Film critic Christopher Kelly, upon the release of the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez collaboration “Grindhouse,” lamented that the two men seemed to have become little more than mutual enablers. Talented filmmakers on their own, together they had devolved into two kids snickering at each other’s jokes in the back of class while the rest of the students rolled their eyes. Audiences, in turn, rolled their eyes at the resulting movie, which didn’t live up to the standards set by either’s solo work. How fitting, then, that “Shadows of the Damned,” a tribute to “Grindhouse” from Goichi Suda and Shinji Mikami, represents a similar moment for this duo. The game is strong, but not as good as what we’ve seen from either designer acting alone.
Though not a double feature, like the Tarantino/Rodriguez effort, “Shadows of the Damned” sometimes feels just as segmented and diluted. It’s as though Suda directed a remake of Mikami’s brilliant “Resident Evil 4,” only a hell of a lot sillier.
