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Cryptic (2014)
Dir. Bart Ruspoli, Freddie Hutton-Mills
Starring: Ed Stoppard, Vas Blackwood, Dan Feuerriegel
Cryptic wants audiences to believe that it's Reservoir Dogs in a tomb (one of the characters even says as much, without outwardly stating the film's title), but the truth is that the movie is nowhere near as clever as it thinks it is. The entire movie takes place in a small crypt, as a group of unstable, armed criminals, including a gun runner, sex traffickers, drug dealers, and a rapist, trap themselves inside while waiting for their boss to arrive. After a message reveals that one of the men inside is a traitor, the tension between the characters is pushed to the limit, and when rumours of a vampire start to spread among the more gullible members, an interesting premise is born.
Being an independent production, I was not expecting much in the visual department, however I was expecting more than what ended up on screen. There's nothing creative or even vaguely interesting about the set, lighting, or individual shots, and I'd go as far as saying that the sound design was really poorly handled. The only thing I really liked the look of was the opening credits. I do appreciate that the film tries to infuse some comedy into the cold atmosphere, with a couple of dangerously incompetent characters overreacting to every new piece of information, however their inherent campiness is unfortunately downplayed when it would've worked better had they been exaggerated instead.
The film relies almost entirely on its dialogue to carry viewers' interest, and to its credit most of the actors do give really good performances. Both Dan Feuerriegel and Sally Leonard attempt accents that fail to hit the mark, though they're not going to make or break the movie. Instead, your enjoyment of this film will largely hinge upon how you feel about Ed Stoppard's performance, because he carries the brunt of the film's lines, and barely gets a minute to catch his breath. I personally think he does an admirable job and is fairly entertaining to watch, however I was growing tired of his character around the midway point.
Though it started out as an interesting concept, Cryptic unfortunately ends up being underwhelming with a disappointing and predictable climax. I think I would've liked this move more a decade ago, and I actually think the story would lend itself well to being a stage play instead of a film. If you're a big fan of movies like Hateful Eight, then perhaps you will be more entertained than I was.
Do not, like I did, fall for the way the film markets itself on its DVD cover.
Check this out only if you want a subdued dialogue-intensive movie that is
light on both intrigue and suspense.
Cryptic (2014)
Dir. Bart Ruspoli, Freddie Hutton-Mills
Starring: Ed Stoppard, Vas Blackwood, Dan Feuerriegel
Cryptic wants audiences to believe that it's Reservoir Dogs in a tomb (one of the characters even says as much, without outwardly stating the film's title), but the truth is that the movie is nowhere near as clever as it thinks it is. The entire movie takes place in a small crypt, as a group of unstable, armed criminals, including a gun runner, sex traffickers, drug dealers, and a rapist, trap themselves inside while waiting for their boss to arrive. After a message reveals that one of the men inside is a traitor, the tension between the characters is pushed to the limit, and when rumours of a vampire start to spread among the more gullible members, an interesting premise is born.
Being an independent production, I was not expecting much in the visual department, however I was expecting more than what ended up on screen. There's nothing creative or even vaguely interesting about the set, lighting, or individual shots, and I'd go as far as saying that the sound design was really poorly handled. The only thing I really liked the look of was the opening credits. I do appreciate that the film tries to infuse some comedy into the cold atmosphere, with a couple of dangerously incompetent characters overreacting to every new piece of information, however their inherent campiness is unfortunately downplayed when it would've worked better had they been exaggerated instead.
The film relies almost entirely on its dialogue to carry viewers' interest, and to its credit most of the actors do give really good performances. Both Dan Feuerriegel and Sally Leonard attempt accents that fail to hit the mark, though they're not going to make or break the movie. Instead, your enjoyment of this film will largely hinge upon how you feel about Ed Stoppard's performance, because he carries the brunt of the film's lines, and barely gets a minute to catch his breath. I personally think he does an admirable job and is fairly entertaining to watch, however I was growing tired of his character around the midway point.
Though it started out as an interesting concept, Cryptic unfortunately ends up being underwhelming with a disappointing and predictable climax. I think I would've liked this move more a decade ago, and I actually think the story would lend itself well to being a stage play instead of a film. If you're a big fan of movies like Hateful Eight, then perhaps you will be more entertained than I was.
Do not, like I did, fall for the way the film markets itself on its DVD cover.
Check this out only if you want a subdued dialogue-intensive movie that is
light on both intrigue and suspense.