Jabberwock: Dragon Siege [DVD]

This has the look of an extremely low budget movie - bad script, bad acting from unknown actors (except for the lead actor from Battlestar Galactica) and above all bad special effects. The Jabberwock (a dragon like creature) looks like something made in the 1950's and there are laughable close ups of actors 'fighting' the dragon (really just slashing at air with swords). I watched about 20 minutes and then gave up.

Don't waste your time and / or money

Actually, I believe Lewis Carrol's poem, on which this legend is based upon actually said 'Beware the Jabberwocky', which is its full name, here shortened to differentiate it from Terry Gilliam's rather more Python-esque version from 1977.

This, more straightforward TV movie was on The Sy-Fy Channel who it was made for. The other reviewer (so far) did a good job at going into some detail about some aspects about it and I feel that the film doesn't warrant unnecessary repetition.

To say that the entire project is a lacklustre affair is an understatement. On the IMDb its budget was not listed but shoestring immediately comes to mind. Filmed in Bulgaria, usually either in a forest or a quarry, this supposed fairytale about saving a lovely damsel from the creature (it never attacked her, anyway) says remarkably little in quite a long time.

The dialogue is always stilted and often bad,"Guys!!?" in medieval times seems quite a wrong way to address your comrades in arms and is usually delivered with monosyllabic non conviction. People in fear of their lives tend to get a little emotional - it's called adrenaline and here there's none.

Common sense also fails when, for instance, the two brothers who are main characters decide to fight to the death by swords and knives as they cannot decide which of them will finally slay the Jabberwock. Out of an entire village, they're seemably only two of about four that are physically capable to possibly stand up to the monster. Hmmmm.

The Jabberwock lives in a cave. Which is a CGI-d hole at the top of a quarry, which the men climb the face of without ropes. Hmm again. And when nasty old Jabberwock swoops and carries off his prey, we have no idea what he does with them. We presume it eats them, but you'd never know.

Most of the actors look quite bored. The only one that is worth keeping an eye on is the 'damsel', previously mentioned. She, Annabel (a medieval sounding Kacey Barnfield!?) looks quite regal and beautiful and worth saving from most things, I'd say.

The CGI creature itself could be worse. But not in 2011. 1990, maybe.

The final slaying of the beast has a climax that's about as tepid as is possible.

However, one almost redeeming feature was the music which was always suitably rousing, melancholic and soulful. That alone cannot make up for a pretty lame film all round, but if you like your creature flicks, it's up there with the rest of them. Score? Between 1.5 and 2 stars.

Watched this on the Sci-fi HD channel last night.

Plus points? There's some nice scenery, courtesy of a wintry Bulgaria (think Skyrim); the medieval village looks suitably cosy; I chuckled at a couple of scenes (the mortally wounded man gasping with his last breath where the Jabberwock's weak spot was, only for the cowardly Cid to say "sorry - what was that again?" and the dialog: "what's your preferred weapon?" - "My wits" - "You're gonna need something sharper ..."; also credit where it's due, the Jabberwock's clumsy movement on the ground is well done - rather like a pterasaur in Walking With Dinosaurs.

Negatives? Oh where do I start? Ok; this is meant to be early medieval culture, before plate armour was common, and yet the villagers have a stock pile of metal shields, some pretty advanced crossbows and are capable of producing a huge galvanised wrought-iron trap; the term Jabberwock wasn't coined until the 19th century; the term "sadist" comes from the Marquis de Sade (died 1814); continuity errors abound, such as pouring with rain one moment then dryzabone the next; the creature doesn't attack at night, so our hero decides to evacuate the women and children from the village under cover of broad daylight; one of the characters calls it Jabberwocky; the Jabberwock's head looks ridiculous, with jaws that work horizontally as well as vertically; love interest is decidedly luke warm; fight scenes fail to convince and the standard of acting rarely rises above the mediocre.

Perhaps I'm being a bit harsh (and more than a bit pedantic). Disengage your brain and this is not too painful a way to spend the 80 odd minutes, but it has to be said that the Terry Gilliam film of (almost) the same name is vastly more entertaining!