If you're a fan of James Rolfe (aka The Angry Video Game Nerd) then it must have been a bittersweet experience to see the famous old-school video game reviewer finally make his very first feature length film. On one hand, it's nice to see James complete what was essentially a life long dream. On the other hand, the movie wasn't much better than the terrible video games he reviews online. For those of you unfamiliar: The Angry Video Game Nerd was the pioneering internet gamer show. Beginning in 2004, AVGN is a comedic video game review series featuring Rolfe, acting as a hard-drinking, foul-mouthed retro gamer, taking extended critical looks at some of the worst games of the 80s and 90s. Rolfes debut film, a crowd-funded action-comedy starring the beloved character, is riddled with many problems but one that sticks out like a sore thumb is the character of Mandi (Sarah Glendening), a video game executive at Cockburn Industries, Inc. The film begins with Mandi proposing to her bosses that they should create an intentionally badly made sequel to the infamous E.T. game (or Eee Tee as the film refers to it) on the Atari 2600. AVGN is famously afraid of the original game and if they can get him to review it, sales will skyrocket. The way that Rolfe ultimately handles Mandis character is deplorable at worst and extremely cringe-worthy at best; she is constantly placed on the receiving end of (bad) jokes. After she is vomited on, used as a cheap "sounds like innuendo in the next room but actually isn't" joke, captured by the bad guys and abandoned when she needs help, you actually start to feel genuinely bad for her. The "nerds before birds" mantra of the film couldn't have been any truer.
Jesse Gumbarge is editor and chief blogger at JarvisCity.com - He loves old-school horror films and starting pointless debates. You can reach out at: JesseGumbarge@JarvisCity.com
