Warning: This article contains spoilers for “Iron Lung.”
On Jan. 30, YouTuber Mark “Markiplier” Fischbach made his silver screen debut with the release of his film “Iron Lung.”
Fischbach played “Iron Lung” in May 2022 as a videogame- which inspired his film for his “Markiplier” YouTube channel, falling in love with the game’s concept.
“That was incredible,” Fischbach stated at the end of his YouTube video, which currently has over 13 million views on the platform. “I really loved that experience. It’s so novel, it’s so interesting.”
Shortly after his play-through of “Iron Lung,” Fischbach reached out to the game’s creator, David Szymanski, simply asking him, “Have you ever thought about making one of these a movie?”
Almost a year later, in April 2023, the production of “Iron Lung’s” film adaptation began, with Fischbach planning on writing, directing, editing, and starring in the film himself.
Both the game and the film center around Convict (played by Fischbach), a felon who is sent into an ocean of blood in a submarine nicknamed the “Iron Lung.” He has been placed in charge of finding any traces of life that may remain on the ocean floor after almost all living beings were killed by “The Quiet Rapture.” If Convict finds enough evidence of life, he is promised his freedom from both the Iron Lung and his prison sentence.
As a film, “Iron Lung” did a fantastic job at staying true to the original game. The movie is a tense, claustrophobic adventure that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats the whole time. While seeing Fischbach’s film on the big screen was exciting for fans like myself, it is important to point out that the film did have its flaws.
It was clear that “Iron Lung” is a labor of love; certain parts of the movie dragged. With an over two-hour runtime, viewers learn the limited set quickly as they are also trapped in the Iron Lung alongside Convict. While the slower aspects of this movie can be argued to help build tension, they can also be seen as unnecessary shots of Fischbach pushing buttons and turning dials.
One of the gems of this movie was its soundtrack. Composed by Andrew Hulshult, the same artist who did the soundtracks for video games like “Dusk” and “Wrath,” the soundtrack for “Iron Lung” was phenomenal- truly capturing the eerie feeling of not knowing what is going to happen next.
With a budget of less than $3 million, Fischbach and his crew achieved every independent filmmaker’s dream, with “Iron Lung” making over $21 million at its first weekend in theaters and climbing to number one on the charts in both the United States and Australia on the day of its release.
“I’ve been making content a long time,” Fischbach stated in a tearful livestream after the movie’s release. “I’ve come this far because I’d like to think that I could inspire someone to make something and give people a little bit of hope that … there’s still a future in telling stories like this.”
“Iron Lung” is out now in select theaters. To find a theater near you, visit ironlung.com.
