'Ripped' is strong

Ripped (2007)
Starring: Paul Gray and Freda Evans
Director: Christian Linke
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A artist (Gray) finds a mysterious sketchbook that gives him the power to eradicate what he draws from existence.

"Ripped" is another excellent film that I found while wandering through the deep recesses of Facebook. I thought I recognized the filmmaker's name, but I can't find anything else that's done that I might have reviewed, nor can I find him anywhere on my contact lists. I hope he's done other things since leaving film school, because this is a really neat film.

Writer/director Christian Linke says he was inspired to make this film by episodes of the original "Twilight Zone" series. He's done a great job capturing the look and mood of some of the most iconic episodes of that show while also bringing an appropriate silent movie aesthetic to the actors' performances that echo the best of what that era had to offer. The storytelling is fast-paced, the camera- and lighting-work is creative, and the special effects are simple and effective. Linke did a fine job in general.

There are only two things that dragged the film down from the Seven Rating I was thinking about to the Six Rating that I ultimately gave it. 

First, I found some of the stock music that Linke used distracting. One bit featured a motif that I knew from somewhere, so I found myself thinking more about where from than what was happening on screen. Once I placed the music, I began to wonder why he chose that particular piece; was he trying to evoke the very famous films and even more famous character that it's associated with, or was it just coincidental? (This could just be a "me" issue--I have the same problem when Chinese films lift famous film scores and use them for scenes and genres that have nothing to do with where it was taken from. It could be I notice these things more because I'm a nexus point for film-buffery and music criticism, so this might be a non-complaint complaint as far as most viewers are concerned.)

Second, I kept wanting the stakes to be a little higher, especially in light of the ending. When the Arist realized he could make things vanish via the magic sketch pad, he should have moved onto things far more impactful than just nick-nacks, escalating past annoying pets and to people in quick succession. The film is so well-made that this isn't a huge problem, but it still something I had to "ding" it for.

All that said, I think if you enjoy things like "The Twilight Zone" and "Tales From the Crypt" or classic short-form horror comics, I think you'll get a kick out of "Ripped". Take a few minutes to check it out... and perhaps even let me know in the comments if you could tell what music I found distracting.