forsakenstars

Primitive War has everything I want to see in a movie. A good story, engaging characters, gorgeous cinematography, the pacing of a wild ride, and a whole lot of heart. Oh, and an EFF-ton of dinosaurs!

When I caught the teaser trailer and then the full trailer, and saw some of the poster art and a few of the interviews with the director and cast, it was apparent to me this was going to be a well executed film for the minimal budget that a film of this scope is expected to have these days. The classic music was spot on and the locales and Hueys and uniforms and hardware looked accurate for the period and the dinosaurs looked fantastic. And Jeremy Piven and Tricia Helfer? I was sold!

I couldn't catch the first few showings during the week, so I caught is Sunday afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed the film. It was fun, it was exciting, it struck some emotional chords and the last half hour or so was an edge of your seat, hold your breathe, eye-popping, heart-pounding extravaganza. Big budget blockbusters like Aliens and Jurassic Park and small budget cult classics like Dog Soldiers have one major thing in common -vision. And Luke Sparke and his team, from the cast to the crew, to the artists and marketing/social media depts, clearly had a vision and worked damned hard to see it through, and it shows in practically every frame of Primitive War. As a Fathom Event here in the states it has had a limited run, and I dearly hope it gets an extension or more distribution rights because anyone who loves the movies deserves to enjoy this one, and it deserves to be seen and acknowledged.

Is it perfect? No, but it comes pretty damned close. At five hours you could easily binge this if it was on your favorite streaming service. Own this, there is still time at the writing of this review, and you can take your time, savor it and watch an hour a day for a week. Fair warning though, if you do break up your watching, you will definitely find yourself wanting them to spend more time on your favorite movies! There are only a handful of movies touched on that I hadn't heard of or have avoided for one reason or another, and now I have some motivation to hunt those down. I also really enjoy how they connect many of the films to the events of their day, and how and why some of the films resonate more so today, how prescient so many of them were. In many ways those were simpler times, in others more difficult or close-minded, but fortunately for us, there were some hopeful storytellers, and much of what they created inspired so many of the people making our lives better today and for years to come.