Video game adaptations do not have a good reputation. That’s an understatement. Recent successes like the Mario movie and Minecraft movie, both of which were a hit with audiences, if not critical darlings, may have made audiences forget this. For years, there were movies that could be considered rip offs of the video game stories they were trying to adapt. So I know most will take it with a grain of salt that Iron Lung is a good and enjoyable film. Iron Lung is a film that is not only an adaptation of a video game but also as close to a one man show as a film might be. It is a film that was written, directed, edited and starring Mark Fischbach, better known as Markiplier. That puts the pressure to succeed as a film almost entirely on his shoulders, and whether you enjoy the movie or not may be tied to whether or not you like him and his artistic vision. I definitely did like it.

As someone who is a fan of Mark, I’ll be upfront that I went into this film wanting to like it. I have followed his updates and greatly anticipated the release of the film. I’ve followed its journey from creation to miraculously releasing into theaters nationwide. It has been a joy seeing someone I’ve followed for so long have such a massive project successfully released. So I will be upfront that I may be a bit more invested in the film than someone who doesn’t follow Mark. I have also played the original game and I think it is a brilliant indie horror game. It has its flaws but the fantastic concept, interesting lore, and oppressive, dread filled atmosphere cover those flaws very well. Especially when the game is limited to the player in a single room of their submarine. It isn’t a concept that seems like it would work very well in a film. How would Markiplier approach one character in a single room for a feature-length film? I am going to try to answer that while avoiding spoilers. I’ll do my best to not ruin the film but it’s impossible to review it without giving away at least a little bit. You have been warned.

Iron Lung begins the same way as the game does. With a convict being welded into a rough submarine and dropped into an ocean of blood. The sub is a patch job of rusted metal pipes and panels. The controls are as simple as could be, a lever to go forward and back and a dial to rotate the sub. This is taken straight from the game. The sub has a button to take pictures at the back and a screen that displays them for a bit. This is important because the window at the front of the submarine is sealed. The pressure would rupture the glass and the thrown together submarine doesn’t have any other material that could be used. From the opening we can see that this mission is either unimportant or desperate. In the game, the player would receive a little bit of information on the world as some text when they first started. In the movie we are allowed to see glimpses of the aftermath of the “Quiet Rapture” as both versions call it. The Quiet Rapture was an event where the spacefaring humanity of this universe was suddenly and almost entirely destroyed. In the film, this is mentioned in the background and not explicitly spelled out for the viewer. It is mentioned that the stars are gone. It’s left to the viewer to think on that concept and what it might mean for humanity. If all the stars and their warmth disappeared one day. How would we survive? Could humanity survive that impossible fate? It’s unclear at the beginning of the film. The discovery of the blood ocean on a moon that once orbited a planet seems to offer hope to humanity. An ocean of blood is a horrifying concept on its own. However, it indicates the possibility of something living or something creating the ocean. It makes sense that these survivors would gather whatever materials they have left to try to find something, anything, at the bottom.

Without going into the actual plot points of the film the journey through the blood ocean creates the main question and theme of the film. What is the depth that humanity will dive to, literally and metaphorically, to survive? Is the journey through that hell worth it to survive in a universe that is hostile or indifferent to us?

The main character, The Convict, is played by Markiplier himself and he just wants to survive. He is given a mission to scout the blood ocean and take pictures to avoid his execution. It’s a simple motivation and conflict. In this, the film takes the same approach as the game. We aren’t told what the Convict did and it is initially ambiguous whether he deserves his sentence. In the film we do get more of his character arc. It’s also somewhat left to the viewer to ask whether his crimes matter at all. If humanity is nearly gone, wouldn’t a person’s life be too valuable to throw away on this mission? What could he have done to deserve this? An execution stayed in lieu of a cage being lowered into the unknown. This goes back to the big problem of adapting Iron Lung. The premise risks overshadowing any main character. The story is about cosmic, existential horror but we still need a character to view this universe through. So how does the film make us care about The Convict?

This is where I think Markiplier’s writing and acting do a great job. I have seen Mark act before, in the series The Edge of Sleep, in both that show and this project, Mark shows he is a good actor. Although I must admit that for the beginning of both The Edge of Sleep and Iron Lung, I saw the characters just as Markiplier for a moment. That did pass as I watched each, though, and I became more invested in the stories.

I found the main character, The Convict, to be likable and grounded. In contrast to the existential and cosmic elements of the story. He makes for a good pair of eyes to see the insanity of this universe through. The story gives him some early character beats that set him up to be a convict yes, but someone who may not have full responsibility for the crimes he committed. He doesn’t seem like a bad person and his battle to survive is compelling. Markiplier’s performance wasn’t mindblowing but I did lose myself in it, and I believed it when the film needed me to. The other characters in the film are barely there due to the nature of the story but there were some little touches that I thought worked well. The film isn’t going to be a critical darling or win a bunch of awards for acting or directing. It does well enough to get the story told and, in my opinion, raises the bar for what an influencer or online creator is capable of in film.

The film is also well-shot and produced. It doesn’t feel like a film that is essentially a one man show in a single room. The set and editing and effects all look good. The film manages to capture the cosmic horror and atmosphere of dread that made the video game special. The set also doesn’t get old. Which can be credited largely to the cinematography which was one of the standout elements for me. There are some very well framed shots and creative use of the space. As things get more claustrophobic and tense we are treated to voyeuristic shots from basically every inch of the sub, including some interesting framing with the rusted pipes and the radio speaker, The Convict’s only connection to the outside world. It is impressive to take a film that is in a single room and say that not only did the space not get in the way of the story but was used in every imaginable way to enhance it.

I heard from some over the weekend that the film was a bit slow. I will agree that it is a slow build. If you are used to modern horror formulas, especially more popcorn horror films. This may feel slow to start, the film doesn’t rush and takes its time to lay out the setting and main conflicts. I keep coming back to the word efficient. While it may take its time to get going, once the setting and conflict is laid out, we don’t waste time in the plot. The beats keep the momentum going towards the next complication., with the unique setting being used as the main advancement of the survival story. Along the way we get our scares and dread and then the story wraps up. That being said, it did not feel samey to me. I think this can largely be attributed to clever writing and great use of cinematography with the limited set. As a horror movie it does a decent job of playing with your expectations. I also felt it was excellent at putting the viewer in the claustrophobic space of the sub. Some of the strongest moments in the film for me are when nothing overtly scary is happening. It’s just allowing the sounds of the submarine and The Convict’s reactions to let you wonder about what could be just outside the rusted hull of the sub. The front camera, a key mechanic from the game, is also used in some creative ways. It is the only way that The Convict can see outside of the sub and each time he takes a picture it builds a little discomfort as are given limited glimpses of the blood ocean and what horrors might lurk in the dark.

So were the years of waiting and the years of effort on Markiplier’s part worth it? It won’t be surprising that I think it was worth it. As a big horror fan and fan of the original game, I thought the film was very enjoyable. It is a worthy adaptation that elaborates on the original lore of the game just enough to build a more in-depth story. It also does this without giving away all of the questions about what is going on in the universe. Which makes sense, as David Szymanski, the creator of the game, was a co-writer on the project. I would recommend the film to horror fans especially. Although, if you are a fan of jumpscares and familiar horror tropes this film might leave you wanting. The story is about how far humanity will go when pushed to the brink of annihilation. To question what our place in the universe is and how our hostile universe changes us. It left me wondering and contemplating in ways that I personally love and instilled a cosmic dread that is very hard to create in a film.  So congratulations to Mark and the crew on the massive success. If this review left you intrigued then go see the film. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed by the dip in the blood ocean.