Ireland, 1998: Fatal Deviation

**Conde Koma** · Posted On: 7/09/2010 2:35am

Fatal Deviation
Ireland, 1998
Genre: Action, Tournament
90 minutes
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0488046/

After ten years away from his home, a fighter returns to learn the truth about his father and win an ancient fighting tournament.

This is one of those movies you hear about on the internet being so bad, so incompetent, so hilariously put together that you think there’s no way it could be as bad as advertised. So while I could just point you to the film on Youtube (conveniently uploaded in its entirety), I’m going to take this week to emphatically say that yes, it is in fact as bad as you think it is. It’s poorly shot, poorly acted, poorly edited; just about everything that can be done looks like it was done by someone with absolutely no idea how to perform their craft. As a study of film production, it works perfectly as a “What Not to Do” film.

James Bennet writes, produces, casts, shoots, and stars in what is a typical case of martial arts egomania. Like so many C-movies before him, Bennet becomes convinced that because he has trained in martial arts, he is somehow qualified to become a film-maker, using what limited resources at his disposal to promote himself as the next action star. And like those before him, he ultimately fails in all aspects of the medium, becoming the subject of ridicule and cult-status for the absolute abomination he has created.

So what has he done wrong, really? He had a vision for a film to sell himself as a genuine actor and performer, and probably funded the project with a small group of friends, then managed to get it distributed by a small-time company. Respectable, right? Right. Still, that doesn’t mean that the acting wasn’t boring, the action haphazard, or that the plot wasn’t full of holes the size of Dublin. It only means that there was a reason behind the sloppy production of the film. Objectively speaking, the movie was terrible, and no amount of justification will change that. If you’re really interested in seeing just how bad the film is, you can find it online at the link below. But honestly, it’s really not worth it.

YouTube- Fatal Deviation (1/8)

**PizDoff** · Posted On: 7/12/2010 3:37pm

Sweet, thanks for the reviews!

**Adam_F** · Posted On: 7/12/2010 4:21pm

I caught a terrible review of it not so long ago and watched it on you tube, while technically terrible, way terrible, I couldn't stop watching it and enjoyed it as much as some good films, imagine a fitter Mountainous who cuts out the loooong fixed shots and instead concentrates on fitting in every action cliche at once. I am sure there is one fight where he rips off the choreography from "Enter the Dragon" and "Kickboxer" at the exact same time; how awsome is that!

**Dargentus** · Posted On: 7/12/2010 4:32pm

I resent your opinions of this incredibly valid, accurate and thought-provoking documentary of modern Irish life.

For another absolute pile of pseudo-Irish pseudo-martial Arts Twaddle, see
Strength and Honour

http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi891814425/