5.9 | / 10 |
Users | ![]() | 0.0 |
Reviewer | ![]() | 2.5 |
Overall | ![]() | 2.5 |
A group of costumed "Live Action Role Players," dressed as knights, elves and other medieval characters, take to the woods for "The Battle of Evermore." But when a make-believe wizard casts a spell from an ancient book, purchased on eBay, fantasy becomes reality as a powerful demon manifests itself. Can these pretend warriors muster the courage to save themselves and the rest of humanity?
Starring: Peter Dinklage, Summer Glau, Margarita Levieva, Steve Zahn, Jimmi SimpsonComedy | 100% |
Fantasy | 20% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | ![]() | 2.0 |
Video | ![]() | 3.5 |
Audio | ![]() | 4.0 |
Extras | ![]() | 3.0 |
Overall | ![]() | 2.5 |
Were it not alphabetized, thus revealing its status as an acronym, LARPing might otherwise sound like some kind of activity a species engages in shortly before metamorphosing. Of course LARP stands for Live Action Role Play (or Playing), which, if you’ve ever witnessed events by groups like the Society for Creative Anachronism, only go to prove that the participants are only attempting to metamorphose. There’s a certain wish fulfillment which seems to be part and parcel of most LARP communities, with otherwise relatively normal people dressing up in costumes and pretending to be fantastic characters from the annals of folklore, myth or science fiction. That’s one of the central subtexts to the occasionally amusing but ultimately kind of chaotic Knights of Badassdom, a 2013 comedy-horror hybrid that offers Ryan Kwanten (True Blood, Griff the Invisible, Not Suitable for Children) as a sadsack would be metal musician on the rebound from a romantic rebuff who is more or less kidnapped (while in a drunken stupor) by his best buddies to take part in a LARP festival recreating a kind of Dungeons and Dragons environment rife with wizards, warriors and (just for good measure) out of work actors in giant green monkey suits (they’re evidently supposed to be threatening). Knights of Badassdom actually begins with a brief prelude that sets up one of the central conceits of the film. Kwanten’s character is named Joe, a car mechanic who shares (rather improbably) a suburban castle with Hung (Peter Dinklage, doing a kind of B- movie Game of Thrones turn here) and Eric (Steve Zahn, Treme), both of whom are very active in a local LARP group. Hung and Eric are actually out on a LARP adventure in the film’s opening sequence, getting ready for some kind of ritual sacrifice which includes Eric reading from an apparently ancient tome. It turns out that the musty book is indeed a real life ancient book of spells, something that ends up playing a major part in the plot once the main storyline unfolds.
Knights of Badassdom is presented on Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. Fairly surprisingly for a film of such comparatively recent vintage, this high definition presentation is a bit on the "blah" side, especially when the film segues to its long night sequences, where milky black levels and underwhelming contrast often add up to a kind of murky and pretty soft looking appearance. The brighter day sequences are at least incrementally better, with nicely saturated colors and decent fine detail in close-ups, but even these moments aren't overly sharp looking. The special effects in the film are actually probably better than most might expect, and the CGI looks at least reasonable, and at times quite good. Dinklage mentions how tiny the budget on the film was in his supplementary interview, and that no doubt played into its appearance, but Knights of Badassdom is not going to win any videophile awards from high definition aficionados.
Knights of Badassdom's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is, like the video, a bit on the anemic side, but it does offer some decent immersion in the battle scenes (especially once the demons swing into action), as well as decent ambient environmental surround activity as the LARPers frolic in the forest. The low end of this track is probably the biggest letdown, especially since Joe is a would be metal head, and the film has several outbursts of supposed head banging music, all of which sound okay, but really not overly vigorous. Dialogue is presented very cleanly and clearly. There's nothing to really complain about here, but there's also not the amount of sonic "wow" some might be hoping for.
It's unfortunate when the credits of a film provide more unintentional laughs than the actual movie. Such is the case with Knights of Badassdom, with two people being credited as LARPER Consultants (did they dress up for the gig?) and an ungodly list of people credited as Executive Producer, something that makes the film look like a Kickstarter enterprise (was it?). This film boasts a solid cast, and even an appealing enough premise, but something sure got lost along the way. Fans of Kwanten, Glau or Dinklage may want to check this out, but even they may not be overly impressed by the occasionally middling video and less than punchy audio. At least there's some good stuff in the supplements, including a fun Comic-Con panel.
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