Inferno (2002)

This was my first and only gig as an extra. Our local contra dancing club was recruited for the final scene, filmed on one of the hottest days of the year in a building about 30 feet from the original location of Sutter's Mill (the one that started the CA Gold Rush). It was about 100+ inside, then they had to turn on the lights, close the doors and we had to go into high gear and not sweat.It was frankly, a lot of fun. But we waited for a couple of years for the thing to be released, and thankfully it went direct to DVD.It is just a cheese-ball effort. And one wonders how stuff like this ever gets bankrolled.

Ever seen a movie so bad that it felt like you were watching a porn movie without the x-rated scenes? If not, see Inferno and you'll know what I mean. The acting is the best part of the movie, and even then it is mediocre at best. But whether this is solely due to the actors themselves or the forced and unnatural dialog in the script is uncertain. The script is completely void of any subtleties, nuances or psychology. Combine this with ineffectual editing, disinterested direction and an amazingly predictable storyline ("he wasn't just some guy, he was your father!") and the result is an insultingly poor waste of time. The camera direction is average. The special effects weren't even half bad, considering that the budget was obviously limited. All in all though, this is a decidedly below-average disaster b-movie.

Warning: Contains Spoilers! This film (if one can really call it a film), is probably the worst I have ever seen. I stopped watching halfway through it, but forced myself to watch the rest after logging into imdb, to give this comment. About 11 mins. in, this happens; (the "firefighters" are removing vegetation to stop the fire from spreading). Darcy: "Listen, the wind has shifted. Get everybody out of here NOW." Suddenly, ten-feet-tall flames are shooting out of nowhere, and most of the men get knocked over, then run away. A firefighter gets knocked down by a falling burning tree. His pants catch fire(!), but Darcy puts it out, and drags him to "safety". There is almost no smoke, and very little fire around, except for when the ten-feet-tall flames suddenly erupt out of nowhere. That scene was so incredibly unrealistic, that I couldn't watch it without grinding my teeth and curling my toes. Much of the "film" is that bad, or worse.The scene when blowing the dam is very much up to your imagination. To me, it just looks like they're blasting a few holes in the side of a hill (with a few inches of water on the other side), and you don't get to see any water flowing out of the reservoir.I'll watch this again, when the sun turns blue..

While not the worst film I've ever sat through this film is certainly not one that I can see as a winner. The only actor I've ever seen before is Dean Stockwell and I have no doubt that he was as confused as his character was supposed to be wondering why he signed the contract to do this film.The plot is pretty flimsy, the acting is ordinary at best, the script is poor and the special effects are laughable when compared to the modern standards. I cannot help but comparing this to Dantes Peak which this film seems to be a bit of a rip off of without being nearly as good.My only other theory as to how this film came about is that Dean Stockwell runs an acting school and this film is a practical development of that course. At best, this film is unlikely to offend anyone.