I’m always skeptical…as I think most everyone is…about films which feature a relatively big-name cast yet somehow never manage to get much in the way of a theatrical release. As soon as you see who’s in the film, you find yourself wondering what the studio felt was so inherently unmarketable about the movie that, even with several recognizable names in the credits, they could only just barely be arsed to get it into theaters.
“Rise” actually made its debut at the Tribeca Film Festival, which makes it sound considerably cooler than it actually is; the film might not have the biggest budget in the world, but it’s definitely the work of a big studio rather than an indie. It’s a darkly-lit tale of a reporter for the L.A. Weekly (Lucy Liu) who, as a result of her story on the gothic underground community of Los Angeles, ends up the victim of a bunch of actual vampires. As a result, she finds herself caught up in a strange world where the undead roam, getting their kicks by killing wantonly, and trying to figure out how she fits in…or if she even does.
Ever since “Jackie Brown,” I’ve maintained a rule of thumb which says that any film which includes an appearance by Robert Forster deserves a cursory viewing, even if he only appears for a minute and a half and spends all of that time trying to pick up a hooker in a bar. Now that I’ve seen “Rise,” I’ve attached a rider to that rule: any film which follows its Robert Forster appearance with an appearance by a topless, lingerie-wearing Cameron Richardson (“Point Pleasant”) gets bonus points. Unfortunately, despite a strong opening, what we have in “Rise” is a film which attempts to blend the traditional elements of a vampire movie with the noir stylings of a private-detective flick from the ‘40s and ‘50s yet ultimately falls apart due to slow pacing. Still, while Carla Gugino’s resume is far from flawless (we’ve got just six words to prove this: “Son in Law,” starring Pauly Shore), you can generally trust her to select interesting, creative material, and you can definitely see what intrigued her about this project, even if it probably didn’t turn out as successful as she probably hoped.
There’s a dream sequence which shows Lucy Liu’s character first discovering that she’s a vampire, and it opens with a decidedly claustrophobic scene where she realizes that she’s trapped inside a body locker within a morgue. In fact, the film frequently jumps into the past in its attempt to set the stage for how she got to be where she is while still keeping the action going in the present, but it’s more confusing than enlightening until you realize what’s going on. Still, Liu does manage to offer a decent amount of emotion during the scenes where she’s coming to grips with her new situation, particularly with her attempts to gradually bid farewell to her mother.
Michael Chiklis (“The Shield”) plays an alcoholic cop who finds himself caught up in Liu’s case while seeking revenge for his daughter, who’s apparently dead; he’s a tangential character at best until the last quarter of the film, but at that point, the proceedings pretty much turn into The Liu / Chiklis Show. “Rise” also marks the final motion picture appearance of Mako, who first came to cinematic prominence courtesy of his role in “The Sand Pebbles,” and while it’s not the most glorious final role he could’ve had, at least he goes down fighting. In fact, at about 45 minutes into the film, there’s a scene where Liu’s character shows visible frustration that her fight with Mako has been going on for so long, mostly to his unwillingness to just give up and concede defeat.
As it happens, I’m pretty sure I shared Liu’s expression a couple of times during the course of this 122-minute film. “Rise” certainly looks good, and it maintains a dark, creepy vibe throughout, but there are several scenes that creep by at a snail’s pace. Methinks we would’ve been better served if they’d tightened it up…by, say, trimming about 45 minutes…and used it as a pilot for a TV series. It would’ve been win/win for everyone: it’d almost certainly be better than “Moonlight,” and it would’ve been a much easier Lucy Liu series for a guy to admit to watching than the upcoming “Cashmere Mafia.”
