DVD Of The Week: The Gamers - Dorkness Rising (2008)

On the whole, gamers are an intelligent bunch and recognise that what we do can appear - to an outsider - a bit dorky.

However, with that awareness comes a wicked sense of humour and a finely honed knack of self-deprecation that has spawned such 'cinematic' classics as Fear Of Girls and The Gamers and comics like The Knights Of The Dinner Table and Dork Tower.

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising continues that noble tradition, as a sequel to The Gamers (although only one character from the original appears in this, and then not for long), following the lives of a group of role-players - both in and outside of a 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons campaign being run by aspiring author Kevin Lodge (Nathan Price).

Imagine an early Kevin Smith, but without the graphic sexual references and foul language, and you'll have a pretty good idea of the level of geekiness in Dorkness Rising.

You don't have to be a gamer to enjoy this film, but if you're not into the role-playing scene then some of the material will pass you by and if you're not a geek at all I can't imagine you'd be watching this DVD in the first place.

Made with the support of some of the big names in the industry (Wizards of The Coast, Goodman Games etc), there are plenty of Easter Eggs and in-jokes for those on the same wavelength as the filmmakers (Dead Gentleman Productions) - there are nods to The Knights Of The Dinner Table and the party's oft-forgotten henchman is none other than Nodwick from the strip of the same name by Aaron Williams.

Outside of the game world, Lodge is struggling against writer's block trying to convert the adventure he is running into a published module for Dungeons & Dragons, while dealing with rebellious players and an odd unresolved romantic sub-plot with the group's newest addition - Joanna (Carol Roscoe).

However, most of the humour comes from what happens in the game world. Using the same visual trick as used in The Gamers of showing the adventurers as the player's "in costume" in Lodge's fantasy world, things naturally go awry and that's when the real fun starts.

For instance, when the characters aren't seducing every female non-player character they come across or blowing up random peasants, one (the bard) is repeatedly killed because his player can't really get to grips with not playing a fighter while another (the sorceress) is being played by a dude who keeps forgetting he's playing a woman and hitting on Joanna's female fighter.

When Gary (Christian Doyle) remembers his character - Luster - is female she is portrayed by his hot maths professor (Jennifer Page), but the rest of the time, she's Gary in drag!

Written and directed by Matt Vancil, who was also responsibly for The Gamers and Demon Hunters (which has recently been turned into an actual RPG by Margaret Weis Productions), Dorkness Rising may not be a laugh-a-minute, but with its higher production values and more assured acting it is leagues above The Gamers (the original left me rather non-plussed, with its surreal ending smacking of a film that had run out of ideas) and is a pretty accurate representation of gamer stereotypes.

Vancil has created an interesting group of characters here and, unlike the original, I'd be keen to spend some more time with them in the (hopefully) inevitable sequel that the movie deserves.

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising would be a worthy addition to any gaming group's library.