Rogue Elements: A Ryan Drake Story

Disclaimer: I do not like the writer's YouTube channel. I feel that most of their videos are soulless grifter/rage-bait content made simply to cultivate more views. When this debuted, I wanted to give it a fair shake because there was FINALLY something on that channel that didn't capitalize on the bare minimum of its fanbase. Something more to offer viewers other than the "I-dislike-their-views-so-lets-all-bully-them" garbage content.

First off, the proof was funded around 300k-400k, which is pretty impressive for a fundraiser and a small film project. Unfortunately, the presentation still felt amateurish. The cinematography focused on Bourne-level shaky cam during dialogue scenes, a method used to artificially make the moments seem more tense than they actually are. Blocking? Lighting? Color-grading? There are so many technical elements that I find in projects on a $1,000 budget that look infinitely better than this. The performances, while mostly ok, were on par with a lot of Straight-To-VOD action flicks I have come across.

Secondly, the dialogue itself was a string of exposition dumps. Sure, you want to establish stakes, establish the world, and get the audience up to speed. But, if you spend the runtime with characters spouting exposition you only get plot points and cardboard cutouts - there's no semblance of real characterization. Yes, it is only 40 minutes but that's no excuse. I don't think doubling the runtime would have allowed for any characterization, it would have only serviced for more exposition.

Lastly, the fight choreography was absolutely uninteresting. Fast cuts, sometimes indiscernible angles, and at no point was I convinced these were specialized agents/killers actually fighting each other.

In conclusion, this was a proof with zero proof of creative merit. A compilation of action cherrypicked from better movies. As a writer, I think this and the titular book series fail on multiple counts of being a lesser version of many many many that came before.

What stood out most was the overall tone and how cliche it was - I get nothing from this short film that I couldn't experience elsewhere. Slavic antagonists and NATO protagonists, obligatory mindless shootouts and interrogation scene, abandoned compound base, plot armor in the shootouts, etc.

My second biggest gripe would be that I don't know what the hell is really going on, which is a problem severely worsened by the very fast pace. I think the film should have been more accessible to people who aren't familiar with the universe, because I had to spend a substantial amount of time just trying to figure out what was meant to be what.

The world is not portrayed in an immersive or realistic way, which is unengaging. Everything is tailored to serve the plot, rather than to feel like a realistic location that the plot could transpire in. There's a lack of wide shots and slow moments to help you understand the vibes that the characters might be feeling. Instead, it's all just nonestop character-focused action moments or infodumping, without room to breathe.

Smaller details such as the amount of bullets in a magazine, girls having their hair tied back to avoid intrusion, the technical realism of how computers are used, and the amount of injuries sustained in a fight all add up to create a piece of media that just doesn't feel a) realistic and b) technically analyzed by the people who concieved it.

There's also a distinct lack of mystique to the world, and a spy-thriller without mystique is just mindless action in my opinion. Compared to something like John Wick, which builds a lot of mystique both around Wick himself as well as the organisation he worked for, everything in this short film just feels soulless and without deeper intrigue or purpose.

The acting is decidedly unimpressive. Everyone feels almost like they're playing a caricature of the stereotypical roles that they're playing. They all feel superficial, like they have no deeper meaning behind why they act the way they do, and nobody plays off of eachother in a way that appears charismatic or charming at all. I would believe you if you told me every character has their takes filmed in isolation, and were only ever put in the scene together in post. It all just feels very stiff, forced, and unnatural.

There is nothing that particularly stood out about any of the characters in terms of their unique world views or personalities.

Dialogue was flat and boring. It's like that scene in every Christopher Nolan movie where a character tries to explain an overly complicated concept and the majority of the audience just doesn't catch on or care, except in Rogue Elements that scene is 20% of the runtime. I don't care about the specifics of what the characters are trying to do; I care about the characters themselves. What do they value, what do they disagree on, what are their motives. There's just no nuance in this regard, and if they're is then its veiled behind knowledge that isn't conveyed to people who aren't already familiar with the source material.

The only line that stood out to me was when the antagonist replied with "Oh come on, how many 'good men' are dead because of Hastings, because of her?" as it made me actually think about where the morality of each faction was aligned for a moment, as opposed to just mindlessly follow along with "good guys" killing "bad guys". But maybe I only even questioned that because I know nothing about either side and what they're even standing for in the first place.

Lastly, the music is just overbearing, as was the intro sequence. The phrase self-indulgent comes to mind. Use a big crescendo for the climax of an important moment, sure, but I don't need stuff to be blaring 24/7. Let me soak in the atmosphere of the world instead - the sound of gunshots, footsteps and muffled voices, or the silence of a room filled with tension.

My biggest praise for the show would be that the action is visceral and crunchy, despite the fact that all fights are unrealistically one-sided, and the choreography was pretty good too.

I thought the visuals and set designs were nice, and although I thought the colour palette was very bland and uninspired, at least each scene had it's own vibe going on.

For Drinker - I really think you'd earn a huge amount of respect for making a video highlighting what exactly happened in this project, whether it's going to affect your perspective on anything moving forward, and what you've learned fron it. As it stands I think you've lost some sort of credibility as a critic if you're behind the production of something with such glaring amateur mistakes.

For all the hullabaloo and self congratulatory behaviour surrounded this 'tv concept' thing, it was surprisingly dull affair.

Just a bland, generic special forces mission type thing that helps congest the daytime rota of those strange TV channels that constantly play low budget, low quality tripe.

It makes the Equaliser TV show with that ex rapper look almost like Shakespeare and let's be honest it's not a patch of the original show. I will be surprised if this ever makes it into anything else, be it on TV or the big screen. I believe that there is a series of books with the Nick Drake character, but honestly, I think I could pretty much have a good idea of all the plots going by this.

I was eagerly anticipating this production, being a fan of the Drinker and sharing most of his frustration of modern film making.

I've read a couple of Will Jordan's books and found them to be a bit paint by numbers, with the lead character "Drake" being a bit dull. I found this short film to be very similar. My main criticism is the casting of Ryan Drake, I'm sorry but I just don't see how anyone in their right mind would think casting of Moran as an experienced special forces operator was a good idea. Moran was a terrible casting choice and unfortunately, this completely ruined it for me.

Maybe I was expecting too much?! But I was left disappointed.

This Proof of Concept should have been something that showed that Mr Drinker could walk the walk he talks about. Instead, several things he constantly criticized other films for, those some things appear here. Most importantly, it's just boring and not engaging. I at one time considered myself a fan of the drinker , but as of late I stopped watching because all his videos were the same and he spoke about the same thing over and over, and it seems he didn't have the desire to change and talk about some of the more positive stuff, but when he released this idea upon the world , I was excited. I am glad I didn't put money towards this. I know the people who backed this are pissed. It's just like sci fi tv series level of execution.