I was chatting online the other day with a friend who pointed out that he’d stopped being interested in JJ Abrams’ version of Star Trek precisely because it became especially clear with the release of Star Trek Into Darkness that the franchise was no longer interested in exploring “ideas.” Since its inception, Gene Roddenberry’s space franchise wasn’t all that concerned with depicted war (per se) as it was interested in depicted the circumstances that caused it, the psychology that kept it going, and the emotional aftermath of having waged it. Unlike Star Wars, Trek was always about life and death, who we are and where we were headed, and the current incarnation seems far more infatuated with galaxy-spanning car chases and fisticuffs than it is the human condition.
That’s why a motion picture like Debug (2014) probably won’t win many converts to the genre of Science Fiction: it’s an idea-based flick that requires a bit of cerebral investment instead of the proliferation of flashy special effects and silver screen do-goodery. Written and directed (actor) David Hewlett, it’s a journey into the mind as well as it is into the fate of characters who’ve fallen from grace. Sure, maybe it won’t be for everyone’s jaundiced tastes … but it whet my whistle just fine.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the product packaging:
“In this tale of deep space cyberhorror, six young computer hackers are sent to work on a derelict space freighter as part of a work release program. They quickly fall prey to the ship’s vengeful artificial intelligence, a program that would kill to be human …”
There’s more, but – in fairness – I suspect that that lean premise is enough to know whether or not you’re seriously interested in what Debug has to offer. In the hands of creative folks who cared less about these ideas, it’s easy to predict how such a tale might’ve spiraled into B-movie-whackery; still, in Hewlett’s hands what audiences are given is a cerebral ‘what if’ pitting some flawed human beings racing against hope to save themselves from that which they’ve committed their lives to understanding best. Namely, artificial intelligence.
That alone makes Debug a vastly more interesting proposition that a handful of studio tentpole feature films I’ve had the misfortune of paying to see at the box office in the last few years, and I find it a lowdown dirty shame that some suit somewhere couldn’t have ponied up just a bit more scratch to give this film a bit less gloss in its hospital-like interiors along with a bit more utility. Hewlett and his merry band of pranksters didn’t let that stand in the way of their pursuits, and – in the end – perhaps Debug is better because of it. (Alas, we’ll probably never know … until this gets a studio reboot in ten to twenty years.)
As for the players?
Jason Momoa electronically drones his way through some oft muddled dialogue as the ship’s A.I., IAM. (Say THAT ten times fast!) It’s a perfunctory performance as a villain at best. The reliable Adrian Holmes could’ve had a bit more to do as the chain gang’s space warden, but he hits all of the necessary marks. Kerr Hewitt, Kyle Mac, (hubba hubba!) Sidney Leeder, and Jadyn Wong largely succeed in fleshing out a group of young cynics, each with their own cross to bear. But the real stand-outs here are relative newcomers Adam Butcher (as James) and Jeananne Goossen (as Kaida): together, they’re like a JV version of ‘Ripley & Hicks’ (from James Cameron’s Aliens) though their predicament isn’t as internally motivated nor textually nuanced. Basically, they’re in a good old-fashioned fight for their lives against some cyber concoction that won’t go away, not that there’s anything wrong with it. And I suspect Goossen’s exotic beauty will keep fanboys swooning in the seats (if not their bunks).
Debug (2014) is produced by Copperheart Entertainment and Monkeys & Parrots. DVD distribution is being handled by Ketchup Entertainment. As for the technical specifications? Momoa’s computerized entity could’ve used a mildly less grating technical enhancement (occasionally, I found his speeches a bit hard to decipher), but the flick is filled with quality cinematography, proving that much more care was given than lesser pictures receive. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features, there is a 20-minute(ish) behind-the-scenes featurette that I heartily give an enthusiastic thumbs up; in fact, I would’ve liked more!
Recommended.
In short, “I.T., Therefore I Am” is the overriding concept driving so very much of Debug. Parts of it feels far too derivative to really stand on its own merits (shades of some of the substance already expanded upon in 1968’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1979’s Alien, and 1997’s Event Horizon), but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth a meager price for admission. Performances work; set production is quite impressive (with a few minor quibbles); and director Hewlett’s almost (John) Carpenter-esque sequences with the camera make stick it just above B-movie fare but still well below big budget excess. See it for the heck of it … and stay for the visuals.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Ketchup Entertainment provided me with a DVD of Debug (2014) by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review; and their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
That’s why a motion picture like Debug (2014) probably won’t win many converts to the genre of Science Fiction: it’s an idea-based flick that requires a bit of cerebral investment instead of the proliferation of flashy special effects and silver screen do-goodery. Written and directed (actor) David Hewlett, it’s a journey into the mind as well as it is into the fate of characters who’ve fallen from grace. Sure, maybe it won’t be for everyone’s jaundiced tastes … but it whet my whistle just fine.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the product packaging:
“In this tale of deep space cyberhorror, six young computer hackers are sent to work on a derelict space freighter as part of a work release program. They quickly fall prey to the ship’s vengeful artificial intelligence, a program that would kill to be human …”
There’s more, but – in fairness – I suspect that that lean premise is enough to know whether or not you’re seriously interested in what Debug has to offer. In the hands of creative folks who cared less about these ideas, it’s easy to predict how such a tale might’ve spiraled into B-movie-whackery; still, in Hewlett’s hands what audiences are given is a cerebral ‘what if’ pitting some flawed human beings racing against hope to save themselves from that which they’ve committed their lives to understanding best. Namely, artificial intelligence.
That alone makes Debug a vastly more interesting proposition that a handful of studio tentpole feature films I’ve had the misfortune of paying to see at the box office in the last few years, and I find it a lowdown dirty shame that some suit somewhere couldn’t have ponied up just a bit more scratch to give this film a bit less gloss in its hospital-like interiors along with a bit more utility. Hewlett and his merry band of pranksters didn’t let that stand in the way of their pursuits, and – in the end – perhaps Debug is better because of it. (Alas, we’ll probably never know … until this gets a studio reboot in ten to twenty years.)
As for the players?
Jason Momoa electronically drones his way through some oft muddled dialogue as the ship’s A.I., IAM. (Say THAT ten times fast!) It’s a perfunctory performance as a villain at best. The reliable Adrian Holmes could’ve had a bit more to do as the chain gang’s space warden, but he hits all of the necessary marks. Kerr Hewitt, Kyle Mac, (hubba hubba!) Sidney Leeder, and Jadyn Wong largely succeed in fleshing out a group of young cynics, each with their own cross to bear. But the real stand-outs here are relative newcomers Adam Butcher (as James) and Jeananne Goossen (as Kaida): together, they’re like a JV version of ‘Ripley & Hicks’ (from James Cameron’s Aliens) though their predicament isn’t as internally motivated nor textually nuanced. Basically, they’re in a good old-fashioned fight for their lives against some cyber concoction that won’t go away, not that there’s anything wrong with it. And I suspect Goossen’s exotic beauty will keep fanboys swooning in the seats (if not their bunks).
Debug (2014) is produced by Copperheart Entertainment and Monkeys & Parrots. DVD distribution is being handled by Ketchup Entertainment. As for the technical specifications? Momoa’s computerized entity could’ve used a mildly less grating technical enhancement (occasionally, I found his speeches a bit hard to decipher), but the flick is filled with quality cinematography, proving that much more care was given than lesser pictures receive. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features, there is a 20-minute(ish) behind-the-scenes featurette that I heartily give an enthusiastic thumbs up; in fact, I would’ve liked more!
Recommended.
In short, “I.T., Therefore I Am” is the overriding concept driving so very much of Debug. Parts of it feels far too derivative to really stand on its own merits (shades of some of the substance already expanded upon in 1968’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1979’s Alien, and 1997’s Event Horizon), but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth a meager price for admission. Performances work; set production is quite impressive (with a few minor quibbles); and director Hewlett’s almost (John) Carpenter-esque sequences with the camera make stick it just above B-movie fare but still well below big budget excess. See it for the heck of it … and stay for the visuals.
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Ketchup Entertainment provided me with a DVD of Debug (2014) by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review; and their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
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