Gamer

Delirious depravity is the name of the game in the latest movie from gonzo filmmaking partners Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. The crazed minds behind the explosively energetic Crank series of films have now set their sights on the dystopian future of video games with their silly, action-packed marathon of gore titled Gamer. Located somewhere in the near future, Gamer depicts a relatively recognizable world where reality television and video games have converged, creating a new breed of ethically eerie entertainment.

The latest mixture of game and show is Slayers, a violent shoot 'em up that allows players to control real people embroiled in bloody battle. The twist is that each of the heavily-armed people being controlled in the war-like situations is actually a death row inmate who will be set free if they can survive thirty Slayers sessions. When the movie begins, we learn that gruff protagonist Kable (Gerard Butler, putting his intense charisma to acceptable use) is only a few wins away from freedom.

Since this is a movie bathing in dystopian themes, there must be a character of immense power and control who simply cannot be trusted. Enter reclusive billionaire Ken Castle, the brilliant mind behind the Slayers game, who is played with a nasty smirk by Michael C. Hall. Castle has a lot on his plate right now, with Slayers star Kable on the verge of becoming the first person ever to survive the necessary thirty sessions and an impending interview with a popular talk show host (Kyra Sedgwick, happily collecting a paycheque for angrily pursing her lips in every scene) occupying his time.

Oh yeah, and there's an underground group called the Humanz (they're scary and mysterious because they switch out the 's' for a 'z'), who are constantly hacking into the Slayers network and costing Castle loads of money in service problems. But don't worry about feeling sorry for Castle. Not only is he the movie's main villain, but Hall makes sure that his character is devoid of anything resembling humanity (humanzity?). Castle is one very bad dude and Kable is one very misunderstood dude who left a wife and daughter back in the real world, both of whom are currently in a rough place.

Even Kable's reason for being on death row may not be entirely honest, so the narrative intentions of Neveldine and Taylor are pretty obvious: love Kable, hate Castle. Watch Kable blow a lot of stuff up while gritting his teeth, then watch Castle be a power-hungry jerk. This is classic hero versus villain nonsense, but the buzzing electrical current that flows through Gamer's veins ensures that it is entertaining nonsense. As evidenced by their work in Crank and its sugar rush sequel Crank: High Voltage, Neveldine and Taylor don't like to sit still for very long. The camera is always on the move, the focus is always shifting, and the film stock has been sliced and diced in crude fashion.

The finished product emerges as a grotesque menagerie of grimy, gory sights and sounds. For any fans of the Crank franchise fearing that Neveldine and Taylor have gone soft and made a straightforward action movie, fear not. Gamer is filled with the expected exploitation of sexual depravity and icky imagery of disgusting men licking their slimy lips in close-ups. Somewhere in the midst of it all, the filmmakers are making a statement about the future of entertainment and the general decline of modern society.

But before the social commentary digs too deep, it's time for Kable to run around and shoot some more stuff. Gamer even features a few direct references to cinematic dystopian masterpiece Blade Runner, so it's fair to assume that Neveldine and Taylor enjoy flirting with the idea of ethical and moral disillusionment in the future. The pondering of these possibilities is present, but it's always buried underneath a pile of blood-soaked rubble. Such is the approach of Neveldine and Taylor to their specific form of entertainment. Toy with the big ideas, but never turn your back on the explosive toys.

With three movies under their filmmaking belts already, Neveldine and Taylor are confidently building a recognizably original brand that stands out in the crowd of cookie-cutter cinema. Some people have and will continue to embrace their brand, while others have and will continue to avoid it with spirited passion. I fall somewhere in the middle, where I appreciate their no-holds-barred imaginations, but have trouble fully embracing the sensationalist silliness of it all. Their movies are good for a laugh and an uncomfortable squirm, but that's about it.

Even then, I applaud the pair for being so singularly aware of who they are as entertainers. Their movies exist entirely in their own fabricated world, where life exists as a kaleidoscope of genres, ideas, and themes. At one point, early on in the movie, I jokingly thought to myself that I would love to see Neveldine and Taylor tackle a musical one day. And then, sure enough, a Sinatra-themed dance number shows up near the movie's end. I guess there's nothing that they won't do in the name of unhinged entertainment.

I feel the urge to congratulate Neveldine and Taylor for letting their cinematic imaginations roam so free, but it is that exact level of narrative freedom that causes a movie like Gamer to be such a mess. It may be a fun mess, but it's still a collection of scattered pieces scotch-taped together in a hopelessly ridiculous manner. I guess that's the way Neveldine and Taylor like it, so I won't be expecting their filmmaking style and abilities to evolve much further anytime soon. Judging by the frenzied energy that powers their movies, the pair still have a lot of gas left in the tank. That will be good news for some and bad news for others. But either way, Neveldine and Taylor are here to stay and it looks like their future path is paved with blood, guts, and big explosions.