Ink

Written, directed, and produced by Jamin Winans. Starring Chris Kelly, Jessica Duffy, Quinn Hanchar, and Jennifer Batter.

Double Edge Films - 2009

Two Stars of Review! **

The thrust of “Ink” concerns two groups and their interest in a certain little girl. On one side we have the Storytellers. They're the harbingers of good dreams. They phase into our reality from, what I gather by the way they dress is some kind of inter dimensional mall, and watch us sleep. On the other side we have the malevolent Incubus who serve an opposite function, and stand as this films most clever bit of visual design.

In the middle of it all is a big nosed troll like creature. His name is Ink, and he's kidnapped the girl, or the girls soul (the film never quite makes that clear), and intends to hand her over to the Incubus in hopes of joining their ranks. This might sound interesting, but honestly I've given you more narrative detail than the film's script offers up. Most of the running time is spent watching people walk around uninhabited spaces while firing off streams of made up fantasy jargon. It's painfully slow, but some would say the is pace deliberate. I say it lacks an actual story.

Visually the film is a wash of white light mixed with deep shadows. It sort of looks a bit Frank Miller, but the bad acting and stolen aesthetics harsh what would be an other wise modestly interesting comic pastiche. There are a couple nice set pieces, but it all feels like it was stolen, if not from a comic book, then from a video game. And that's about it.

There's a side plot involving the girls father, and a twist ending thrown in for good measure, but if you're decent at spotting voices then you'll probably have guessed it long before the last act. There's also a ton of groan inducing mellow drama. For a fantasy epic it doesn't totally lack a certain inventiveness, but there isn't anything of depth to latch onto. Just because it's a labor of love doesn't mean the one who's doing the laboring has anything to say.

If you're young and you're primary experiences with narrative structure happens to be video games and anime then you might find a lot to like here. On the other hand if you're not easily fooled by hollow attempts at weepy drama then you'll probably just roll your eyes and toy with the idea of shutting it off around the halfway mark. Did I mention that there's kung fu fights?

Available to watch for Netflix subscribers. Also available on DVD.