I’ve been raving on this site about a movie called Iron Lung, and for good reason. I truly believe that it’s going to start an avalanche that will change the face of Hollywood. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon.
As I’ve previously written, the film was created by Mark Fischbach, a YouTuber better known as “Markiplier.” Fischbach spent $3 million of his own money to finance this film, and not only did he create it, but he directed and starred in it as well. The film has seen some great success, far more than anyone actually thought it would get, including Fischbach, with a return of $21.7 million.
Read: A YouTuber Just Put Hollywood on Notice With a Successful Self-Financed Movie
But is it good?
Naturally, I had to find out for myself. Every YouTube culture critic I trust loved it, but once I learned the elitist Hollywood critics hated it, I knew it was a must-see. So, I went to my local theater, ordered a bowl of popcorn and a milkshake, and got ready for some cosmic horror presented in a way few have seen before.
The verdict?
It’s very good. So good, in fact, that I drove away from the theater in awe that Fischbach accomplished what he did, but also thinking a bit more deeply about why it succeeded, and not just from the movie’s quality itself.
Let’s start with Fischbach himself. This is a YouTuber with very little serious acting experience, and yet, he takes to this role as if he were born to it. Normally, when YouTubers try to take on larger products, the lack of acting chops tends to creep through, but Fischbach’s acting is so good that I forgot he was Markiplier after the first ten minutes. Do I think he’s going to get any awards for best actor? No. He’s no Daniel Day-Lewis or Gary Oldman, but I have the feeling that if he were to appear in a few more movies, he’d easily be considered Mark Fischbach the actor and not Markiplier the YouTube gamer by the greater population in a handful of years.
Fischbach is forced into many different emotions during this movie, from confused and frustrated, to terrified and regretful, to enraged and destructive. It never feels forced, and he seems to come by a lot of these moments honestly, which can’t even be said for every actor on the Hollywood stage.
But let’s talk about the setting, because there’s only one.
The entire film takes place in a single metal tube that was put together by a group of ragtag survivors desperate for answers and hope at some point at the end of the universe, and it looks like it. “Simon” (Fischbach) is a convict on death row after he was held responsible for the destruction of one of the last space stations. As they make clear in the synopsis, this isn’t an expedition; this is an execution.
In this universe, the story is set in the distant future where humanity not only became space-faring, but they also colonized endless planets throughout the galaxy. However, an event called the “Quiet Rapture” took place, where every sun, every planet, and every moon suddenly vanished with no explanation or clue as to where they went. The only thing that didn’t get raptured were humans living on space stations, which are more like colonies than the ISS we know today. Simon was raised on the space station “Eden,” the home of the last tree, but he allegedly destroyed it.
By the way, you’ll notice there are a lot of Biblical references in this game, and it’s because, as I found out, the Iron Lung game’s creator, David Szymanski, is a Christian who has said he often refers to his faith when creating games.
The only remaining celestial body seems to be a singular moon that is covered in an ocean of blood. The last surviving humans believe there must be something down there to give them hope or find answers, so they send Simon in a small rusty iron submarine to find what he can. The only trouble is that, in an ocean of blood, you can’t see, not even with external cameras. The only solution is an X-Ray machine that can take stills of the environment outside, and a proximity warning system. Otherwise, Simon is completely blind.
And this is where the entire film takes place. Inside this little sub. Much like 12 Angry Men, you only get glimpses of the outside world, and they’re so quick and limited that it makes the claustrophobia feel all the worse. This makes everything limited. Air, water, food, and worst of all, information. Secrets on secrets on secrets haunt Simon, and sometimes his only friends are his memories and a mysterious entity that seems like a glitch in the sub’s systems. Sometimes, even the light is gone, and Simon has to use the light of the X-Ray machine’s pictures to see what he’s doing, which the film establishes is not safe.
It doesn’t stop there, however. Clearly, something is lurking in the blood ocean. From time to time, Simon hears the sounds of movement, and the creature itself, whatever it is, is very, very large. It makes contact with the sub sometimes, and when it does, all hell breaks loose.
But while a monster in the deep is scary, it goes beyond even that. The blood ocean is clearly home to an entity that can’t be identified. It’s not clear what it wants, but it does communicate, sometimes through hallucinations and sometimes through communication devices. Whatever it is, it’s not friendly. In fact, it feels pure evil.
Simon, having to navigate the ocean, his own fear, and the “justice” that remains with the last of humanity, is a thrilling ride. At one point, I found myself, elbows on knees, leaning forward, supremely interested in the mystery and what Simon was looking for. What you’re not told and what you can’t see becomes a massive point of interest, but it’s not treated like a J.J. Abrams “mystery box.” Clearly, Fischbach and Szymanski have a reason something is there, but not knowing what it is or why is part of the cosmic horror of the film.
And to be clear, this is peak cosmic horror. Fischbach takes a singular room and makes you feel an entire hostile universe outside it.
To be clear, there are parts where a little more information would’ve helped, as various aspects of the film scream important but aren’t fully explained. Still, it doesn’t kill the movie in any way; it just makes you curious to find answers.
Honestly, I think Iron Lung is one of those must-see movies, and not just because it’s a good film, but because, as I wrote previously, this film was clearly made with love and respect for the source material, and it shows. This was a film made by passionate people, for passionate people, and it’s a rose among modern Hollywood’s thorns.
Read: Why Markiplier’s Iron Lung Found the Success It Did and What the Critics Don’t Get About It
And this didn’t have the marketing budget of big corporations. Fischbach and the fandom carried that marketing all on their own.
If you’re into cosmic horror and don’t mind fake blood, go see the film. I can’t recommend it enough.
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