Search - Far Cry on DVD

Sloppy

ribcage | Lantana, Florida United States | 11/13/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Look, Uwe Boll directed it and his track record isn't so hot, but even if you ignore any bias against the director it's still sloppy. The story is crammed together elements from the video game, the action sequences while set up to be awesome are filmed so carelessly that they lose all their impact, and the acting of course is garbage.

Of course, I wasn't expecting much out of the acting. It's an action film based on a hyperactive violent video game that I've actually had the pleasure of playing. The video game's story was a bit intriguing, though, so I did have some expectations out of that, although they weren't especially high.

Obviously, I watched Far Cry for the ACTION! Well, for the expectation of ACTION! Because Far Cry's action is certainly not an ALL-CAPS affair. There's a pretty cool SUV chase in the beginning and some acceptable shoot-outs at the end, but given the fact that you have to sit through the rest of the movie for these sequences they just aren't worth it.

If the pace had been ramped up a bit, this would have been a great little action flick. But it looks as if Boll thought he actually had a story to tell. I didn't play the video game for the story, why would I watch the movie for that? If I wanted the story I'd hop on wikipedia and just read the synopsis. I wanted visual visceral thrills in both cases. Which is why I played the game and why I made the mistake of watching the film.

I'm giving it two stars instead of one because despite the chase in the beginning and the frantic shootouts at the end being the only standout moments there was at least the tiniest bit of action and story to keep me watching. Not enough to warrant anything more and certainly not enough to warrant this film getting any money.

If you've got a really dull afternoon and can watch this film for free and are a general action film junkie regardless of the caliber of the film and are willing to sit through a whole film for a decent finale, well, sure go for it. I did it and at the very least I don't regret it.

But, seriously, that is A LOT of criteria to meet before you sit down and watch this, so by no means should you actually purchase this thing."

About what you'd expect

N. Durham | Philadelphia, PA | 11/25/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"That's right everybody, Uwe Boll has struck again. The director known for adapting video games into horrible films such as House of the Dead, Alone in the Dark, and Blood Rayne is here again this time around with a take on Far Cry, and while the end result is nothing as bad as the previously mentioned films, it doesn't amount to a whole lot either. Til Schweiger (Inglorious Basterds) stars as Jack Carver, an ex-soldier turned boat tour guide who, along with a reporter (Emmanuelle Vaugier) searching for her uncle (Ralf Moeller), are captured and taken prisoner on a remote, mysterious island where a mad scientist (Udo Kier) is conducting genetic experiments. The action sequences are stale up until the end of the film, and while there also manages to be some surprisingly nicely done chase sequences (for a film by Boll that is), Far Cry still barely manages to be a step or two above ScyFy Channel quality for the most part. The comedic moments that come about aren't funny one bit, but thankfully Schweiger plays it straight enough, and is probably the best leading man that has ever starred in one of Boll's films (please don't mention Jason Statham). All in all, Far Cry is certainly not Boll's worst, but considering the fact that his recent flicks like Postal and Seed have shown us a better director is in there somewhere, this film is simply a disappointment, which more than likely isn't a surprise to anyone at all."