100 years ago the dark god Izrador was banished to the world of Aryth. Recruiting Orc’s and dark priests, known as Legates, he has conquered the free races of the world.

Mag Kiln, a notorious Legate, is sent to the small town of Blackweir to investigate the dissapearance of a fellow Legate. There he finds a small resistence, that fights back against the dark forces, and a mysterious force is preventing the Legates is from getting a foothold in this small town.

In all honesty, this really does sound a lot more exciting than it actually is. For a fantasy movie, there is a distinct lack of action, with fantasy creatures restricted to Orcs and Elves, both portrayed with poor make up effects. In fact, at one point I was convinced the film had to be nearly finished, as it had appeared to have been on for hours, but upon looking at the time I’d literally only been watching for 45 minutes.

The plot is derivative, the dialogue stilted and the acting sub-par. What this film wants to be is another Lord Of The Rings (the plot is similar in many ways), what it actually is, is a complete waste of time. It ends in such a way that it’s obvious it’s meant to be the first part in a series. You can tell this by the complete lack of any answers, and the rather poor ‘cliffhanger’ ending.

The only good point to this film is the occasional decent piece of CGI. Don’t get too excited though, this is restricted to making the town sets look bigger than they actually are. The tiny dragon on the DVD cover doesn’t appear in the movie at all.

If you really must watch a straight to DVD fantasy movie, dig out ‘In The Name Of The King’. Watch ‘Midnight Chronicles’ at your own peril.

DVD Extra’s -

• Trailer