you ignore Uwe Boll's film adaptions and take a look at "Stoic" with an open mind. |
