Iron Lung (2026)

 For the second time in as many months, I am sat in a cinema watching a film made by a YouTuber. The film is directed by Mark Fischbach (aka Markiplier) and is based on a video game which I have never played so in regards to authenticity I cannot comment. The plot of the film is that Fischbach plays Simon who starts the film in this iron submarine type thing and has to find something. The entire film takes place in this submarine and the closest that we get to coming outside is when we see through a window at some other humans and a couple of flashbacks. The film has very little space in which to keep things moving but to the film's credit it manages it. 

The last 40 minutes dragged for me and as a result I stopped paying attention so I didn’t keep track of what was happening or why. I don't know if the plot was based on the video game or they have just borrowed some elements but I felt like the plot was starting to get a bit convoluted after a while. It also felt like the longer the film went on the more the camera was shaking so much that you couldn’t see what was going on. The last shot was of the life jacket with the black box in it but we don't know if Simon’s sacrifice was in vain or achieved something substantial. The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that if they had found a better actor then the performance might have kept me engaged with the story. Fischbach might be a popular YouTube but I don't think he is going to be a contender at the BAFTA’s or Oscars anytime soon. Normally the lack of star power might be a red flag but on this occasion i dont think that it was a problem.

The thing I liked about the film is the production values. As the film takes place entirely in the submarine it is important that it looks good and despite the low light I thought that it was a really good job. I also like the ‘photos’ that were produced when Simon pressed the button. They looked very creepy and showed us what threat there was outside in this world that we know very little about (unless its explained in the game)

The film cost a reported $3 million and has made around $20 million which for a film with very little traditional promotional stuff is quite an achievement and in the screening I was in which was 10pm on a Friday night it was pretty much full so it shows that you dont have to spend millions to get people to go and see your film. Will Hollywood learn a lesson from this? Of course not. It’s a great film by any means but on a technical level and on what it has achieved I think that it should be seen but maybe wait for it to come out on streaming. Just dont see it if you suffer from claustrophobia.