Mind of tempest
(he/him)advocate for 5e psionics
and?
I have no idea what this even is and I am hyped
Deathstalker Gets A Reboot!
- Thread starter Reynard
- Start date
I have no idea what this even is and I am hyped
Paul Farquhar
Legend
I guess I'm wondering, to what end? Is it simply to cash in on the nostalgia of 50-something geeks? That seems like a very limited target audience. Or does it have something to say?
Mind of tempest
(he/him)advocate for 5e psionics
I am not 50 by a long shot
Benjamin Olson
Hero
Just saw the new Deathstalker, and I was pleasantly surprised. It is definitely a B movie made on a small budget with limited ambitions, but within those limitations they basically knocked it out of the park. Strong action comedy script, serviceable acting (which for a cheap action movie is good), much better pacing than most fantasy movies have, all or nearly all practical effects with all the charm people hope for out of that, and easily the most creative monster design of basically any movie I've seen without Lucasfilm and/or the Henson company involved. An homage to 80s fantasy that easily surpasses most of its source material (though I think the movie it borrowed the most from was actually Jason and the Argonauts). Also, other than focusing on one character and a couple companions who come and go it played out basically like a D&D campaign and I think many viewers will find an idea or two for their fantasy roleplaying. Oh, and the cute young female thief who teams up with our much older male hero: they don't have an age inappropriate romance like Hollywood historically would have done, nor does he become some sort of father figure for her like Hollywood would insist on doing today. They're just people who adventure together and become buddies, and it's a nice change of pace.
The only places where I felt it fell down a little is the cinematography was pretty cramped and confined, probably to keep sets and locations small, and there's probably never a scene with more than seven or eight people it it (other than some clips of what I think is stock footage from the original). Obviously there was a limited budget, but just a few long shots of Deathstalker questing somewhere out in nature and a crowd scene or two would have made the budget limitations on those fronts less noticeable. In any case, while I really like it it's definitely not some sort of grand spectacle that really needs to be properly seen in the cinema. The charitable reading of the cinematography was that it was shot more for the small screen. And this is good news because it seems to be getting only a very limited release.
Anyway, I went in out of a compulsion to see every cheesy fantasy movie, and was blown away that this one of which I had virtually no expectations was way above average in most respects. Very glad I saw it. Movies that are homages to cheesy movies usually fall flat for me, because they usually use that premise as an excuse to not try very hard, but this one was clearly made with serious love and just got almost everything right. If the genre appeals to you make sure to see Deathstalker (2025) when you get the chance.
The only places where I felt it fell down a little is the cinematography was pretty cramped and confined, probably to keep sets and locations small, and there's probably never a scene with more than seven or eight people it it (other than some clips of what I think is stock footage from the original). Obviously there was a limited budget, but just a few long shots of Deathstalker questing somewhere out in nature and a crowd scene or two would have made the budget limitations on those fronts less noticeable. In any case, while I really like it it's definitely not some sort of grand spectacle that really needs to be properly seen in the cinema. The charitable reading of the cinematography was that it was shot more for the small screen. And this is good news because it seems to be getting only a very limited release.
Anyway, I went in out of a compulsion to see every cheesy fantasy movie, and was blown away that this one of which I had virtually no expectations was way above average in most respects. Very glad I saw it. Movies that are homages to cheesy movies usually fall flat for me, because they usually use that premise as an excuse to not try very hard, but this one was clearly made with serious love and just got almost everything right. If the genre appeals to you make sure to see Deathstalker (2025) when you get the chance.
