Midnight Chronicles

Directed by: Christian T Petersen

Starring: Charles Hubbell, Dawn Brody

Synopsis:

Based on the Role Playing Game of the same name, The Midnight Chronicles sees the Legate Mag Kiln, infamous for hunting down other legates who had renounced their dark lord, arrive in the small town of Blackweir to finish the building of the Shadow Temple and discover the whereabouts of the previous Legate. Once there, Mag discovers a number of scams and conspiracies, including a local rebel going by the name of The Hunter...



Review:

This is the second movie to come along based purely on a Role Playing Game (the first being the superior Mutant Chronicles). If it weren’t for the ponderous and sluggish pace, I would be whole-heartedly recommending this. Fans of such console games as Oblivion are going to feel right at home with this movie, as it manages to evoke a similar time and place. There are some nice establishing shots of armies of Orcs and men which are very similar to ones from the Lord of the Rings trilogy and we get snippets of life in a town oppressed by Orcs and mages.

What is interesting is that the movie isn’t concerned much about the local rebels, although they do play a part. The main focus is on Mag Kiln and his investigation into the disappearance of his predecessor. It’s akin to making a murder mystery where a Gestapo captain is the hero. Considering that Mag Kiln is the movie’s most enigmatic character thanks to Charles Hubbell, this is a very wise decision.

Considering that this is based on a RPG you’d expect reams of exposition (something the beginning of Mutant Chronicles suffered) but it’s handled quite well and kept to short snippets of information. The external shots are very good – the initial scene showing the to-and-fro of town life – a stream of people heading in and out of the town gates – gives the movie a more expansive feel. However this isn’t carried over in a lot of the scenes shot on a studio set, where the town suddenly looks very under-populated. I have a feeling this is more to do with the size of the sets rather than the ability to reign in a few more extras.

The central mystery is quite well handled and the conclusion very open-ended: in the last five minutes we are introduced to a bunch of new characters who will presumably become more prominent in the planned sequel.

My only real problem with this movie is the pacing. Scenes drag as actors keep making long ponderous pauses in their speeches and there are too many shots of people walking through forests etc with no dialogue.

Verdict:

Charles Hubbell carries this film as the Legate Mag Kiln, and unfortunately the film drags when he’s not in a scene. The main mystery is well handled as is the exposition. However, even at just 100 minutes the film feels very slow at times.

5 out of 10 (MikeOutWest)