Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.0

Merlin and the War of the Dragons Blu-ray Movie Review

Sigh.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 29, 2010

You must kill him, this Merlin, before he is the death of us all.

Another day, another miserable low-budget Merlin movie. As if Merlin and the Book of Beasts wasn't bad enough, Merlin and the War of the Dragons is enough to turn even the most ardent Merlin fan against the famous wizard and give up entirely on the lore, magic, and appeal of Arthurian times. Though both films are radically different in tone, style, story, and see Merlin at different stages of his life (in Book of Beasts he's apparently reverse-aging, sports long hair, and looks and sounds like he's high through the whole movie, while in War of the Dragons he's a young 20-year-old and winner of the James Van Der Beek look-alike contest), they're both equally abysmal in just about every facet of the filmmaking process. Surprisingly, though, both films prove somewhat superior next to many of their SyFy (Beasts) and Asylum (Dragons) brethren, but they still rate poorly next to more substantial and bigger-budgeted fare.

Gorbachev ain't got nothin' on Merlin.

The time: 420 A.D. The place: Britain, a nation in turmoil. The Romans have pulled out, local kings are vying for power, and bloodshed is commonplace. The dark ages are descending upon the land, but a magical element remains. It is a time of sorcery and great mystical powers, and born to this period is a young man named Merlin whose future may be Britain's only hope. At the age of 20, Merlin (Simon Lloyd-Roberts) is studying under a wise mage (Jürgen Prochnow) alongside another pupil, Vendiger (Joseph Stacey). Vendiger and Merlin -- against the latter's better judgment -- steal a powerful book known as "The Book of Secrets" from their sleepy mage and through it reveal a damning secret about Merlin's past. Obsessed with the power the book holds, Vendiger goes rogue in search of its power and commands a powerful dragon army in hopes of retrieving it. The country's only hope is Merlin, who must not only defeat the dangerous Vendiger, but also help fend off an invading army with its sights set on gaining power over an already war-weary populace.

For a movie from The Asylum -- the studio that makes poor knockoffs of blockbusters in hopes of fooling a few of the less-informed would-be movie renters and buyers into picking up their film instead of the real mccoy -- Merlin and The War of the Dragons isn't too bad. That's not to give it much credit, because it's still a poor movie, but it sparkles next to some of the studio's other and far lesser "mockbusters" like War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave. The production team got the most out of whatever the budget may have been (which was obviously not much, and the bulk of it likely went to Jürgen Prochnow), and discounting the quality of the story, Merlin and The War of the Dragons more often than not looks good and sometimes even feels like a "real" movie. Of course, the special effects are just awful in a mid-1980s awful sort of way. The image literally shakes and shimmies and becomes blurred and choppy every time an effect pops up on screen; the special effects in The Evil Dead looked as good as these.

Unfortunately, the problems don't end there. The basic plot of Merlin and The War of the Dragons isn't always coherent, due in part to some lazy writing and middling acting, but also in part because the picture's so tired and dull that it has to work hard to keep the audience interested. It's in those segments that the movie pushes itself to be better than it should be that it falls apart. For instance, there's a major ground battle near the end of the film where it's obvious that only a handful of actors are present, but the filmmakers use every trick up their sleeves to make it look there are hundreds more on the field. The sequence never looks right, and it's more of a distraction than a help to the movie. It's probably worth giving Merlin some praise for making an effort to stand above the typical Asylum fare; compared to War of the Worlds 2, which has to be the epitome of fly-by-the-seat-of-the-pants knockoff filmmaking with zero production values, Merlin manages to at least look and even sometimes play as a respectable, but still subpar, picture. The film was directed by Mark Atkins, who, according to his IMDB page, has worked on several Asylum films both as Director and Cinematographer. He shows just enough talent in Merlin that it would at least be interesting to see what he could so with a better script and a bigger budget.

Merlin and the War of the Dragons Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Echo Bridge brings Merlin and the War of the Dragons to Blu-ray with a surprisingly good 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer. Though the image appears quite smooth, it doesn't lack in fine detail; faces come alive with well-rendered wrinkles, pores, bumps, scars, moles, and other small nuances. Likewise, textures on clothing, walls, and terrain are consistently sharp. Colors are slightly dulled and reflective of the film's cold, gray nature, but blacks are rather strong with only minimal crush evident. As to the transfer's minuses, moderate banding is apparent in places, contrast sometimes wavers, and flesh tones appear rather pasty. Though it has a few problems, Merlin and the War of the Dragons looks rather good on Blu-ray.

Merlin and the War of the Dragons Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Merlin and the War of the Dragons does have one positive surprise up its sleeve. Rather than the Dolby Digital 5.1 track advertised on the back of the box, the disc actually features a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Likely due to its low budget, this is not the most engaging, clear, or luxurious lossless track in existence, but it's hard to complain too much about a surprise like this. Unfortunately, this one is far too loud at reference volume; make sure to keep the knob turned down well beyond the normal level and work up from there. Though it doesn't lack in raw power, it is absent some finer nuances that would have made this a more complete listen; surrounds aren't as engaged as one might hope, and the low end, while aggressive and defined, isn't all that potent. Music and dialogue are both suitably crisp. While not a memorable track, Merlin and the War of the Dragons' DTSD-HD MA 5.1 mix probably represents about the best anyone could hope for out of a budget Asylum title.

Merlin and the War of the Dragons Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Merlin and the War of the Dragons offers no supplements.

Merlin and the War of the Dragons Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Merlin and the War of the Dragons is one of The Asylum's better efforts, but even a blind squirrel sometimes finds a nut and the Pittsburgh Pirates manage to win a game or two every now and then. The moral of the story: even bad things can look reasonably good at-a-glance, and while Merlin looks great next to other Asylum movies and isn't a total travesty, it's still no better than a routine made-for-TV or direct-to-video dud. Echo Bridge's Blu-ray release sports a surprisingly decent 1080p transfer and a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack that's not advertised on the packaging. Unfortunately, no extras and a decent technical presentation can't mask what is a fairly bland movie. For a really dull night in front of the television, rent this one alongside Merlin and the Book of Beasts.