Change Your Image
Hughes_Reviews
Reviews
Leave the World Behind (2023)
Ineffective and Unsubstantial
Leave the World Behind spends most of its screentime posing questions to the audience, whether they be visual displays of disorder or the moral implications of survival. It's a shame that none of the screentime is dedicated to answering these questions in a way that feels satisfying or earned. The intentional vagueness of its premise is designed to keep the viewer guessing, and only guessing. Your own speculation is the only substance this film provides. Garish writing, cringe-worthy characters, and abysmal pacing make this a two-hour slog that would've been better spent watching reruns of Friends.
The biggest offense that this film commits is plodding along with no clear direction, motive, or circumstance. Characters change motivations on a dime, spew inconsequential theories for minutes at a time, and otherwise soak up screentime. Confusing, semi-dangerous events appear out of nowhere, and then vanish just as fast. For a good three-quarters of the movie, characters act like they have nothing to do. They sit around, drink, and spew nonsensical conspiracy theories about what might be happening instead of doing anything sensible. There are very few instances of a character driving the story along: mostly, random events dictate very short-term responses from the entire main cast.
The dialogue feels AI generated. Half the film is spent bluntly restating what the viewer has already witnessed, with no additional details or insight. Sometimes, a character will just leave something out of the story, only to go back and rehash it later. There is not one instance where a character keeps something from another and does not eventually reveal it with little to no actual reason to. The interpersonal drama that makes dramatic tension is stale and underwritten, relying mostly on ill-fitting tropes of underlying racism to try force investment. Characters swear for no reason constantly, with the f-word appearing at least three times per scene. The drama feels more like padding than it does plot, which is fatal to the film's pacing and overarching message.
The camerawork is commendable at least. The film's use of sharp edges and smooth camera motions are used to inject some much-needed energy into the scenes. The film bravely decides to shoot most of its chaos in broad daylight, which does serve to elevate the confusion a fair bit. While ultimately inconclusive, the viewer is a least offered an appetizing display of cinematic skill. Whoever is working the camera is clearly competent and knows how to fill the frame. The visual effects team does an acceptable job for what they've been given to work with as well. The big-budget disaster moments are suitably punchy but are undercut so quickly by hammy, wasteful dialogue that it's easy to forget about them.
Finally, the film's use of music is downright insulting. Rather than allowing the actors and set pieces to build natural tension or drama, the film decides it is so inherently boring that it must constantly remind of you of how you of how you should feel. The film's "tense" moments are so drowned in movie trailer "waaaahs" that it becomes comical at times. The score is costly trying to sell you something the isn't there, coming off as completely desperate. It is no understatement to say that Leave the World Behind has to TELL you how to feel for any of its scenes to leave an impact.
Questions are not a substitute for plot or characters. They are vehicles for storytelling. The sumtotal of Leave the World Behind is a bridge littered with broken-down vehicles, smashed together without rhyme or reason. A complete mess.
Lies of P (2023)
Bold, Confident, and Well-Polished
With their first-ever triple A title, Neowiz has raised the bar for non-Fromsoft soulslikes. Pinocchio's journey through the world of Krat is inspired and mesmerizing, coupled with a narrative that seems genuinely invested in its driving themes. The combat is fine-tuned and weighty, with many standout features that blend together into a riveting mesh of hack and slash glory. While at times the difficulty can seem insurmountable, there's always new strategies to experiment with.
Combat takes center stage in Lies of P, built around the blueprint established by the Souls series. The usual fare of invincibility frame dodges and stamina-focused blocking is well-translated and is nearly indistinguishable from the likes of Elden ring. Where it sets itself apart, however, is the delicious mishmash of other mechanics derived from the other souls greats. Guarding doesn't negate damage, but rather dilutes it and demands that you attack your aggressor to earn it back. Rather than sitting behind a greatsheild while your enemy tires themselves out, the player is forced to engage. The peak of this engagement is the game's perfect parry system, which demands that the player time a guard to the very point of connection with an enemy blade. Rewarded with total damage negation and some useful stagger buildup, it's a high-risk, high-reward mechanic that rewards attentive players. With such a wide variety of enemies and bosses to fight, these duels are varied and consistently fun.
The art direction is also commendable, featuring many noteworthy settings full of unique enemies and set pieces that help to immerse the player. The standouts include a level set in a lavish Victorian opera house, a world's fair exhibition, and a ruin-littered junkyard. Though some of the settings feel a bit awkward gameplaywise, such as the extremely wide streets of Krat's urban sprawl, the dressing of this fantasy world is inspired and suitably melancholic.
The story is also impressive. Without spoiling much, it's a very introspective take on the classic Pinocchio tale that takes plenty of risks. Dynamics between characters evolve in natural ways, and you'll leave the experience with things to ponder. The traditional narrative vagueness that is so emblematic of the souls genre is dialed back to an approachable degree, allowing more casual observers of the story to glean its messaging. The characters are well-voiced and dynamic. While some of the "dark twist" character moments are a bit sudden and feel a bit forced, I'd say that for the most part the narrative is well-crafted.
It's not without flaws, however. Here's some objective gripes:
- There's a message at the start of the game that tells you that the red "fury" attacks are undodgeable, while what that really means is that they cannot be I-framed. There are certain red moves in the game that are far easier to evade than they are to parry.
- The "true" ending is locked behind one decision that you make towards the end of the game. Without spoiling anything, I picked the "wrong" option, thinking that exploration might yield a more amenable solution given the fantastical circumstances of the problem. As a result, I got dumped into the "neutral ending", which was profoundly unsatisfying.
- The weapon crafting system has some odd caveats that, while they service realism, inhibit experimentation and player fun.
- The difficulty feels a bit unfair at times. I think that the perfect parry window could be extended by a frame or two to help counterbalance some of the more peculiar enemy attack timings without sacrificing the game's challenge.
All in all, though, I think it's a fantastic game that's worth checking out for any fan of the souls genre. More like this, please.