Most conspiracy theories are seen as a bit out there, but some of the crazier ones have had at least a sliver of truth. There were a lot of them that revolve around World War II and some of the experimentation that was done to prisoners of war in Europe. With the new film directed by “Son of a Gun” helmer Julius Avery in “Overlord,” this concept gets the extreme treatment.
Taking place the night before D-Day, paratrooper Boyce (Jovan Adepo from “Fences”) and his unit are being dropped int occupied France on a mission to destroy a German radio tower which will stop jamming Allied frequencies. After they meet up with Chloe (Mathilde Ollivier), who helps keep them hidden from the enemy, they arrive at a church where the radio tower is located to find something much more sinister where the Nazis are performing experiments on human subjects, which becomes a fight for survival that they were not prepared for.
The majority of the film takes place in the French village, with England doubling for it very well. There is some CGI work that is needed due to the nature of the film, but it is used nicely to compliment what was going on and keeping the realism intact, especially in the action scenes on a level that reminded me of “Saving Private Ryan”. With Adepo as the soldier that will not quit and Wyatt Russell (22 Jump Street) playing the experienced leader, they do a great job with their roles, complimented by Ollivier.
Although it starts out pretty well, “Overload” goes a bit overboard on the human experimentation part of the story making it feel about five to ten minutes longer than it should have been at just under two hours. It is very graphically violent and a bit gory, which earns its “R” rating, so know that this is not for everyone. I liked it, but did not love it, so I will recommend it as an afternoon showing in the theater.