Halo Legends
2010, 343 Industries et al
First, let me get this out of the way: I have less than zero interest in gaming, especially FPS (first person shooter) games. Halo is on my radar for two reasons: the games have spawned several potentially interesting films, and the music is very good. Note, too, that there's another film, Halo Landfall, as well as a television series, in addition to what I've reviewed here.
Like The Animatrix, Legends is an anthology of seven short animations done in different styles. Right away, not being a gamer, I was at a disadvantage: familiarity with characters and story arcs is something of a prerequisite. As for the animation itself, they were all anime, which is not a genre that appeals to me, although I'm able to appreciate it. The styles ranged from traditional-looking 2D cell animation to full-on 3D CGI.
Sadly, none of them offered anything in the way of an engaging story, and only one had a unique and interesting visual style: "The Duel" was something akin to an animated impressionistic watercolor (and it single-handedly saved the film from being a wet fart). "The Package," the only full-CGI episode, looked like early videogame animation—crude, wooden characters straight out of a Gerry Anderson puppet show, which was a deliberate choice, evidently. Although hardcore fans were likely orgasmic, I'll be honest and say it was all lost on me.
DKS 3/29/22
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
2012, 343 Industries et al
Like its predecessor, Forward is an anthology, comprising five short films originally streamed online; the difference this time is that they're live-action. Shot on a budget of $10 million in less than a month, the series was later merged into one feature film, and given the production limitations, it's not half-bad. It certainly makes way more sense than the animated series, since it doesn't rely on intimate knowledge of the games. The film is interspersed with messages home from a group of young cadets, providing us with some context for the larger stories. Writing is well-structured, performances are decent, editing is tight, and they got some good CGI for their money. Gamers may find the talk-to-shoot ratio not to their liking, but that's fine by me.
DKS 3/29/22
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
Halo: Nightfall
2015, 343 Industries et al
Like Forward, Nightfall comprises five live-action shorts originally streamed online and later rolled into one feature film. Ridley Scott was Executive Producer of this series, and as with Forward, the producers did reasonably well with a limited budget. In this case, however, it's "hardcore Halo," thick with the science, tech, mythology, and military themes of the game, so it's less accessible to non-gamers. Worse, this "third person shooter" has an unengaging story that's got trademark Ridley "Alien" Scott's horror and ten-little-Indians graf sprayed all over it.
DKS 3/29/22
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
Halo: The Fall of Reach
2015, 343 Industries et al
Here's an oddball: The Fall Of Reach is an animated series based on a novel of the same name. Although Reach existed as a game, the novel evidently disregarded canon, so one might assume the short films did the same—not that it makes any difference to moi. The CGI amination, however, is significantly worse than that of Nightfall; indeed, it's some of the worst animation I've seen in quite a long while. Not that it matters: the story is the most game-oriented of all the films, offering absolutely no orientation for non-gamers. I couldn't even finish watching it.
DKS 3/29/22
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
