Morlocks (2011)

A spectacular science fiction adventure based upon the classic characters and premise of esteemed author H.G. Wells. Talented director Matt Codd has managed to do some wondrous things with a limited budget and the production values in this motion picture are stunning. The special effects, set design, and creatures are breathtaking. A completely original and creatively unique elaboration of The Time Machine, this is a story of the Morlocks invading our time through a breach the fabric of time itself. An exciting idea beautifully realized by director Codd and full of excitement, thrills, and haunting imagery. A gifted cast give superb performances and really bring their fascinating characters to life. A tremendous cinematic accomplishment.

The production values would indicate someone spent some bucks on this film and cast. It's too bad they didn't pre-screen it with someone other than a ninth-grade gamer to check for plot holes big enough to drive a Hummer (and then elevator cab) through.My biggest problem is with the look and feel, and that falls on the director. Scenes that didn't have to be shot hand-held were, even when a simple tripod would do, and the effect is nauseating; don't show this on a boat, anyone prone to sea sickness will be sent right over the edge by the constant shifting of the frame.Also to the look and feel: Why does every Sci-Fi/SyFy movie have to look like an X-box 360 game? What happened to the good old days when directors knew how to set up a shot and a scene? If you have to push this hard to engender some sort of excitement, then the plot needs serious assistance.Don't make the mistake I made. I kept watching and hoping something original or interesting would happen, but this is nothing more than a static version of Half Life, Black Ops, or /insert your favorite video game here\.

If I say this is a SyFy flicks then geeks immediately should know that it will be trash. But it's funny that all people who hates SyFy flicks still watch their new ones again and again. The story is mostly okay and when it started I thought, hell yeah, this is going to be a really bloody flick. But after the opening credits the budget was gone I guess and they used some cheap CGI effects to create the 'morlocks'. The stupidest thing is the fact that most of the blood was also CGI. The acting was rather okay but I kept watching it just to see how bad the CGI was. When will SyFy finally spend some money on good CGI? I wasn't involved with the characters at all, do I need to say more? For me no Mor(e)locks.

A made-for-SyFy movie -- everyone knows it is going to be bad, probably very, very bad. While Morlocks is not a "good" movie, it does unexpectedly rise above the typical movie garbage on SyFy; up to the level of marginally adequate.While the movie has the standard amount of bad or even meaningless science, overall it has the unexpected good sense to just not try to explain some things. Of course, all of the characters are dumbed-down to insure that no one does something too smart which might end the story half way through the movie. Also, the plot is completely transparent. Within the first fifteen minutes almost the entire story line is evident. Plot progression is strictly by-the-book, and almost completely lacking in imagination.Perhaps the most impressive thing about the movie is its ability to combine so many standard disaster movie conventions blatantly into one story. 1) The major disaster was unexpected but probably preventable, not fully or correctly understood by the experts, and not stoppable by simply pulling the plug, but rather requires exactly one special person to save things. 2) There is a stereotypical bad guy military commanding officer with some sort of ulterior motive, who steadily goes completely out of control, but who is never questioned by his subordinates. 3) There is a rogue or disillusioned scientist who wants nothing to do with the project, but comes back for personal reasons, usually an ex-spouse or ex-lover. 4) There is a heroic, almost superhuman, junior officer who although at times is a hard-ass, is naive regarding his command officer, but is extremely capable and personally quite brave. 5) There is a beautiful girl who must be rescued by one of the main male characters, possibly to the detriment of the mission to save the Earth/project/etc. 6) There is a beautiful auxiliary fighter who is jaded but able to kick butt at critical moments, usually saving secondary male characters. 7) The ending cannot allow things to be resolved, but rather there must be either a potential continuing problem or a tie-in to the original problem. 8) There are many more, but the point should be clear. The plot was written from a checklist of stereotypes and clichés.The movie has some good points which should be noted (considering its pedigree). 1) It is reasonably fast paced. There are no long waits for the plot developments. 2) There was nothing confusing about the plot. Everything is pretty much up front for the viewer to see. Even the hidden agenda is easily seen and understood from (too) early in the movie. 3) Unexpectedly the acting was generally quite decent. No one is going to win an award for this, but the actors appear to put effort into their characters. 4) The CGI is tolerable but by no means notable. By SyFy movie standards it is even good. 5) While there is violent death and some blood, it is not excessive and is consistent with the reasonable needs of the story (there was the potential for a lot of needless gore).The two best known cast members are David Hewlett (Stargate SG-1 and Stargate: Atlantis) as Radnor and Robert Picardo (Star Trek Voyager and Stargate: Atlantis) as Colonel Wichita. Hewlett brings his Dr. Rodney McKay character straight into Morlocks. Except for lacking McKay's humor, much of the movie could easily be mistaken for part of an episode of Stargate: Atlantis. Picardo brings his heavy / bad guy character seen in a number of movies and shows over the past few years. While at times he is reasonably convincing it such roles, it doesn't work as well here. The problem seems to be that his character so quickly goes off the deep end, to a point which would, in a non-contrived setting, result in his being relieved of command. That may stem from bad direction, poor general writing for his character, and certainly an obvious lack of knowledge by the writers about how the military and military research projects really work. Unfortunately, this was the least convincing of all the characters.Finally, the movie is worth watching at least once. Go in knowing that it is a great idea which is poorly executed, and always remember the horrible reputation of the production source (SyFy). If that is done, the viewer will get what is expected and it should be worth the time.