For the better part of a decade and half, the film industry has been booming with comic book films. The Marvel Cinematic Universe redefined what these characters could do on the big screen. Likewise, rival DC Comics boasted the Oscar winning trilogy of The Dark Knight, which equally re-envisioned one of the company's most iconic characters in a groundbreaking new way, paving the way for future stories like Joker or Netflix's The Punisher. While this side of the business has been booming, executives have been trying to find their next big juggernaut in video game films.

We’ve seen several attempts over the years, but they haven’t quite input the Konami code of success yet. It’s interesting to look at filmmakers who pursue these types of movies. When you look at some of our latest offerings in Sonic the Hedgehog or Detective Pikachu, we find filmmakers who have made headway in terms of cracking the “curse” of these movies. Then you have filmmakers like Paul W.S. Anderson, who has accumulated a cult audience for his work in the genre. However, the rest of us just find these movies as offensive as Mortal Kombat: Annihilation or Double Dragon.

What if video games need to just be left to be that? What if there actually shouldn’t be that crossover between the mediums? Could we still see a good video game movie with completely unknown characters? Could an independent movie like The Intergalactic Adventures of Max Cloud break this curse? The short answer is no. No, he can’t. Scott Adkins suits up as a beloved 90s sidescroller character Max Cloud when a young fan (Isabelle Allen) gets sucked into the game. She must assist Max in beating the game to ensure her survival in the real world. Cloud has all the potential to break the video game movie curse with its rocking soundtrack and visuals, which also make it feel like a product of the 90s.

I recently started my venture into VHS collecting and I’ve come to find that there are a lot of movies that slid under the radar. Forever forgotten in the obscurity of 90s cinema. That’s largely how Max Cloud feels as a film. Max Cloud will no doubt thrill video game fans but will annoy most of the general population. I unfortunately fall in the latter category. Once the movie finally opens up outside of the game, what viewers will find is painfully bad acting. The interactions between Allen and her father (Sam Hazeldine) is the type of acting you’d expect from a high school production. Thankfully, these interactions are held to a minimum. Though, the world of the video game isn’t much better.

Instead of bad acting, we get overacting. Adkins could be the biggest culprit of this crime. I take it he’s supposed to be the archetype of Schwarzengger or Stallone. Even when they introduce him, he’s obnoxiously jacked until he’s not. I will let the movie reveal that for you. It’s the movie letting you know that this is the type of character we are getting ready to spend the next hour and half with. Once the movie gets moving, however, he does calm down. Once he reaches actual emotion, he’s no longer overacting; he’s finally just acting. By the end of the film you actually begin to fall in love with his character. It’s a beautiful redemption story, but man does it take a while to get there. Then you have the villain Revengor, played by John Hannah, who seemingly is the only one in the entire movie that actually understands its tone. He’s playing into that bad acting and overacting equally but manages to find equal footing and become a parody of both. Honestly, he’s the true star of the movie.

With its setting taking place within a video game, viewers can expect to have some degree of grand set designs. Max Cloud doesn’t disappoint on that front. Its vibrant atmosphere helps establish a plethora of fun viewers can expect. The back and forth between the video game world and its 16-bit counterpart are a celebration of both eras of video games. It’s a love letter that will satisfy hardcore gamers but once again may bore the average viewer. Max Cloud is fun but forgettable. It’s paced tremendously well and will find its audience as it soars among the pixelated stars.

Overall, Max Cloud borders on so-bad-it’s-good territory. The movie has everything that would qualify it to be just that. Terrible acting and overacting are the bread and butter of Max Cloud. Then somewhere in the middle lies John Hannah, arguably the best star of the movie. Max Cloud is paced fairly well and hosts a bumping soundtrack that wonderfully reflects the fun of the film. Max Cloud is an acquired taste. It will satisfy hardcore gamers but that’s about it.

RORSHACH RATING:

Mental Health Moment: The premise of the movie follows a young girl who gets sucked into a video game. She has to trust her friend, Cowboy (Franz Drameh), to get her to the end of the game and relieve her in real life. That’s a deep level of trust. That same capacity needs to be embodied when we are coming into the vulnerability of discussing our mental health with others. Creating for ourselves a safe environment free of judgment or shame is huge when it comes to mental health. From someone that has been in a situation where I have felt like I couldn’t trust my circle, it further hindered my mental health. It drove me closer to suicide than I would ever care to admit. Sarah has to seriously trust Cowboy to restore her back to her healthy, and physical, body. In the same we need to surround ourselves with communities that can restore our mental health back to the healthiest of conditions. If you need resources, or community, please check out our resource library.

If you or someone you know is reading this right now and struggling with suicide, depression, addiction, or self-harm - please reach out. Comment, message, or tweet at us. Go to victimsandvillains.net/hope for more resources. Call the suicide lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Text "HELP" to 741-741. There is hope & you DO have so much value and worth!

Victims and Villains is written (and produced) by Josh "Captain Nostalgia" Burkey and others, and edited by Cam Smith. Music by Mallory Johnson and others. The Intergalactic Adventures of Max Cloud is property of Well Go USA. We do not own nor claim any rights.

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