The Weathered Underground
directed by David N. Donihue
starring Michael Ciriaco, Brea Grant
Choose Interactive
Perhaps there’s hope for the “interactive film”. This DVD-based game designed by David Donihue features Eric (Michael Ciriaco), a young man with a promising career in pizza delivery and a series of slacker friends. He’s broken up with girlfriend Liz (Brea Grant) and you get to choose the path of his life. With about 10 decision points along the way, he has lots of options, and it takes maybe 20 minutes to run through any one of them. The story is strangely entertaining, and I actually had to play it several times before I figured out what his real relation to Liz was. Some paths show a great deal of responsibility, others a self-destructive bent, and all do an excellent job of showing Eric’s character. Many result in a sexual experience. He’s not a bad person; although he might end up stabbing his boss, going home with a transvestite, or shooting up a meth lab, he’s equally likely to aid an abused woman or fix a broken tail light. All take place in a Matrixy color-coded Los Angeles, and there’s a decent sound track with a number of lesser know bands. It’s not as passive as watching the Weather Channel for half an hour, but rather requires as much attention as normal channel flipping. Choose Interactive promises a steady stream of these stories, and while they may not be as gripping as a Tom Clancy novel, they’re decent Gen-X entertainment.
Choose Interactive: http://www.chooseinteractive.com/
