Reign of Fire film review

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REIGN OF FIRE

It's difficult enough as it is to buy into the idea of a serious film about dragons ruling the world, but it becomes all but impossible when characters utter ridiculous lines like "get ready to rock and roll, we've got a dragon to kill." The only question more baffling than how did Reign Of Fire come to get made is why? A confused and sprawling mess from beginning to end, its special effects are as unconvincing as its plot, which has more holes than a dragon's handkerchief.

The dark tones of the apocalyptic landscape reflect Reign Of Fire's drab nature. Bathed in muted tones of greys and browns, both the film and the characters offer few glimpses of colour. From the outset it was an ambitious venture and one that, if it was to have any chance of success, certainly required more wonder and imagination than director Rob Bowman and the script's three writers were able to muster.

Set in England in 2020, mankind has been all but wiped out by huge fire-breathing dragons that broke out from a tunnel under London. Ruling the world from the sky, they have reduced the landscape to charred rubble. Pockets of civilisation hide out in colonies, living in fear of the winged marauders. The leader of one community in Northumberland is the dour Quinn (Christian Bale) whose tough administration is unpopular with even his closet colleagues. "I'm your best friend and sometimes even I don't like you", says the jocular Creedy (Gerard Butler).

Quinn finds his authority challenged when the brash, muscled, bald and tattooed figure of Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey) shows up and is greeted to an unenthusiastic welcome. "Only one thing worse than a dragon: Americans." Like some Texan Mad Max renegade fairy tale figure, Van Zan claims to be a genuine dragon slayer. He and what remains of his followers, which include the decorative Alex (Izabella Scorupco), want to enlist the aid of Quinn and his men and head to London to take on the dragons. If it all sounds hokey, then that's because it is.

The action sequences involving the dragons, which offer all too little relief from the crass dialogue, only occasionally match the sophisticated level of effects we've become accustomed to. For the most past though, Reign Of Fire more closely resembles a video fantasy game, but alas one that doesn't even offer the prospect of interaction. Had it done so, the outcome might have been less predictable.