White Wall (2010) User Reviews

Good idea with bad acting and bad script

[Downtown242 · 4/10 · 19 March 2010]

The movie is an interesting take on the whole post apocalyptic genre. It isn't anything new or particularly original, but it does deliver its own spin on a movie done a lot of times. I liked that the world wasn't such a ridiculous deviation from life prior to the disaster. The gangs weren't leather clad freaks like a Mad Max movie. People weren't all crazy and roaming around robbing each other. They had their normal jobs and lives. There was just an somewhat oppressive government trying to maintain control, and small cells of people rebelling against that system.

The movie looked good and had a decent idea, but the acting was very flat. Not one of the characters delivers a convincing performance. So none of the scenes have any emotional impact. This is probably due in large part to the stilted dialogue in the script. In the hands of a better write and director, I could see a big time Hollywood blockbuster. As it stands, it probably isn't worth much of your attention.

A real mixed bag

[mreffgee · 4/10 · 9 June 2021]

Firstly, it needs to be said that you should not go into this film expecting a blockbuster or high budget affair. It is neither.

That said, this film has some quite impressive qualities as well as some pretty serious issues that undermine it.

Firstly, the film is pretty high concept. It's premise is not particularly new (survivors in a post-apocalyptic, virus ravaged world) but it presents its own unique, non-derivative version of that premise. The society that the characters inhabit feels like something that I haven't seen before (and I've watch a lot of these kinds of films). It feels like a South American dictatorship meets the wild west meets 1950s knife gangs. And while that sounds like quite a mish-mash, it actually feels quite internally consistent.

The story is pretty well thought out and, in my opinion, interesting. However, its translation to screen has a number of problems. The pacing is all over the place. A number of events in the film are shoehorned in purely so that later events will make sense, and it is pretty jarring when this happens. There is one particular scene where the slow-motion approach of a group of characters lasts longer than the pointless conversation they have when they arrive - and the scene was only there so you'd know who they were later in the film. Quite odd.

The style of storytelling is not going to be for everyone, either. It vacillates between arthouse noir and student film bluntness. The first half of the film is vague and meandering. The second half of the film is tighter. Yet, there is a general lack of flow in the presentation. And there are some quite misguided scenes in the film that indicate a lack of writing/film-making experience. That said, the film was shot in 15 days and when you factor in the several fight scenes (which would have eaten up shooting time) I can understand why the final result is inconsistent.

The acting also varies wildly. The main actor (who also directed the film) doesn't have much range but he's not completely incompetent. The supporting cast do a great job, for the most part. A couple of players really struggle in their roles.

The action scenes were at times really very good. At other times they felt very out-of-character for the setting. In particular, the antagonist of the film has a really good knife-fighting scene with one of the other supports. A few minutes later he has a very underwhelming 80s action-ish fight with the protagonist, full of fancy martial arts kicks and flips and other nonsense that felt very inappropriate for the film.

If you're interested in watching films where people try to stretch a limited budget into something bigger than they can really afford, then I think this film is well worth watching. Unlike many other films of a similar ilk, it has something rather special: genuine originality.

To post-apocalyptic movie lovers.. Warning

[lil_moe · 15 June 2010]

I discovered this movie by searching "post-apocalyptic" right after watching the Book of Eli. I checked a couple of user reviews that stated things along the line "best action movie ever created in the history of film making" and "a masterpiece not to be missed".

So, after watching the first 20 minutes, I started fast-forwarding. After 40 minutes I just kept hoping someone would come along to shoot me in the face and put me out of my misery.

The movie doesn't have a real plot and the script could have been written by a 12-year old kid, very likely it was as a matter of fact. The fight-sequences are so badly performed to the point of being comic. The list goes on and on for why this movie is a very successful way if you want to lower your IQ, fall asleep real fast or both.

The one and only positive thing I can say about this movie is that the guy knows his martial arts. He is clearly well trained and for that thank heaven because the rest of the actors could not fight if their lives depended on it. He was still a bad actor, though.

So, why is it that the reviews I read were "singing praises for this glorious masterpiece"? Well, a quick check reveals that all the incredibly positive reviews were done by accounts opened on the same day and pretty much commented on nothing else but this movie.

Conclusion, if the cast of this movie spent as much time in acting classes as they spent flooding IMDb with false reviews, this movie wouldn't have been so terrible.

2/10 (only because of a couple semi-decent fight scenes)

Look up boring and you will find White Wall

[zt2112 · 1/10 · 11 April 2010]

This is my first post on IMDb.I have read many which i can agree with and many which i don't.I decided to post one on this movie.Mainly so other people can avoid this like the Plague.It was positively the most boring post apocalypse movie i have ever had the displeasure of viewing.I really can't think of any that can even come close.And believe me I've seen many.This is one of my favorite genres to watch.I've probably seen all of them.This film was very very slow,i kept thinking to shut it off and go to bed,but then i figured give it a chance it will pick up the pace.That didn't happen.There was no real plot that i could follow.Many scenes where there was nothing said for what felt like minutes instead of a few seconds.The acting,well there was none.I felt as though the actors were reading their lines off of a TelePrompter.At least that was my impression.If i could give this 0 stars i would.So may i suggest don't waste your time on this one.Play with the kids,or take the wife out for dinner.

Worst "action" and "post-apocalyptic" film I've ever seen!

[thefreestylefreak · 1/10 · 9 June 2010]

When you think of "great" post apocalyptic films some titles that come to mind include "The Road", "Dune", "Pitch Black", the "Road Warrior" series, and of course "Planet of the Apes". I don't know where some people get off claiming this is the "Godfather of Action films" or the "greatest" post-apocalyptic film ever made. I can only formulate they had some sort of connection with the film, whether it be they were part of the cast, crew, production, or distribution of this film. I believe these people giving rave reviews of this film are frankly, well, smoking something funny and have really, REALLY, low standards for films.

The film looks like it's been filmed outside of New Mexico or something. It's supposed to be a post apocalyptic background, but to me, it looks like some sort of south American city. A little grungy in places, but I don't see rats, people starving for food, etc etc. On the contrary, all the actors seem to be wearing clothes that looked like they were sporting Levi denim. The city has it's own well kept hospital, the streets have lighting, and a couple of the characters sport plate fulls of food on their kitchen table that would make many of us look poor. What's with the fancy shiny looking MG 2 door sporty car?? The acting is awful and stiff and rigid. The storyline is too slow. And there were quite a few times I could catch the camera trying to focus in and out of what is going on in the scene. Don't kid yourself, this movie is bad, really bad. Actions scenes?? Hardly, even those are bad. Almost laughable. This isn't even a "B" movie. More like an "F" movie for F as in "Fail". I don't recommend anyone going out of their way to rent or purchase this film. In fact, I don't know where you'd really do both. I was given a copy of this film, and after 2 minutes of popping it into the DVD player I knew this was going to be really bad. After giving it a chance 30 minutes in, I decided I had better things to do with my life then spend the next hour watching this disaster!!

White Wall is not for everyone; But this review is for those willing to give this unusual movie a fair shot.

[keeperoffate · 5/10 · 10 April 2011]

I often find there to be two kinds of movie watchers; those that see the bad and judge based on it, or those that see the good and enjoy it. If you are the former, do not watch this movie. If, however, you like a less than glowing movie for being more than 'enjoyably bad', keep reading.

This movie is NOT 'enjoyably bad', but rather shows a growth in film production skill significant enough to surpass enjoyably bad movies in quality (not enjoyability). That is ironically this movie's downfall. While the unique story and setting may draw some critical fire, they are well done if you are willing to accept a slightly unusual post- apocalyptic stage for the story. So too is the movie's music and cinematography (its highest point). Acting, however, is flat and in a movie that visibly takes itself seriously, it makes for a notable distraction. The problem is that the acting is ALMOST passable, meaning that instead of laughing at a poorly delivered line and enjoying it for the laughs you get, you will instead just mind yourself annoyed at what could almost have been a solidly good film. The script also could have been much sharper, making the already stilted acting even stiffer.

Pacing is slower than one might expect from the way the movie presents itself. For what looks to be a low budget action movie, there are remarkably few action scenes, and shots linger long enough that story feels slowed to a crawl at times. What this looses in classical attention grabbing it gains in artistic value and atmosphere (due largely to the previously mentioned gorgeous cinematography of the film). This lingering camera trades out for an odd combination of long fixed shots and short hand-held close ups during action sequences. This makes for an interesting blend that feels strange at first, but by the movie's final fight scene beautifully ties everything together into a final, brilliantly shot finale.

It's hard to know what to expect from this movie. Even in classifying its genre, it tackles so much that its hard to place. It is a futuristic/modern post-apocalypse woven with elements of kung-fu, western, and film noir mystery style aspects and an oddly atmospheric meandering storyline that pretty much guarantees that this movie is NOT what you are expecting. So my final bit of advice; go in without expectations. Let this movie be what it is and try not to judge it for anything else. If acting is a major issue to you, I may recommend you skip out on this one, but if mediocre scripting and delivery won't get in the way of a decent and unusual story, good musical score, and beautiful camera-work, this movie may be worth your time.

Please read before viewing

[jacobsmith1982 · 1/10 · 18 June 2010]

The acting is so distractingly bad that it is downright painful to push through the opening sequence, but, as awful as it was I continued on for another half hour making sure I gave this movie every chance. When two fundamental aspects of a movie are of such a low quality, in this case the writing and the acting, it's a wonder how the movie can be made at all. I wouldn't make my worst enemy watch this movie let alone a complete stranger that is the only reason I'm writing this review. This "movie" should come with a warning label; 'This film may leave a mental stain that could result in brain trauma when recollecting any of it's contents at a later date, and in some cases has resulted in individuals wishing they were Helen Keller.'

Worse than Legend of Chun Li

[jatran · 1/10 · 3 January 2011]

I happen to stumble across this movie completely by accident hoping that once in a while an unknown film can be surprisingly good. This definitely wasn't the one. Actually, it is now officially the worst movie I've ever seen, beating the Legend of Chun Li.

White Wall is plagued by clichés such as a virus wiping out the Earth, the forced "love story," and pretty much every character's personality. The story seems to have been written by a middle schooler. Apparently Shawn was able to run experiments on the virus from a closet as a janitor after being a gang-member.

The acting in this movie is probably the worst thing about it. If the director was serious enough about the movie he would have let someone else be the lead character unless he was trying to cut costs or something. He shows maybe 2 different facial expressions the whole movie and tries to sport a messenger bag while attempting to portray a bad-ass. He wasn't the only one that did poorly but definitely took up the most screen time Costumes were way off. What's with all the fedoras and the poncho guy? Was this "our" 20th century? There's no imagination here.

You could say "they were limited by costs or inexperience" but I don't think that's a real excuse. Look at what the Blair Witch or paranormal activity did with only a camcorder and a cast that equally looks like plain college kids.

I did find a few positive aspects to White Wall which might have been the musical score and some of the cinematography that no doubt made the low budget action scenes look at least a little intense.

In the end, I was only motivated to rate this movie because of the fake ratings boosting it.

A good idea, but awful execution

[GrandAdmiralThrawn · 1/10 · 1 January 2011]

This movie is bad. The acting is bad, the script and screenplay are bad, sometimes even the cut is bad. The pace is too slow, and many scenes seem strangely out of place.

For instance, the scene were our protagonist meets a policeman in some small alley, and then quickly leans towards the wall, I'm not even sure why he does what he does.. At first I thought he wanted to turn his face away from the policeman to not be recognized, but this wasn't the reason, as they look at each other just after the cop walked by. So he didn't want to hide his face. He had no freaking reason to stand there for like 30 seconds looking at his own reflection in a piece of broken glass in a window frame. After that he just walks away. And the whole thing was acted ridiculously bad.

Now this was just one small scene. There are lots of scenes which just don't make any sense or don't quite "fit in".

The idea of the movie as a whole is actually pretty good. Other than most reviewers I even think the fighting scenes weren't bad, I kinda enjoy "realistic" fights, even when not all fighters are good at martial arts. But still, that is not enough to give this piece of junk two stars. The rest is just too bad.

A post-apocalyptic low-budget film that does everything right that this flick did wrong is the German movie "Kampfansage - Der letzte Schüler". Not sure if there is an English version. But if you wanna see a good low-budget post-apocalyptic movie, I would suggest that rather than "White Wall".

I even read the directors message in the IMDb board telling us how he had to struggle to make the production of White Wall possible, and how he had to shoot most of the movie in a 3rd world country, etc. Obviously they only had 15 days to do the whole thing.

But even with such massive odds, I just can't give this flick more than one star. No matter the troubles that the crew had to go through to make this indie movie possible, I'm sorry, it just disappoints completely.

My message to the crew would be: Do this in a more consistent fashion, make the scenes "glue together" better, ensure that your actors bring some real emotion into it, and for gods sake, give it a faster pace and remove the strange out-of-focus crap and the pseudo-artsy strange music. Please learn from this failure, thank you.

Why release this production

[max-blest · 1/10 · 9 October 2020]

Oh my...originally I was asking who paid for it, but that doesn't matter. Why was this even released outside the buddy group?

I am only writing this review to get something back for the time spent watching it. I did watch it. I even paused it and cut a conversation short with my wife because I needed to finish watching it just to get it over with. I paused it to make a sandwich and forced myself to hit the "Play" button again. I put off a bathroom trip because I thought maybe I could get through without.

Positives. A couple shots of the desert landscape. The soundtrack build in some scenes. Some of the martial arts, though it's clear only one person in the movie has any real training.

Negatives: All the other shots of the desert landscape. The actual scene moment when the good soundtrack builds end. The acting. The direction. Pretty much everything else.

Thankfully this was bad enough that I will forget it.

There is a plot twist but no development bringing the viewer to it. The reveal itself is weak. It's not really validated but maybe that was intentional.

I must not think bad thoughts...I must not think bad thoughts...

Okay -- cool little car. Who would have guessed you could get something so neat and so shiny in the post-apocalyptic world behind the white wall.

Where is this going? Off the rails like this movie went immediately before the title presentation. Positive reviews on this movie are not to be trusted. You can't even trust the summary contributed the "White Wall Movie". There's more substance to that "this is my pitch" writing than the actual movie. Really, everyone involved could have spent their time and money on much more fulfilling endeavors. Like maybe filming this as a short.

I wish I could say this was painful for me. I love sci-fi. I even enjoy bad sci-fi when it is good or laughable bad sci-fi. But this mashup of grade school post-apocalyptic projection and martial arts is just a bore. Save yourself and pass on this movie.

A pleasant surprise that spans various genres

[jennytessa · 8/10 · 20 February 2021]

White Wall tells the story of a world racked by disease and corruption. It focuses on a group of "brothers" - not blood related siblings, but those who endured gruesome internment camps together and managed to get out alive. When Shawn finds that one of them has died, he begins to investigate and unspools a conspiracy amongst the elites.

This movie is an action film, but it's very story-driven and focuses more on the mystery and the bonds between the "brothers." The sci-fi elements (and the giant wall) is a bit like The Maze Runner, mixed in with the noir elements of movies like Memento. Add in a dash of sibling tension a la Before the Devil Knows Your Dead, and you have White Wall.

The set design in this is great - plenty of dingy and gritty shanty towns and expansive, dusty Western landscapes. The cinematography is genuinely impressive with all its shadow-y noir influences. The actual conflict here is layered and ambitious, and it all culminates in a fantastically tense battle between Shawn and the "evil" brother, Jude Black. All in all, the film is definitely worth checking out.

Rare watch

[tygalla · 7/10 · 28 March 2010]

This movie started out strong, and it kinda threw me off for a second, but once I got back on track I actually enjoyed it. The mood and style of White Wall was refreshing, and I still have a hard time believing that this was a mini budget indie??. Pros - some loked out knife fighting scenes, and an interesting concept made it worthwhile. Cons - it's too artsy for it's genre, I normally appreciate this kinda stuff, but It was a little too avant-garde at times and it's great that there are people out there actually trying to break a few molds, but I wasn't expecting it. This isn't for everyone, but if you like dark movies with some action and a very Yoshiaki Kawajiri jap anime style to it then I say go for it or else don't bother. To sum it up, if you go in watching this in the right mood, you should thoroughly enjoy this.

An impressive film with a good story.

[tomramsden-45439 · 8/10 · 21 February 2021]

White wall is a tale of two brothers and their resentment towards each other in an intense post-apocalyptic world where crime rules above all else. We follow a group of brothers who grew up together in an internment camp who manage to get out alive and go their separate ways. That is until Shawn, one of the brothers, finds out that one of the others has been killed. This takes him down a dark path unravelling secrets that create for a gripping storyline.

The acting in White Wall is better than I originally anticipated considering the low budget for the film and the writing only makes the story more convincing. The cinematography is great and reminds me of the film "parasite". As well as this, the environment of the movie reminds me of the film "I am legend" which incorporates small wasteland towns and villages.

The tension between the brothers builds throughout the course of the film and ends with a glorious battle between Shawn and Jude that is brilliantly shot. Overall, I would consider giving this a watch if you enjoy impressive cinematography and films with a strong story line.

As real as it gets

[mechanicaldust2 · 8/10 · 20 May 2010]

This gritty, low budget film offers a unique and honest perspective on the underworld of a post-apocalyptic street life in the near future, with an almost tragic, Shakepearian, bent. The look, the feel and style of the culture and the almost real-time street life in these cities is truly unmatched by any film before or since. Perhaps through genius, inspiration, maybe just plain luck, or all three, the producers and director hit the nail right on the head. Starring an excellent, intelligent cast of professionals, the film has an honesty and gritty reality that belies its budgetary constraints. Filmed largely without the permission of authorities and unions, in winter and often after dark, it has a cinema vérité feel throughout. And the score! Composed and performed by Marc Collin, it is as close to an utter classic as has ever been offered. Without a doubt it stands alone. If one takes the inherent flaws to this type of production; i.e. the rough editing, slightly uneven performances and almost clandestine feel, and places these in proper perspective, it is sure to delight all but the most hardened and jaded enthusiasts of film. Notable: This film set a NEW STYLE for action films, and PA culture raising the bar. It has no current rivals in that accomplishment. Only when this film is "remade", will we appreciate the originality and artistic endeavors of this ambitious film. You will see what style counts for. This film is the real deal. I spent money I didn't have to get this Bluray. Go buy it, trust me.

White Wall, A Great Cinematic Masterpiece

[shumailasad · 9/10 · 20 February 2021]

Nothing is more fascinating than Jame Boss' incredible direction, which takes a low-budgeted movie to be found as adorable as a high-budgeted movie could ever be. White Wall is a post-apocalyptic movie based on a guy trying to find his brother, which ultimately takes him on a journey through the post-apocalyptic wasteland.

The movie starts with some great shots of how people are surviving during the pandemic. During the start, we get to know about the conflict of government with people, who are taking over the survivors, and what's the main motivation of the main character. Which many movies don't get to do until they are in their second half, and this is what makes a movie a great dramatic piece. However, during the end, the inclusion of the fighting scene shows, how awful the movie is with its budget, because those scenes clearly show, producers didn't put much of any attention on the main characteristics of the movie, which is fighting scenes. Talking about the delivery of dialogues and the acting, they are just an enigma of masterpieces. Because I didn't expect those things were going to save the movie from being a low-budgeted disaster. The camera angles are creative as they showcase how a movie could go through from one arc to another without losing the viewers' attention. Colors and dark greedy tone were miles apart from each other as a post-apocalyptic movie needs to show its creativity on the editing table by adding more colors in the environment, take the example of I am Legend, it's the presence of a colorful environment which made that movie a big success, but white wall just goes along with its dark greedy tone, which isn't going to be a good experience for a moviegoer.

Nonetheless, this movie can create a spark in the dull life of the viewer who hates living in quarantine, as the movie story revolves around people going through living between walls which is also practically quarantine for them. In addition to this, the director successfully describes the premise of the movie as his aspirations for the film came from providing viewers a picture of the distant future, where mankind is at its low point. In simple words, the film is a warning for people to stop destroying the world because if we don't, we could end up like the society showcased in the movie.

My experience of watching it was pleasant because I didn't have any expectations from the movie but the way actors acted and camera shots just indulged me deep into the essence of the movie, which made me to ignore the awful fighting sequences. So if you love watching a dark greedy, drama movie and don't care about the CGI and special effects then I think you should give this movie a try.

Hilarious & Smart!

[jitabinhan24142 · 10/10 · 5 June 2020]

Would highly recommend to anyone!! It's everything I never knew I needed

amazing movie

[gharles4235325 · 10/10 · 5 June 2020]

THis movie is one of the best live performances! I like it so much