Moscow’s mall theater was packed on Friday, and for one reason — the release of “Iron Lung,” an independently-funded movie by the highly respected YouTuber, Markiplier. No other show that night filled even a full row, much less sold out.
To preface, I am a long-time fan of Markiplier, as many of the theatergoers were. I went to watch this purely out of support for him and his work, and I could not be happier this became reality.
Based on a game of the same name, “Iron Lung” is set in a world where humanity has mastered space travel. An event called “The Quiet Rapture” caused them to lose all contact with those on colonized planets, and resulted in the disappearance of all planets and stars; only people in space stations remained. In order to gain his freedom, convict Simon is sent down into a blood ocean on a submarine nicknamed the “Iron Lung” to retrieve proof and later sample of a detected skeleton.
What follows is a sometimes trippy, cryptic and eerily quiet experience. The first hour of the movie is admittedly quite slow, and it heavily dragged on in some cases, but I did not find it mind-numbingly boring at any point. Still, I think it could have been shortened by at least 30 minutes (and it would have been better).
It picks up in the last 45 minutes, which was undisputedly the highlight of the entire film — some of the CGI and practical effects blew my mind for an indie production and many of the visuals were breathtaking. A few confusing moments here and there weakened the climax, but it was wrapped up nicely and kept its ending both ambiguous and fulfilling.
Based on the story and pacing alone, I would give “Iron Lung” a solid 6.5 out of 10 in a vacuum. However, it had more to offer than just these two elements.
One feat this movie conquers phenomenally is sound design. It uses silence and ambient noise, inviting you to hold your breath, freeze that hand in your popcorn bag and simply wait. There are multiple instances of complete silence followed by slowly increasing volume that is done so artistically that I was impressed even in the moment.
The cinematography was also a standout: there were dozens of shots that looked stunning and vibrant, something I have seen less of in recent Hollywood blockbusters. I was additionally floored by many of the angles and lighting effects which broke and improved the mold of what looks good in cinematography.
And while Markiplier’s acting was sometimes just okay, when he really got into the character, it showed. The emotional moments hit me and truly made me care for Simon. With a little more experience, I think he could be a solid actor even in Hollywood, but he would do far better as a director.
Overall, “Iron Lung” was a solid directorial debut for an independent film, and will absolutely be counted among one of the good video-game-to-movie adaptations. No one is acting like it is perfect, because it is not. There are many flaws, with its slow pacing, confusing sequences and pointless plot lines.
Despite this, it has passion, experimental cinematography, beautiful practical effects and a refreshingly unique premise. I cannot dislike “Iron Lung” for its flaws because this film comes from a team that made this movie for the pure purpose of creation. They liked this game so much they made a movie out of it. I hope this happens more often.
Shameless Marvel cash-grabs and the fifth generic rom-com hitting the theaters feels so static today. This was the first film in a long while that I could feel bonafide passion for. That makes it a more valuable piece of art to me than even the most flawless cinema.
