Future Soldier

In 1989, Sean Earl McPherson is recruited into the Hoplite Supersoldier program to fight the commies. It is 13 years later in Supercity Europe. The west is run by a corporation and still battling the Soviets. The underworld is ruled by the crime lord, The Matriarch. Captain McPherson battles the mysterious crime figure and uncovers something more.

This is a low budget British sci-fi. It tries to punch above its weight with some consumer quality special effects and some fight choreography. The movie tries, but ultimately cannot land many good punches. The visuals are drawing upon Blade Runner. The directing is weak and cannot elevate the material. The story is not much better than my high school creative writing assignments. The acting is second tier level. The final straw is the robotic computer voice. It is too much work to decipher it and it is already enough work to watch this movie.

Using the money found in the back of the sofa and CGI the director and producers have crafted a work of love with nods to Bladerunner, Judge Dredd etc. Set in an alternative "future" with flying cars and handheld scanners etc the hero battles villians and evil corporations.. The acting is tolerable with a largely unknown cast of semipros but sometimes seems amateur. The filming is largely done at night to disguise the lack of real sets, but also to give it more atmosphere.

Ultimately the story is nothing you havent seen before, CGI good for the budget but still transparent, Many plot holes and questions abound probably forced by the budget, e.g. You have flying cars but everyone still fights with their fists?

If you are a fan of low budget indy films or scifi then this may be for you. Full kudos to the makers for the effort and I hope they can raise a decent budget next time.

Considering this was made with a microbudget, this is an excellent example of what can be achieved with little funds.

I had a very good experience watching it, especially because I am a hobbyist filmmaker myself and it was a joy to figure out how the film was made. Because of its limitations you can see how different elements combine to make the final film but it does turn seamless and authentic on multiple accounts with some very nice action / dramatic scenes. I especially liked the lighting work and the set design. Shout out also to the sound designer that made the film all the more immersive.

When it comes to the film itself and the story it presents, it has gaps at times in narrative flow and, onscreen, the producers tried to achieve too much with too little sometimes. But overall it was enjoyable!

Highly recommend if you are into filmmaking analysis or the indy scene.