Dune Drifter

Luckily I didn't see the rating on this before watching this movie. It's better than many 6 star movies and it certainly isn't stupidly unrealistic like even a few big budget movies. The sci-fi part is quite good and despite the low budget it's quite good what the team has achieved. The story line is a bit slow but still faster than a few of the reknowned series. That's good enough for me to watch it once and enjoy it. A good story and execution also helps.

A budget take on sci-fi, and it shows. The various components of ships, weapons and suits are very recognizable and does not look like advanced technology. But ok, maybe that's what they were going for. The story is paper thin, there are some suspenseful moments that work well, and the little acting involved isn't horrible from the main character. The CGI is cheap, and I keep thinking things are too repetitive, lumpy and cumbersome. A lot of it is probably due to what we are used to seeing in more expensive sci-fi. I read a review where someone said it could have been a short movie, and it would have covered everything they needed. I second that opinion. A 25 minute feature wouldn't be out of place.

Let's be clear, this is film is better than the "one star reviews" would have you believe. Does it have its problems? Sure. The "nine star reviews" are also over the top. There should have been more breathing room for the setup in the beginning of the film, so that we get to know the characters better and care more for them.

Having said that, they clearly made the most out of a very limited budget... and at times I was impressed with what they managed to pull off. The astronaut suits looked pretty neat, as did the ships and the combat scenes.

Part of the problem, is that most of the story (from the second act onwards), happens on a mostly deserted planet. It's why the plot had to be pretty basic and some reviewers complain about it being slow. However, that's mostly a factor of the limited budget they had to work with.

Could it have been better? Yes, but you shouldn't go into this expecting the same experience as you would with films that have ten (or one hundred) times the budget. If you have some sort of concept of how difficult it is to make something yourself, you can appreciate that these kids did a good job... and also that there's still room for improvement!

The practical cockpits and very good vfx models were apperacted and retro as was the location shooting but it weapon effects and the exploding ships looked cheap and while the story carried it self well the universe could have used some padding out .

"How can we sell this piece of movie gold? Think damn you, think!"

"I know! Stick the word DUNE big as brass on the cover art, then add the word Drifter in tiny writing."

"Right, that's the plan, meeting adjourned."