Many of you out there are old enough to remember just how comical science fiction movies use to be before everyone started to take the genre seriously, the movies weren't all bad but there were plenty out there like Mars Attacks that were plain ridiculous. Well, Lazer Team is just that kind of ridiculous, but in a good way. Developed by the web production company Rooster Teeth the movie follows four misfits who end up crashing a vessel sent from an intelligent alien race known as the Andarians and is meant for the savior of planet Earth. Sadly, the suit inside ends up in their hands and the world is left with no other choice but to have them fight against an imminent alien threat.
The story itself however tends to focus more around the four members of the team; overprotective cop Hagan (Burnie Burnes), cocky high school quarterback Zach (Michael Burns), burnt out alcoholic Herman (Colton Dunn) and the dimwitted Woody (Gavin Free), rather than the impending attack on Earth. This isn't a bad thing though as each of the characters have their own unique experience with one another and the pieces of the suit they receive. Hagen receiving a shield that symbolizes his wanting to protect those around him, Herman picking the pair of boots that fixes his limp and restores his former legendary speed and then some, Woody dawns the helmet that grants him a massive intelligence boost and Zach takes the laser for his incredible throwing arm and his loose cannon personality. It's not the most subtle of metaphors for each of the characters but it gets the job done.
The other factor working in the teams favor is the fact that the cast members themselves have worked together for many years and it relieves any misgivings people might have about their lack of acting experience. There is no sense of tension on screen and all of the actors are able to play off of one another in the best way so the jokes hit when they need to, for example Woody's sudden adaptation of an English accent after gaining super intelligence (Free actually being of British decent) and making a point to say that stupid people think British accents make them sound smarter. However, some of the dialogue does go to a lower level for the sake of trying to get a cheap laugh out of the audience. I felt that there were far more hits than misses when it came to the humor but early on when you have characters like Zach (who is portrayed as the dumb jock) talking like a buffoon about sex, drinking or getting "likes" on an Instagram post of the "Lazer Team," it goes a bit too far.
Some of the side characters also have room to play with their roles as well and this is especially true for resident Captain American-esque Adam (Alan Ritchson) who was meant to wear the super suit and be Earth's savior. He is admittedly upset about the thing he spent his life to achieve being taken away by these undeserving four and even more so when he is given the task to train them on how the suit is suppose to function. He later has a change of heart when he sees just what they are capable of when they work together. You also have Mindy (Alexandria DeBerry) who is not only Hagen's daughter but also the love interest for teenage motermouth Zach. Her best moments are when she shows up to the team's hideout to refuel the team with food and refuel Zach in other ways. Don't worry, it doesn't go well.
Now the budget for the movie was obviously not to the heights of many other Hollywood productions but once again Lazer Team makes the best of what it's got. The CGI levels were up to par with exactly what they needed to be used for in the various fights and alien technologies such as holograms and so on. But what is the movies biggest eye sores are the moments where you remember that this a web production company and they're probably going to pump some free advertisement right into it. I appreciate the odd reference here and there but more than a couple times previous glories from the company's biggest production make their way into the story. Near the end of the movie there were a gaggle of superheroes dressed like characters from RWBY and X-Ray and Vav too. There was also the football teams colors being Red and Blue, a tip of the hat to the company's first production in online machinima. And while having your own easter eggs is fun, it is a bit self serving considering many of the people who will pay to watch your movie are already long time fans of your content.
Lazer Team walks a fine line between being an example of just what crowd funding and plenty of community support can do for an independent movie. Nothing was too over the top or out of the depth for what the story needed in order to be funny, action packed and interesting. The four lead characters were all easily likable losers as well that had their own challenges to overcome in order to beat back the alien threat. However, many low brow jokes and plot points don't quite cut it here and when you think about the fact that there is a plan for a sequel to be made, you begin to hope that things won't get too far out of hand here.
Good:
- The "Lazer Team" themselves were solid
- Plenty of humor and high points for the story
- A balanced use of CGI and props that doesn't go out of depth for the story
Bad:
- Low points that feature bad dialogue and some frankly unappealing jokes
- Referrances to Rooster Teeth's other productions should have been few and far between
- A sequel? I'm not so sure guys.
Scully Rating: 6.0 out of 10
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