Review of Darkon (2006) by Bryan G — 19 Nov 2007

[font=Courier New]Luke Meter and Andrew Neel?s [i]Darkon[/i] asks the question ?If a bunch of grownup nerds get together in the woods and have make believe battles over fictitious landscapes and situations, is it worth putting on film?? [i]Darkon[/i] isn?t a film for everyone I will admit, but I will say that I found a lot of enjoyment out of the movie. Maybe it is the fact that deep inside me is a nerd just dying to break free.

The nice thing about this film is that it doesn?t poke fun at its subject matter. In fact, the movie works so well in my opinion because it lets the people it is documenting about to talk without the filmmakers chiming in with their thoughts and viewpoints. It is actually kind of fun that the movie treats the made-up word of Darkon as if it were a real place, or at least that this was an actual movie and not a documentary.

It is also interesting to see the real lives behind the various characters in the Darkon universe. A lot of the people use Darkon to fill in a void in their lives. The movie?s tagline is ?Everybody wants to be a hero,? and for a lot of people something like Darkon is the only source for them to live out their dreams. Most of the movie?s highlight moments were the moments were you see these people at home with their spouses, children or parents and see just how normal these people really are. Even if they are dressing up in medieval gear and battling on soccer fields.

If you aren?t into role playing games, or find people?s obsession with fantasy stories not your cup of tea, then [i]Darkon[/i] most likely won?t work for you. But if you have an open mind, then you might find [i]Darkon[/i] to be an entertaining watch.[/font].