trudel@topaz.ARPA (Jonathan) (05/11/85)
***glad to be of service***
I just had the misfortune of going to see this film, and I want to warn you
that it is quite bad. This is a film that will fade from memory, with luck.
<Begin mild spoiler, although film already spoiled>
the Dungeon Master had an interesting idea. Our hero, played by Jeffrey
Byron (who looks like Gary Kroger of SNL fame), is a 'computer genuis' who
has developed an incredo-computer called 'CAL' (supposedly for "ExCALibur
8", but we all know what they're really referring to...). C(H)AL can affect
many things in the material world, from changing traffic lights to robbing
automatic teller machines. Anyhow, we meet his girlfriend, an aerobics
instructor who knows extremely little about computers. She hates CAL, and
sees it as a threat to their relationship.
One night, the Devil summons them, and holds the girl hostage. The Devil
has found, at last, an individual worthy of testing, thanks to the guy's
technological expertise. The guy (his name escapes me, thank God) is dubbed
the 'Excalibrate', due to C(HAL)'s name, and is given a complete link to
C(H)AL. Ex is forced to complete seven tests, and if he fails, he and the
girl give up their souls. Thus begins the movie, and it fails on these
followup 'episodes'.
<spoiler continuing, with reasons for being spoiled >
I thought the premise of the film was good, but as the movie progressed, it
got worse. The minor episodes were not completely there. They lacked true
continuity, and their conclusions were derived from God knows where. For
example, I might have missed it the explanation, but Excalibrate grabs a
crystal out of the hands of a frozen Albert Einstein (don't ask), smashes
it, and completing the test. Also, Excalibrate interfaces with C(H)AL via a
funky uniform consisting of padded vest and gauntlet getup. Along the way,
C(H)AL becomes a kill-o-zapping kluge-device that scans, broadcasts, melts
handcuffs, and more (it even makes Julienne fries ;-) ). I don't mind this,
but Ex-baby can do all of this just by punching a few buttons on either
gauntlet (he wasn't given a clue on how to operate the sucker).
In defense of the Dungeon Master, there were a few good points to the film,
but they were not developed past a quick showing on the screen. I liked the
situation in the beginning where the guy proposes, but the girl is hesitant
to say yes; this is because she feels C(H)AL would always be a third member of
the marriage. This is not all that bad, and I'll bet there are a lot of
people who dislike computers for the same reason. There is a followup
nightmare chock full of symbolism that I liked, but it was too short.
I also think that the producers of this film knew that it wouldn't be
regarded as a serious flick, because there are several lines which were
obviously added for the audience to respond to. The best one had to be at a
time when Excalibrate was trying to talk the Devil into a deal, and the
Devil cautiously says, 'you have nothing up your sleeves?' to which my
friend and I shouted simultaneously 'NO SLEEVES!' (he was wearing a vest,
get it?)
<all spoilers off>
If I had to rate this film, I wouldn't. It was definitely a film of the
'so-bad-it's-good' genre, but I would recommend that if you want to see this
film, go to a matinee. You won't feel too cheated.
ps-if you do go to see it, also look for the similarities certain scenes
have with the scenes of other major sf films. One from the Trek III
stands out in my mind right now...
pps-Looking at the ad for the Dungeon Master, I see a small inclusion that
states 'This motion picture is not related in any manner to the TSR, Inc.
game entitled "Dungeons and Dragons" or any characters therein.' They
wouldn't be trying to cash in on D&D's fame, would they? Naaaah.
--
Jonathan D. Trudel
arpa:trudel@ru-blue.arpa
uucp:{seismo,allegra,ihnp4}!topaz!trudelmwm@ucbtopaz.CC.Berkeley.ARPA (Praiser of Bob) (05/14/85)
In article <1951@topaz.ARPA> trudel@topaz.ARPA (Jonathan) writes: >If I had to rate this film, I wouldn't. It was definitely a film of the >'so-bad-it's-good' genre, but I would recommend that if you want to see this >film, go to a matinee. You won't feel too cheated. Yes. In fact, that's why I went to see it. >ps-if you do go to see it, also look for the similarities certain scenes >have with the scenes of other major sf films. One from the Trek III >stands out in my mind right now... Don't forget "DragonSlayer," "The Road Warrior", "Prisoners of the Lost Universe" (or some such title, also so-bad-it's-good), and others. I got the impression that the skits were chosen specifically so they could re-use sets from old SF movies. "Animals can be such fun." <mike
dean@hyper.UUCP (Dean Gahlon) (05/15/85)
> pps-Looking at the ad for the Dungeon Master, I see a small inclusion that > states 'This motion picture is not related in any manner to the TSR, Inc. > game entitled "Dungeons and Dragons" or any characters therein.' They > wouldn't be trying to cash in on D&D's fame, would they? Naaaah. Actually, that notice was probably prompted by TSR's lawyers trying to ensure that nobody makes improper use of their copyright.