StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Libramedi Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

SincereFinest disgusting, overrated, pointless

Peereddi I was totally surprised at how great this film.You could feel your paranoia rise as the film went on and as you gradually learned the details of the real situation.

Markery It's very rare for me to watch a movie rated below 5 stars on IMDb. But I have only watched one of Uwe Boll's films; Rampage. Which I loved. So I thought I would give this one a shot, and I was extremely surprised. This movie triumphs movies I've watched with a 7 star rating. The movie has a way a putting you in with those cell mates on that night when a poker game goes awry, seriously awry. You see the struggle for power, and how far they will actually go to maintain their stature in the hierarchy. It's interesting to see the confessions play linearly to it, and how their story changes as the movie progresses. And I loved the acting, it was fantastic. So all I have to say, is if you wanna see a horrific and heart wrenching night in a prison cell, watch this film.

zulus88 Perhaps with childish naivety, I used to believe that Uwe Boll's trademark reputation is actually an effect of a very conscious manipulation. I hoped that one day he would emerge, like a stunning butterfly, from a cocoon of abysmal effort that did nothing but ruined countless video game franchises for their fans across the globe. Stoic and following it Rampage and Darfur (all three made in 2009) were to change prevailing opinion about Boll's lack of talent and test his skill in a more serious context. The first of them- a gritty prison drama, is far from the lows set by i.e. Alone in the Dark (2005) but is it sufficiently competent to redeem Boll? Supposedly based on facts- but in fact difficult to verify, Stoic is restricted to the space of one cell and a tragedy that plays out within it, between four cell-mates. Film is divided into interviews with three of them in the aftermath of their cell-mate's suicide death and footage that leads to this incident. Both unfold together, slowly revealing the true nature of the tragedy and each prisoner's role in it.Although structure allows for interesting escalation of both guilt and violence it is in no way reminiscent of Rashomon (1950) and Boll remains objective as to what we see leaving no questions about intentions of the violators. Extended from merely a treatment, film is filled with improvised rant that fails to capture the true essence of this story. All three aggressors come across unnaturally and their solid performances are wasted on an aimless direction that resorts to their monologue every time the narrative runs out of steam.In the end 80 minutes long feature is carried forward by several acts of brutality that turn to be disturbingly engrossing beats sustaining the collapsing tension. Stoic aims to be gritty and realist but lacks focus and talent to achieve these qualities. What materialises on the screen is a bore- repetitive and at times moronic dialogue and an apparent agenda that packs a punch but misses its target by miles. It fails to shock because it lacks any competently realised context for its content.Verdict: It's better than any of the countless video-game adaptations that Boll unleashed in his fury upon the world. But even still it is stagy, amateurish film-making that makes a point by showing brutal, animalistic behaviour but lacks either will or talent to turn it into anything relevant. There is simply no reward in enduring the violence for its sake and no interesting insight into why it was committed, beyond the obvious capacity for it that we all share. We come already equipped in that knowledge, Stoic does nothing that we wouldn't already know.

Apologetickid I watched two Uwe Boll movies in the past 24 hours (the other being Rampage) most primarily because they were both available for free streaming through Netflix as a result of their direct-to-video release (which is not a good sign). Let me say, unequivocally that Uwe Boll should never be allowed to direct another film. Period! He has besmirched the good names of countless video game franchises, and now he has taken a stab at a serious story. Prison movies have a knack for being easy home-runs for directors (see Shawshank Redemption, Escape from Alcatraz, American History X, The Green Mile, etc.) But somehow, Boll has ineptly chosen a story which relies almost entirely on shock-value to upset the viewer into thinking they have watched something of substance. At its best the film is ridiculous, and at its worst it borders on "gore porn." By the way, where the heck are the prison guards? I have a friend or two who have spent some time in lock-up, and they've informed me that it's nearly impossible to pick your nose without a C.O. peeking in on you. The idea that these guys somehow turned their cell into a 10 hour non-stop torture oasis is laughable. It just couldn't happen. The story makes no sense. There are an infinite number of bad stories out there, but only a handful of directors incompetent enough to think of making one into a movie. The reason this film gets two stars rather than one is because Edward Furlong reminds me of his hey-day in T2: Judgment Day. That, and that alone, is the redeeming factor in this film.

Ted Brown After a game of poker takes a turn for the dark side, three inmates find themselves trying to cover up the brutal beating and torture of the fourth inmate in their cell. Stoic, starring Edward Furlong, Shaun Sipos, Sam Levinson, and Steffen Mennekes leads you through the horrible acts, using flashbacks and interview style Q&A with the inmates involved. Stoic is also based on the true story of an inmate from a German juvenile detention center, who was brutalized by fellow cellies.I had huge doubts going into this movie knowing that it was directed by Uwe Boll, Who's only movies I had been exposed to before this were video game related. The fact that I happen to be a big Edward Furlong fan caused me to give this flick a try. After all, If I was able to sit through the third crow film, I can survive anything. This movie takes every fear a man has about going into the prison system, and rolls it up into one nonstop ride of fear, and uneasiness. The worse case scenario of jail is unfolded in front of you in a very graphic and unforgiving manor. You can really feel the tension rise to higher and higher levels as things continue to spiral further out of control with each passing minute. It's very rare a movie ever makes me truly feel sorry for a victim, because I'm always able to tell myself it's just a movie, it's all in good fun. Stoic does a really impressive job at making you feel for the young man being tortured for no real reason at all.Now, the things that bothered me about this film, first of all, when in prison, guards check on cells on a pretty frequent time frame, it seemed like a lot of time passed in this movie with no guard in site, beyond when they got food. Of course, that can be overlooked, but there is one scene in the film which I won't spoil just for the sake that some of you may go watch this after reading this, but let's just say huge shenanigans called on the red button incident with no one double checking on the claim made.With that said I'm shocked, and kind of disturbed to say I enjoyed an Uwe boll movie, and not just because Edward furlong was involved. I was very impressed with the raw, and realistic nature of the film for the most part, and also its ability to make you feel something. I recommend you give it a watch, especially you Netflix users out there, as it is currently viewable via instaqueue.7/10 - Ritualistic The Liberal Dead http://liberaldead.blogspot.com