movie review: "Ink"
Unusual movie recommendation: Ink
This is an unusual movie recommendation in that, up front, I will admit that the film has poor to mediocre acting and a lack-luster script which is at times actively bad. I really liked it anyway.
After trying to sell the film (and his directing) to some big movie companies, director-screenwriter Jamin Winans decided to make the film himself with esentially no budget. (This helps explain the poor acting which is only exacerbated by the script which needed revisions from a more experienced screenwriter.) Knowing these limitations, I almost like “Ink” better.
It’s hard to write about this film without spoilers (the Netflix description contains some), but here is my attempt: “Ink” offers a glimpse into a dreamworld where the forces of good, ‘storytellers,’ bring mortals good dreams and work in opposition to the forces of nightmarish evil, the incubi. “Ink” is the story of a “lost soul” who kidnaps a little girl’s soul into the realm of dreams thereby sending her into an real world coma. The film deals with the quest to save her from beocming a sacrifice to the incubi.
Ink’s story concept pushes all my fantasy fiction buttons. Most importantly it has an unseen battle between good and evil with real world consequences. Also, its narrative is not a romance. Instead, this is a narrative about complex familial relationships. (Also, it depicts investment banking as a tool of cosmic evil; what’s not to love?) The backstory and characterizations are well plotted and increasingly interesting and complex. I just plain love it.
The shots are beautiful. The story concept is excellent and reminds me of Neil Gaiman or (dare I say it) my own writing. (See, now you understand why I like it… I like things that remind me of me, though in this case it hits almost too close to the mark for comfort.) At its worst, this movie reminds me of “Eragon,” but at its best it reminds me of “Pan’s Labrynth,” “Coraline,” “Wings of Desire” and “Donny Darko.”
So take all this with a grain of salt, but if you can overlook its more obvious flaws, you might really like.
This is an unusual movie recommendation in that, up front, I will admit that the film has poor to mediocre acting and a lack-luster script which is at times actively bad. I really liked it anyway.
After trying to sell the film (and his directing) to some big movie companies, director-screenwriter Jamin Winans decided to make the film himself with esentially no budget. (This helps explain the poor acting which is only exacerbated by the script which needed revisions from a more experienced screenwriter.) Knowing these limitations, I almost like “Ink” better.
It’s hard to write about this film without spoilers (the Netflix description contains some), but here is my attempt: “Ink” offers a glimpse into a dreamworld where the forces of good, ‘storytellers,’ bring mortals good dreams and work in opposition to the forces of nightmarish evil, the incubi. “Ink” is the story of a “lost soul” who kidnaps a little girl’s soul into the realm of dreams thereby sending her into an real world coma. The film deals with the quest to save her from beocming a sacrifice to the incubi.
Ink’s story concept pushes all my fantasy fiction buttons. Most importantly it has an unseen battle between good and evil with real world consequences. Also, its narrative is not a romance. Instead, this is a narrative about complex familial relationships. (Also, it depicts investment banking as a tool of cosmic evil; what’s not to love?) The backstory and characterizations are well plotted and increasingly interesting and complex. I just plain love it.
The shots are beautiful. The story concept is excellent and reminds me of Neil Gaiman or (dare I say it) my own writing. (See, now you understand why I like it… I like things that remind me of me, though in this case it hits almost too close to the mark for comfort.) At its worst, this movie reminds me of “Eragon,” but at its best it reminds me of “Pan’s Labrynth,” “Coraline,” “Wings of Desire” and “Donny Darko.”
So take all this with a grain of salt, but if you can overlook its more obvious flaws, you might really like.