Very dark character study of a damaged person that is painful to watch at times and doesn't exactly provide any catharsis or character growth. But it does paint a vivid picture of one sad, sad man and his world.

Well I watched this because I tremendously enjoyed gaming as a kid, before the internet and Playstations it was great. Is this a geek movie for geeks, nerds gamers or whomever? Yes in some aspects - I started watching it with my girlfriend who can happily watch the Avengers and whatnot but changed movie, the game references just went over her head so I watched it later myself. In the end however really at it's core to me it reflects people, their obsessions, their behaviour and interactions. The Game is a catalyst really and the movie proved more thought provoking than I expected, and more seious, the cast were good and incredibly awkward at times which provided the laughs. Zero Charisma was apt. Enjoyable enough however although I'd certainly recommend only to those who don't mind their geekery.

If you are a lover of role-playing games, as I am, then you just definitely have got to watch "Zero Charisma". Where as the movie "Gamerz" was great, then "Zero Charisma" totally re-invents the foundation of this geeky genre.

The story is about Scott (played by Sam Eidson) who lives with his grandmother (played by Anne Gee Byrd). Scott is an avid fan of fantasy role-playing games and a metalhead, and has spent the last three years on his campaign, where he is the Game Master for his friends. When one have to drop out of the game, due to personal reasons (read, actually having a wife who wants to separate him), Scott has to find a replacement for the group. Enter Miles (played by Garrett Graham) who has it all, and Scott quickly finds himself without control of the game and his world - both real and imaginary - comes tumbling down around him.

What makes this movie great? Well it is a good comedy, especially because it is a geeky comedy. There are hilarious moments in the movie, just as there are awkward moments. The characters are well portrayed, had lots of personality (no Charisma 0 here, you gamers will get this one!), and were easy to grow attached to.

Now, from an avid role-player of Dungeons & Dragons for just about 27 years, then there were so many aspects to this movie that just strikes familiar and true to the point where it was downright scary. Us role-playing people tend to have odd routines and rituals, and oddly enough tend to listen to metal. There were so many things in the movie that could easily be painted on me or the guys I play D&D with.

"Zero Charisma" progresses at a nice pace, building up the story quite nicely. However, the ending was a bit too much in my opinion, and the movie would have fared better with a different ending. But hey, we all have different likes and dislikes.

Regardless of you being a role-player, familiar with the fantasy (or Sci-Fi) RPG games or not, then "Zero Charisma" is a great movie with lots of fun and great situations. If you enjoy geeky comedies, then you definitely need to watch this movie.

I raise my sword and roll my d10 dice, with "Zero Charisma" scoring a well-deserved 7 out of 10 star rating.