Gamer (2009) - Film Review
Butler, Hall, & Ludacris Prove Film is Bloodier than Video Games
Nov 6, 2009
If one were to combine the gameplay experiences of popular video games, The Sims, Grand Theft Auto, and Call of Duty, into a virtual reality simulator through which people could control their characters' movements, the result would be a video game universe free of morality or consequences. If those characters were, in fact, real, controllable humans, slaves to the game player's every whim, the results would be a truly disgusting world where the Haves exploit the Have-Nots simply to satisfy their sickest, vilest, most hedonistic desires.
Such is the premise behind Gamer, starring Gerard Butler, Michael C. Hall, Logan Lerman, and Ludacris. Created by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the dynamic duo who wrote and directed Crank and Crank: High Voltage, it's no surprise that Gamer is loaded with violence, anger, aggression, action, and bloodshed, all topped off by a very high death count. But is that all Gamer has to offer?
Neveldine and Taylor's Gamer Provides a New Twist on Other Action and Sci-Fi Film Greats
Prisoners volunteering or "enlisted" into deadly competitions with the prize being their freedom is nothing new to film. The Running Man, Condemned, and Death Race (the 2008 version, starring Neveldine and Taylor's Crank bone breaker, Jason Statham) are but a few movies that employ this concept. But Gamer adds a science fiction twist — mind control.
Michael C. Hall, best known for his leading roles in HBO's Six Feet Under and Showtime's Dexter, stars as Gamer's villain, Ken Castle. Castle is the multi-billionaire creator of two video games, Society and Slayers. Through nano-technology, the former allows gamers to control real people, allowing the players to live out their wildest fantasies through the eyes and ears of their human puppets.
Slayers is even more sinister; it allows players to control heavily armed convicts in pay-per-view financed warfare. Convicts who survive 30 battles are awarded their freedom. Not surprisingly, this has never happened.
But one convict has won 27 battles and the fans adoration. He is Kable, played by Gerard Butler (300, RocknRolla, Law Abiding Citizen). Simon Silverton (Logan Lerman), a seventeen year-old rich kid, controls Kable, successfully maneuvering him through each battle.
As Kable draws closer to his final battle, Castle ups the stakes. Castle has no intentions of releasing Kable — an unknown history between the two compels him to act. He sends in Hackman (Terry Crews), a ruthless murderer, with instructions to kill Kable.
But Humanz, and activist group working to expose Castle's true agenda, has other plans. The group's leader (Ludacris) convinces Simon to release his control over Kable. Kable escapes prison during his final battle. Thus, the hunt is on, with Castle and Kable each wanting the other dead.
The Cast of Gamer is Full of Recognizable Faces
Performances in Gamer were sacrificed for action and violence. Although none were particularly terrible, no characters had enough background, depth, or dialogue for viewers to become emotionally invested in their fates. Unlike his outstanding performances as the sicko Dexter, Hall's Castle is a sicko viewers won't like — a good thing, since in Gamer, he's not supposed to be likable. Kyra Sedgwick also stands out as a talk show host with her own agenda. Butler and Lerman are adequate, while Amber Valletta (Perfume, Hitch, Transporter 2) brings some feeling to an otherwise cold film. Ludacris' lines, however, seem forced and lack impact.
Rounding out the cast were some recognizable faces, like Alison Lohman (Drag Me to Hell), Terry Crews (The Longest Yard), and John Leguizamo (Summer of Sam). None were memorable.
With Gamer, Neveldine and Taylor Prove Once Again that They Like Video Games
As though the Crank films weren't enough to prove it, Gamer serves as Neveldine and Taylor's homage to their love of video games. But where the old Atari/ColecoVision-type games were referenced in the duo's earlier films, Gamer acts as one big film promotion of role-playing escapism and first-person shooters.
But Gamer is no Final Fantasy. It is a hardcore display of violence and near-pornographic sexuality. In short, those who like to play Grand Theft Auto to procure the services of a prostitute, only to later retrieve her earnings by (a) running her over; (b) beating her with a baseball bat; or (c) opening fire on her, her pimp, her family, her puppy, and anyone else within a fifty-mile radius, those people will find this film utterly enjoyable. For everyone else, Gamer is great in concept, a little over-the-top in execution, a bit light on plot and acting, and a bit heavy on mindlessness. Rent it, but watch it after the kids are soundly asleep.
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