Review: Dave Made A Maze
Blu-ray: Dave Made A Maze (2017)
Imagine if Terry Gilliam made a movie with the loose premise of the 1997 hit Cube, and did it in the style of the video game Tearaway. Well if that fever dream fuelled thought has ever passed through your head, then writer/director Bill Watterson has come to your rescue with the wildly creative Dave Made A Maze.
Dave (Nick Thune) builds a cardboard structure in his living room and gets stuck in there for 3 days. Luckily for him his girlfriend Annie (Meera Rohit Kumbhani) arrives and wonders why he doesn’t just crawl out of there.
It is then that she discovers (much to her amazement) that the cardboard structure is a lot bigger on the inside, and Dave has built a labyrinthian maze.
Calling upon the help of some of their friends, Annie and a group of them (including Harry (James Urbaniak) who films them on their rescue adventure) decide to follow Dave and try to rescue him.
It is now that they discover that the maze is not only full of traps, but has become sentient and wants to continue growing and consume everyone inside of it.
So begins an adventure to save Dave from his cardboard entrapment.
Dave Made A Maze clocks in at a lean 80 minutes and I was left wanting more of the crazy, surreal adventures that played out before me.
Using a combination of puppetry, stop-motion animation, in-camera effects and colourful lighting, it is a visual treat as the ever more crazy antics unfurl.
I will not give away what happens when people inevitably succumb to the devious traps, but suffice it to say that when limbs get chopped off, the resulting bloodshed took me by complete surprise…and I loved it.
Say goodbye to logic, and say hello to a narrative that will scramble your brains in the most pleasant of ways.
If nothing else, you’ll learn that it is not a good thing to put your hand into an oversize cardboard vagina…now surely that has peaked your interest!?
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and Uncompressed Stereo PCM
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Feature-length audio commentary with writer/director Bill Watterson and co-writer Steven Sears
- Making-of documentary
- Deleted and alternate scenes with optional audio commentary by Watterson
- The Worst Fundraising Pitch Video Ever
- Storyboard and concept galleries
- Exclusive UK theatrical teaser
- US theatrical teasers
- Original theatrical trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring two artwork choices
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Anton Bitel
You can buy Dave Made A Maze by clicking HERE. ALL money raised by purchasing from Amazon via our website is given back to our listeners and followers in upcoming competition prizes. The more people buy, the bigger our prizes.
Review by Dave (host of 60 Minutes With) from a streaming link kindly supplied by Fetch Publicity.