The minds behind the Crank movies, directors Mark Nevaldine and Brian Taylor are back with Gamer coming to DVD this Tuesday!

Release Date: January 19, 2010
Rating: R
Running Time: 95 minutes

Featuring an all-star cast including Gerard Butler (300), three-time Emmy nominee Michael C. Hall (Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, “Dexter,” 2008 & 2009; “Six Feet Under,” 2002), with Chris ‘Ludacris’ Bridges (Crash) and Golden Globe winner Kyra Sedgwick (Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama, “The Closer,” 2007), Gamer is a high-concept action thriller set in a near future when gaming and entertainment have evolved into an exhilarating yet terrifying new hybrid.

In the future, humans control other humans in mass-scale, multi-player online games: people playing people…for keeps. Mind-control technology is widespread, and at the heart of the controversial games is its creator, reclusive billionaire Ken Castle (Hall). His latest brainchild, the first-person shooter game “Slayers,” allows millions to act out their most savage fantasies online in front of a global audience, using real prisoners as avatars with whom they fight to the death. Kable (Butler) is the superstar and cult hero of the ultraviolent “Slayers.” Taken from his family, imprisoned and forced to fight against his will, the modern day gladiator must survive long enough to escape the game to free his family, regain his identity and to save mankind from Castle’s ruthless technology.

Gamer is not only an incredible action flick but it truly is a visually fantastic piece of work. There is so much detail that when you blink you will miss quite a lot and so much – no everything is uncensored, as there is an abundant amount of graphic violence and nudity – as to be expected in the reality that is seen in the film. If you want to see incredibly creative film making, this is the movie to watch. The visual effects, the CGI, the Red camera, and everything used to pull this film together visually…they pulled it off, this world is a beautiful world to look at (though I would never want to live in it).

The film also has such a talented group of cast mates who were able to really have fun with their characters as you can see on screen and even get out of their comfort zone with action films, such as Alison Lohamn. Though I feel as though there was so much talent and not enough time in the film (as well as not as in depth of a storyline) to use them all to the extent at which viewers really want to see them. When it comes to the storyline, it’s quite basic and there are so many ways that film could have gone but instead focuses more on the visual aspects of the film. Ken Castle’s experiment becoming a chaotic reality for the entire world instead of simply a justice system for prisoners could have made for a much more thought provoking and controversial film, though it only touches the surface of what drama could have been. Still, viewers will find themselves walking away from the film asking themselves what they would do for ultimate control or freedom.

Special Features:

Commentary – The commentary is conducted by writer/directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor and actors Amber Valletta, Alison Lohman and Terry Crews and the commentary doesn’t share anything new and important that hasn’t been mentioned in the special feature “Inside the Game” which I found to be much more interesting. Though if you enjoyed the film enough to watch it once more, check out the commentary to hear the cast reminisce about shooting Gamer.

Inside the Game: Controlling Gamer – This documentary details the making of the film in 3 parts showing rehearsal footage and filming footage as Nevaldine and Taylor and the cast and crew discuss the different aspects of the film. Nevaldine and Taylor working with Michael C. Hall and the other leads of the film including Alison Lohman, Kyra Sedgwick, and Ludacris. Terry Crews talks about working with Gerard Butler and filming naked. Executive producer, David Rubin & producer, Skip Williamson discuss the film on page versus on set, while production designer, Jerry Fleming talked about filming in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was interesting to hear Nevaldine and Taylor talk about how creating the atmosphere of this film seemed to be more under budget than their previous film, Crank. For those into all of the action, stunt coordinator, Darrin Prescott, special makeup effects artist, Christien Tinsley, and weapons master, Guillaume DeLouche give detail about their jobs. What I found to be incredibly interesting was composers, Geoff Zanelli and Robb Williamson discuss creating the music for the film which I found to be outstanding.

First Person Shooter: The Evolution of Red Featurette – Writer/directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor discuss how they shot the film, working with Red Digital Cinema, and more. Executive producer/VFX Supervisor, James McQuaide and others also discuss in detail using the Red camera and such though this feature seems to be something that would be only of interest to those aspiring directors and professional directors so it’s definitely not a must see for regular viewers.

Gamer releases on DVD & Blu-ray January 19, 2010.