Icarus Descending (1998) User Reviews

If you like mixing things up, then this film's a a swell spoon for you!

[Ponsomp · 7/10 · 12 July 1999]

Boasting a $20,000 budget, there hasn't been a filmmaking adventure of this sort since Ed Wood's Plan 9 From Outer Space. From Chinese martial arts fights to color dance scenes, from a montage of a day long chase to chicken fried steak, this film noir covers it all in a wild homage to 1940's film noir, Raymond Chandler, and the Big Adios. It was filmed on location in Britain, but believe me, you'll be wanting to sip rye whisky with the Hitmen Manny Varjak and Johnny Sing. And yes they are real people, known to frequent a bar called Whisky Todd's in Madison, Wisconsin. Why? Because in Wisconsin, you're among friends!

Hopefully this terrific first movie by Edwards and Mei will be the first of many more... rated a 10 in creative aspects; an 8 in technical aspects due to the sound.

[katyfoy · 10/10 · 12 September 1999]

Amazing accomplishment by Edwards and Mei. Being a connoisseur of the old black and whites, I relished in the suspense and fast-gun witty quips. Edwards and Mei have shown tremendous imagination and creativity and are to be commended for this piece of work,(writing, directing, producing) especially on such a limited budget. If this genre is your cup of tea, then "Icarus Descending" will be your shot of rye......and this ain't pie in the sky, sister!

Beguiling

[pattyanne_baker · 10/10 · 8 October 2005]

As Arthur Ayers says 'We understand Plato and Kant better than they understood themselves' and so the same can be said for the writers, the viewers understand the film better than Mei and Edwards! The story is interesting, based in an anachronistic period of time, a rather peculiar leading lady, sadly the weakest link and a clever use of philosophy, archaeology and Shakespeare. Best viewed inebriated with a cocktail shaker in one hand and a chilled Martini in the other. If there's one thing I learnt from this film, it's the fact that London is closer to the cliffs of the South Coast than I originally thought. I plan to do the same run the killers did in the CHASE.