The Gauntlet. A handful of strangers, all of whom have previously killed, find themselves trapped in a deadly and mysterious building. It soon becomes a fight for survival with challenging Biblical riddles to solve along the way.
The Running Man and Saw are two movies that sprung to mind, with added Satanic references. There's plenty of violence and action to help pass it's relatively short running time, bit of suspense too. The ending is a bit hard to swallow though. Ba Ling, who was 47 at the time, looks fantastic.
A reasonable if instantly forgettable time filler.
13 Reviews
I Thought It Would Stink, I Was Wrong
chrismackey197219 September 2014
I just finished watching this, and I was pleasantly surprised. It's about 5 people who get trapped in some sort of ancient-like dungeon. There are a couple different rooms they have to get into in order to escape the gauntlet - which was the original title of the movie - and each room has a puzzle they have to solve before they can advance. Generally, a blood sacrifice of sorts has to be made.
Bai Ling (Red Corner, The Crow) and Warren Kole (24, The Following) lead the cast. This is probably the first movie since Red Corner that Bai Ling has been in in which she did not play some tramp, slut, or bimbo. She was actually allowed to act, and she did a good job. Plus she looks really good. She's close to 50, but looks half that age. I always thought she'd be a Chinese superstar like Li Bingbing and Xiang Ziyi, but for some unfortunate reason that didn't happen.
There are deaths in this movie, which I knew there would be, but I was still surprised at some of those who were killed. I can't say this was all that original, but it was pretty well done for what it was. The poster for this film doesn't make much sense when compared to the actual movie.
I recommend this movie. I gave it a 6-star rating. I might revisit that later, but I tend to rate a movie based on how I feel right after viewing it. Perhaps this deserves more like a 5-star rating, but even though the material has been done before, as I said earlier, they did a good job on it.
Bai Ling (Red Corner, The Crow) and Warren Kole (24, The Following) lead the cast. This is probably the first movie since Red Corner that Bai Ling has been in in which she did not play some tramp, slut, or bimbo. She was actually allowed to act, and she did a good job. Plus she looks really good. She's close to 50, but looks half that age. I always thought she'd be a Chinese superstar like Li Bingbing and Xiang Ziyi, but for some unfortunate reason that didn't happen.
There are deaths in this movie, which I knew there would be, but I was still surprised at some of those who were killed. I can't say this was all that original, but it was pretty well done for what it was. The poster for this film doesn't make much sense when compared to the actual movie.
I recommend this movie. I gave it a 6-star rating. I might revisit that later, but I tend to rate a movie based on how I feel right after viewing it. Perhaps this deserves more like a 5-star rating, but even though the material has been done before, as I said earlier, they did a good job on it.
You could do worse, but the problem is you could do better as well
jimbo-53-18651112 May 2018
In a sunken castle, 5 people awaken with little to no memory of how they got there. They quickly learn that they are being tested and find that they must band together to try to figure out how to escape. But who is responsible for their imprisonment and why have these 5 specific people being chosen?
The Gauntlet or Game Of Assassins as it is otherwise known is very similar in feel to Cube (another film where a group of strangers are locked in together and must work together and solve puzzles to escape). Predictably this results in a film that isn't particularly fresh or original...
Having said that, in this film it really doesn't matter too much as the camera is always busy and the film rarely sits still - there is just about enough exposition and character development to get an understanding of what is going on, but it's never overdone here and although this film is flawed it is never dull.
One complaint I did have with this film was the dark and dingy look of the film; sure it's necessary to an extent due to where they are located, but at times it was impossible to see what was going on which in some ways removed some of the tension from proceedings. The editing and choreography of some of the fight sequences was also poor and amateurish which resulted in a lot of these fight sequences being a bit laughable.
The cast are all OK, but no-one really makes much of an impression truth be told and they do all feel like clichés of characters that I've seen before.
I don't want to be too harsh on this film as it is, to be fair, moderately entertaining and at only 80 minutes long it gets the job done without any needless filler, crass subplots or soppy romances. However, it's never as good as the films that it has borrowed from which is problematic and ultimately renders it as a second-rate variation.
The Gauntlet or Game Of Assassins as it is otherwise known is very similar in feel to Cube (another film where a group of strangers are locked in together and must work together and solve puzzles to escape). Predictably this results in a film that isn't particularly fresh or original...
Having said that, in this film it really doesn't matter too much as the camera is always busy and the film rarely sits still - there is just about enough exposition and character development to get an understanding of what is going on, but it's never overdone here and although this film is flawed it is never dull.
One complaint I did have with this film was the dark and dingy look of the film; sure it's necessary to an extent due to where they are located, but at times it was impossible to see what was going on which in some ways removed some of the tension from proceedings. The editing and choreography of some of the fight sequences was also poor and amateurish which resulted in a lot of these fight sequences being a bit laughable.
The cast are all OK, but no-one really makes much of an impression truth be told and they do all feel like clichés of characters that I've seen before.
I don't want to be too harsh on this film as it is, to be fair, moderately entertaining and at only 80 minutes long it gets the job done without any needless filler, crass subplots or soppy romances. However, it's never as good as the films that it has borrowed from which is problematic and ultimately renders it as a second-rate variation.
Seriously?
didgee727 November 2014
Warning: Spoilers
Just finished watching this movie and I am a bit shocked as to how bad it was after expecting a good one given the ratings and the trailer. I am sorry I cant waste my time to write a proper review on this one ..In short very bad acting with no credible figures,predictable story, (very predictable)the set up is not bad so the idea despite far from original could have gone further if they choose IMHO better actors and overall almost everyone who made this movie surely had to be a beginner at film making.. This movie could have been very good if it was watched 20 years ago.Its ridiculous at 7 starts at current rating.Fair rating is at 5 or 6 at the most.(And you will not see that costume either thats on the poster.In fact that poster has nothing to do with this movie~)
I wish I could get my 80 minutes back!
Turambar-315 February 2017
I'm sure there are some people who will be convinced this movie contains some sort of hidden truths, but I'm not. There's almost no plot, not much dialogue and we learn very little about the characters - worse, we don't care about any of them anyway.
What little plot there is, as it turns out, ends up with several big holes in it. The ending takes place in the last 5 minutes, because the writer obviously just ran out of ideas (or paper). It's trudge, trudge, trudge for 75 minutes, then a disappointing ending so devoid of anything useful that the viewer just ends up with nothing. If someone had suggested to me that this movie might end this way, I'd think he was kidding.
This movie was showing on HBO one Sunday against all of the infomercials, and I got curious. I thought it might be a fun little action flick, but an old Jackie Chan movie would have been a hundred times more entertaining.
What little plot there is, as it turns out, ends up with several big holes in it. The ending takes place in the last 5 minutes, because the writer obviously just ran out of ideas (or paper). It's trudge, trudge, trudge for 75 minutes, then a disappointing ending so devoid of anything useful that the viewer just ends up with nothing. If someone had suggested to me that this movie might end this way, I'd think he was kidding.
This movie was showing on HBO one Sunday against all of the infomercials, and I got curious. I thought it might be a fun little action flick, but an old Jackie Chan movie would have been a hundred times more entertaining.
The lack of budget has nothing to do...
educallejero8 December 2018
With how bad this movie is.
The movie start well, the setup is intriguing. Nothing groundbreaking, but the typical "Saw" kind of mystery, with a small group of people not knowing what is happening or why, and around untrustworthy people.
And yet, the dialogue is absolutely awful, the reeeeally slow revelation of the secrets annoying and when it's all said and done, you realize that there are an incredible amount of plotholes and the conclusion is not satisfaying enough to overcome the lack of production values, dialogues and acting.
The movie start well, the setup is intriguing. Nothing groundbreaking, but the typical "Saw" kind of mystery, with a small group of people not knowing what is happening or why, and around untrustworthy people.
And yet, the dialogue is absolutely awful, the reeeeally slow revelation of the secrets annoying and when it's all said and done, you realize that there are an incredible amount of plotholes and the conclusion is not satisfaying enough to overcome the lack of production values, dialogues and acting.
Good if you like watching actors standing around in the dark
Leofwine_draca19 May 2018
Warning: Spoilers
THE GAUNTLET is a would-be horror/adventure film that seems to have been shot in somebody's basement. Certainly the film has about 10% of the kind of lighting you normally see in a B-movie and as it's a single location flick too it just consists of five actors hanging around in the dark while somebody feeds them their dialogue. Much is made of conflict within the group but if this is trying to be one of those 'deadly gameshow' type films then it fails miserably. Due to the lack of incident and plot it just goes on and on and on, hugely boring to sit through. The reliable Bai Ling appears in a supporting role but even she can't save this waste-of-time movie.
WELCOME TO THE END OF YOUR LIVES
nogodnomasters28 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
David (Warren Kole) who is a Boston cop awakens in place that is a bit like purgatory. He is joined by other people, Jin (Dustin Nguyen) Emma (Jaime Ray Newman) Tyler (Nick Lane) , Anna (Murielle Telio) and Kim Lee (Bai Ling) who provides us with token eye candy.
If you read the title, you know they all have something in common. The film is a bit like "Cube" as they must solve a puzzle to go on to the next level. The film has religious overtones, but is not a religious film. Has a couple of good scenes, no great ones. The drama felt like a reality TV show when they eliminate someone. It was a bit fake.
The acting was what would expect for such a film. Warren Cole, the main character was a bit dry.
Parental Guide: F-bombs. No sex or nudity.
If you read the title, you know they all have something in common. The film is a bit like "Cube" as they must solve a puzzle to go on to the next level. The film has religious overtones, but is not a religious film. Has a couple of good scenes, no great ones. The drama felt like a reality TV show when they eliminate someone. It was a bit fake.
The acting was what would expect for such a film. Warren Cole, the main character was a bit dry.
Parental Guide: F-bombs. No sex or nudity.
What the hell was that?
tedeadite12 May 2018
Warning: Spoilers
A movie supposedly based on Catholic doctrine featuring East Asians who may not know such things.The clues are pictures that we can't see properly or mumbled bits of lore we can not hear properly.Things keep happening for no reason and everyone suddenly changes character.
Its like kids playing a game,changing and making up rules as they go along,but without the charm of that.
Surprisingly well done genre film
movieseed18 September 2014
Saw this in the festival circuit last year when it was titled 'The Gauntlet.' It's a little bit of Saw and a little bit of DaVinci Code.
Five strangers wake up in what seems to be a labyrinthine or underground castle with no memory of how they got there. Their relationships to one another are unknown, and the loyalties they form for survival are tenuous at best. Each level of this dungeon proves a grueling challenge where the price to move forward is often another person's life. Along the way, a sense of each person's past and a glimmer of their true character peeks through. In fact this is the more enjoyable aspect of the feature. I respected the internal life of these characters and learning who they were.
Meanwhile, blood, much blood, much death. Bai Ling (The Beautiful Country, The Crow) is fantastic as a disturbed and merciless survivalist. Though the least of the actors that needs to prove themselves on an ostensibly low-budget genre flick, Bai Ling goes for broke, covered in blood for basically the entire film. Another treat was the casting of Dustin Nguyen (The Rebel) whose performance is one of subtlety and dignity. The Gauntlet is what it is. It goes for broke and I had fun while it did.
Five strangers wake up in what seems to be a labyrinthine or underground castle with no memory of how they got there. Their relationships to one another are unknown, and the loyalties they form for survival are tenuous at best. Each level of this dungeon proves a grueling challenge where the price to move forward is often another person's life. Along the way, a sense of each person's past and a glimmer of their true character peeks through. In fact this is the more enjoyable aspect of the feature. I respected the internal life of these characters and learning who they were.
Meanwhile, blood, much blood, much death. Bai Ling (The Beautiful Country, The Crow) is fantastic as a disturbed and merciless survivalist. Though the least of the actors that needs to prove themselves on an ostensibly low-budget genre flick, Bai Ling goes for broke, covered in blood for basically the entire film. Another treat was the casting of Dustin Nguyen (The Rebel) whose performance is one of subtlety and dignity. The Gauntlet is what it is. It goes for broke and I had fun while it did.
Game of ... Escape
kosmasp21 April 2022
The international title is a bit ... strange to say the least. But I reckon it works as good as anything else. And maybe better than The Gauntlet. You could call this the Cube underneath ... or something along those lines. Since Cube came out - movie tried to copy the formula. Some with more, some with less success.
I think this has some very interesting moments. Unfortunately even the charisma of the actors is not going to be able to save this entirely. But it might elevate it to a certain degree (no pun intended). That being said, the thrill and the suspense is being kept until the end. And if you like the actors (at least one of them, no matter the character they portray), you will have something to hold on to.
The end and some of the twists may feel stretched to say the least here too - but maybe you have given up on thinking too much about stuff and just give in and sort of enjoy whatever this low budget effort means and tries to do (for you)
I think this has some very interesting moments. Unfortunately even the charisma of the actors is not going to be able to save this entirely. But it might elevate it to a certain degree (no pun intended). That being said, the thrill and the suspense is being kept until the end. And if you like the actors (at least one of them, no matter the character they portray), you will have something to hold on to.
The end and some of the twists may feel stretched to say the least here too - but maybe you have given up on thinking too much about stuff and just give in and sort of enjoy whatever this low budget effort means and tries to do (for you)
Was Half of the Film Good, or Was the Film Half Good?
bemyfriend-4018419 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The answer is, the film was good, until the ending. The end was stupid; unbelievable, and disappointing. The Asian girl was great! Beautiful, crazy, feral, nervously twitchy, and finally, a femme fatale. She even almost beats the great "David"; some white cop who is boring and unlikeable. Seen on Tubi, the free streaming site.
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