I won't write a full review of the game, because I'm still trying to digest it all.....and honestly, I'm not sure I'll be able to wrap my head around it for some time.
But, what is easy to write about are the performances. This game is very character driven, so, it is important to talk about how the actors and actresses conveyed their characters. Especially when we have such a wildly differing range of performances.
Norman Reedus as Sam
He fit the role, and he played it quite well. I won't say he had the best performance, but traveling across the country with him was quite enjoyable. Also, given Sam's character, it was pretty easy for him to get through the more uncomfortable moments in this game (and there are PLENTY of those).
Mads Mikkelsen as Cliff
Mikkelsen was criminally underused in this game, because he easily has one of the best performances. But he certainly made the best of his limited screen time. That being said, he still doesn't have THE best performance.
Lea Seydoux as Fragile
She was.....ok....I guess? Kind of forgettable, to be honest, because I actually did completely forget about her towards the end. There were some cringey moments with her ("I'm not that fragile"), but, when she needed to get serious, she did quite well.
Margaret Qualley as Mama
At first, I was not impressed. Hearing a boring, drab, monotone voice explain to me every new piece of tech I got was starting to get pretty annoying. Until I got to Mama's story, and that's when her character actually made sense. But even after that, it didn't improve alot. While her performance was certainly better when Mama was the focus, she missed the mark during the more critical moments of her story.
Guillermo del Toro as Deadman
del Toro is a fantastic director. It makes sense now as to why he's always behind the camera instead of in front it, because he is an awful actor. He doesn't have the worst performance in the game, but he easily comes in second place. Every line felt forced, unnatural, and as if he was talking to a 5 year old. I'm guessing he was meant to be the comic relief of the story, but, he failed quite miserably in that regard.
Nicolas Winding Refn as Heartman
Despite having limited screen time, he knocked it out of the park. Nicolas portrayed a character that was honestly fascinated with the world he lived in, but also hid a dark and haunting past to perfection. There is only one scene that I would criticize, but besides that one flaw, he did an awesome job.
Tommie Earl Jenkins as Die-Hardman
As the game went on, I was starting to feel as if Die-Hardman would become the most forgettable character in the game. His performance wasn't bad, but he was given hardly anything to work with. That is....until the ending. There is one moment at the end where Jenkins shines so much, that it was the only moment in the game to make me tear up. And it is that one moment that makes his entire performance.
Troy Baker as Higgs
Easily, hands down, no questions asked, THE best performance in the game. His portrayal of someone just straddling the edge of insanity was FLAWLESS. He made your skin crawl, he made you question his motives, he made you fear him. He shined from the first moment he spoke, and it never stopped.
Lindsay Wagner as Amelie
And we go from easily the best to easily the worst. Amelie was meant to convey a sense of mystery, and wonder. Instead, all we got was an annoying damsel in distress. I'm actually surprised she didn't put her hand to her forehead and "faint" at some point. The horrible performance is only made worse by the fact that Amelie is meant to be the most important character in the game. Granted, she didn't have an easy role to play, but, that's not much of an excuse for the train wreck we got.
That's just my thoughts on the individual performances. I'd go in to more detail, but that would entail the use of spoilers. What did others think?
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