This is the question posed by Brooke Burgess and his band of artistic miscreants from the shores of Vancouver, British Columbia. The truth, it seems, is mired in a web of lies, half truths, deceit and revelations, as 4 complete strangers from the far reaches of the globe are drawn together to seek the truth; about the world, themselves and each other. Things are lost, things are found, souls are destroyed and healed. There are new beginnings and finalities.
Sound like a live action Hollywood blockbuster? Guess again... It's Broken Saints. Now a critically acclaimed epic that started online and has grown to the offered DVD, the history of the project alone is enough to make the casual observer curious. Nevermind the fact that it was originally offered for free (and still is) in Macromedia Flash, and that the creator and his followers went without often to offer it to the world... the question most often raised is "Well, what is it?" The real question is, what *isn't* it? It's anime meeting graphic novel, meeting technology, meeting soul seeking, meeting the questioning of self and motives and the world we reside in today. It's timely, it's epic. It's presented in Dolby 5.1 Surround. It's a labour of true love.
Broken Saints (or, "BS") began as a vision and a journey. 3 long, hard years have seen fruition of this. This is not some "direct to video" work where the producer puts the product out and hopes for the best, this is a work wherein the creator monitors and assesses each and every turn of his endeavor.... And not for the money. It's a testament to see who's "getting it". Who can absorb the creator's vision and understand it. Who responds and if they respond in a forward thinking and positive way.
The DVD 4-disc set was put together with haste, but it doesn't show. You would think that better part of just over a year was invested to bring this vision from the "small screen" of the computer to the small screen of the living room. The voice actors were chosen on merit and what they could bring to the project. The music, done by Tobias Tinker, Burgess' cousin, is haunting, uplifting and right on target for each scene. The art was reworked for the first parts of the storyline by Andrew West, illustrator extrodinaire, to bring it up to par with the later segments.
If you want to know the truth. If you are tired of seeing Hollywood schlock foisted at every turn, touting itself to be the "next big thing", If you want to support small scale, homegrown, quality endeavors and you think that the people who sweat, toil, worry and bleed over their projects and worry more about the message than their bank accounts. if you want to experience a rich story tapestry that often leaves you wondering what happens next; what twist is around the corner, and doesn't use Hollywood "formula" to insult your intelligence and become another predictable travesty, I urge you to check out Broken Saints.
