Call it bad level design or broken code; either way, Gamebox is as much fun as playing Halo 3…in a house without electricity.
Video:
Presented in widescreen with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, "Gamebox" is a hard film to watch. Filmed on a green screen using only a small group of actors and a handful of grade-school gymnastic teachers wearing head-to-toe suits, "Gamebox" tries to reach the levels of achievement showcased by "Sin City" or "300" but simply can't, due to its $200,000 budget. Trying to watch the video game worlds was difficult, for while they do look eerily similar to a real game, it's a game from 1994, and who wants to watch that?
Audio:
The 5.1 Dolby Digital surround audio track sounds decent enough, but when all it features are silly, recycled sound effects and an overwhelming Jerry Goldsmith-style score, what's the point?
Extras:
The audio commentary featuring the directing duo of Dave and Scott Hillenbrand, co-executive producer John Coven, and editor Dave O'Brein is just ridiculous. I understand that these gentlemen put a lot of blood, sweat, and time into "Gamebox," but the way they gush over it as if they created some magnificent piece of art is laughable. These are the guys who made the "National Lampoon Dorm Daze" trilogy (no "trilogy" isn't a typo), for crying out loud. A little bit more enjoyable (and better grounded in reality) is the thirteen-minute "Making of Gamebox 1.0," featuring behind-the-scenes footage and interesting looks at how the special effects were created. Less required viewing are the twelve minutes of "Deleted/Extended Scenes" and the five minutes of bloopers. Neither are worth the combined seventeen minutes they waste. The removed scenes are mostly inane dialogue, and the bloopers are simply boring.
Film Value:
Call it bad level design or broken code; either way, "Gamebox 1.0" is about as much fun as playing "Halo 3"…in a house without electricity. Featuring effects bad enough to cause even the folks at the Sci-Fi Channel to cringe and a plot that's just plain insulting to even the most average video-game player, "Gamebox 1.0" "pwned" itself. In this day and age, where the release of a video-game console is followed at length by every major media outlet, the Hillenbrands seem out of touch. Why else is the viewer forced to believe that somebody working in the video-game industry isn't even remotely curious about how a brand-new console featuring never-before-seen technology arrives on their doorstep unannounced? Perhaps as a former game tester for multiple companies and a lifelong game junkie, I'm a bit harsh, but I'm the audience these guys were aiming for. For those looking for a better video game flick, I'd highly recommend Cronenberg's "eXistenZ," "Brainscan," or even "The Last Starfighter." And as far as green-screen films go, just stick to "Sin City" or the surprisingly good "300" and save your free rental coupon for something else.
Presented in widescreen with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, "Gamebox" is a hard film to watch. Filmed on a green screen using only a small group of actors and a handful of grade-school gymnastic teachers wearing head-to-toe suits, "Gamebox" tries to reach the levels of achievement showcased by "Sin City" or "300" but simply can't, due to its $200,000 budget. Trying to watch the video game worlds was difficult, for while they do look eerily similar to a real game, it's a game from 1994, and who wants to watch that?
Audio:
The 5.1 Dolby Digital surround audio track sounds decent enough, but when all it features are silly, recycled sound effects and an overwhelming Jerry Goldsmith-style score, what's the point?
Extras:
The audio commentary featuring the directing duo of Dave and Scott Hillenbrand, co-executive producer John Coven, and editor Dave O'Brein is just ridiculous. I understand that these gentlemen put a lot of blood, sweat, and time into "Gamebox," but the way they gush over it as if they created some magnificent piece of art is laughable. These are the guys who made the "National Lampoon Dorm Daze" trilogy (no "trilogy" isn't a typo), for crying out loud. A little bit more enjoyable (and better grounded in reality) is the thirteen-minute "Making of Gamebox 1.0," featuring behind-the-scenes footage and interesting looks at how the special effects were created. Less required viewing are the twelve minutes of "Deleted/Extended Scenes" and the five minutes of bloopers. Neither are worth the combined seventeen minutes they waste. The removed scenes are mostly inane dialogue, and the bloopers are simply boring.
Film Value:
Call it bad level design or broken code; either way, "Gamebox 1.0" is about as much fun as playing "Halo 3"…in a house without electricity. Featuring effects bad enough to cause even the folks at the Sci-Fi Channel to cringe and a plot that's just plain insulting to even the most average video-game player, "Gamebox 1.0" "pwned" itself. In this day and age, where the release of a video-game console is followed at length by every major media outlet, the Hillenbrands seem out of touch. Why else is the viewer forced to believe that somebody working in the video-game industry isn't even remotely curious about how a brand-new console featuring never-before-seen technology arrives on their doorstep unannounced? Perhaps as a former game tester for multiple companies and a lifelong game junkie, I'm a bit harsh, but I'm the audience these guys were aiming for. For those looking for a better video game flick, I'd highly recommend Cronenberg's "eXistenZ," "Brainscan," or even "The Last Starfighter." And as far as green-screen films go, just stick to "Sin City" or the surprisingly good "300" and save your free rental coupon for something else.
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[release]20767[/release]