The Danger Element (2017) Movie Review: John Soares is the editor of many animated features and shows, his latest editing work being the absolutely charming “My Adventures with Superman.” He has also dabbled in live-action filmmaking. One of his earliest works is a feature film, not-so-subtly named “The Danger Element.” This blatantly named film has all the tropes you can think of when you hear its eponymous MacGuffin’s name; good guys and bad guys clamoring for the ‘The Danger Element.’ As expected, the story is not something to die for. Neither are the dialogues. However, the one saving grace that “The Danger Element” has in its favor is its fair amount of self-awareness.
“The Danger Element” is not the next “La Dolce Vita.” It was never going to be. Soares is honest in his ambition. “The Danger Element” paints a very clear distinction between the good guys and the bad guys. There are no additional layers. The good guys have to take the titular dangerous element from the bad guys’ clutches. Otherwise, if you still have not guessed, the world is doomed. Besides writing and directing, Soares also edited the film, acted as the lead character, and choreographed the action set pieces. The frugal budget did not dampen his spirits, and that reflects in the film.
Battle Jitni (Soares) is a legendary knight of a secret Christian society. At the very beginning of the film, he tries to take the Danger Element away from the evil doctor, Elymas (Doug Jones). He does not exactly succeed at that. He is about to be shot by one of the leaders of the villainous groups when his adoptive sister, Enki (Cassie Meder), steps in. She saves Jitni, and we get to know that the two of them have not been on talking terms for quite some time.
On the other hand, we have an official-looking guy named Billiard (Joshua Krebs) looking into the history of Battle Jitni. Billiard seems to be interested in finding this ancient knight to know more about the secret community. His inquisitive nature and knack for turning up at the right place (but at the wrong time) do bring him right on the tail of Jitni. However, as things stand, the villainous group takes both of them.
Soares tries to fill the story with multiple tropes from a variety of genres. There is demonic possession, time travel, the adventures of finding ancient relics, and a little bit of Christian teachings. All of these elements are not particularly novel. It results in a convoluted mish-mash. The characterizations and the dialogues in the film do not help either. The parody-ish nature of the characters often betrays the seriousness the film sometimes tries to portray.
It is, however, when the film shows the signs of self-awareness, then it actually becomes more than tolerable. In fact, it actually becomes enjoyable. For example, scenes involving Officer Billiard are a reflection of the times when the film does not take itself too seriously. A film with the name “The Danger Element” should not. Officer Billiard mentions that he is from the “Top Secret Agency for Handling Top Secret Situations.”
This vague but blunt description of his department shows that the film knows some of the ludicrous moments it has created, and it accepts that. “The Danger Element” is quite enjoyable when it accepts its limitations. There are a few more scenes where Soares seems to absorb the campy nature of his film, which he thankfully doesn’t choose to ignore.
Another hindrance for the film is its acting from the largely unprofessional cast. Here also, Soares did not fully commit to the campy nature where bad acting would have been okay. He had Doug Jones (Guillermo Del Toro’s favorite) play the wild doctor Elymas as the main villain. Even with all his exaggerated mannerisms, Jones’ professional acting highlights the lack of acting credibility in the rest of the cast members even more glaringly.
Soares does a good job of editing the film. The action scenes are not too shabby. Even some of the special effects are quite passable, given the budget of the film. “The Danger Element” is not a novel work. But when it doesn’t try hard to be serious, it comes close to being a fairly enjoyable watch.
