The 2009 Thriller, Paintball
This was the official website for the 2009 thriller, Paintball.
Content is from the site's archived pages as well as other outside sources.
Eight strangers engaged in an intense game of experts-only paintball find their friendly game taking a terrifying turn when one member of the team begins playing by a different set of rules. It started as a remote raw battle of wits and wiles set against the backdrop of majestic wilderness. With each shot fired, the stakes grew higher. But something horrible has happened, and what was once a team sport has become a relentless struggle for individual survival. The danger growing by the minute, the combatants gradually come to realize that their greatest adversary may be the very game they set out to play.
INDIEGOGO Pinball Campaign
#SPEEDBALL: The First Ever Movie about the "Sport Of" Paintball
Story Synopsis: Derek Kidd and his band of misfit friends have wanted nothing more in their crime-riddled lives then to turn pro in the fastest evolving sport in the world, Paintball. Right when the World Cup sits only one event away -- the unthinkable happens. The 2008 market crash sends the sport into a spiraling vortex of bankruptcy and tanking paintball companies. The league discontinues before the final event and all is lost for Derek and his team, L.A. Notorious. Fast forward a year later and Derek returns to his hometown LA where his old team finds out that their father-figure coach, Stan O'Neil, had borrowed $50k from a crook to support the 2008 season.
Now, he owes every penny back -- or he'll suffer the unjust consequences.
The team decides to go after the money themselves and bail their coach out for good. In a series of heists and action packed film sequences, Notorious finds themselves a little short of the $50k they owe on their coach's behalf. With little time on the table, L.A. Notorious decides to host the World Cup themselves and compete for an "All or Nothing" cash prize that will save their coach and ultimately earn them the chance to turn pro. With the local police snooping around an unsanctioned event and Stan's aggressor quickly closing in on him, can Notorious make the unthinkable happen?
Our Plan for the Movie: We're taking this film as far and wide as possible. The ultimate goal is to create a Hollywood level film with Hollywood level actors, composers, editors, music supervisors, cinematographers, production designers and the works in order to get it in front of the masses. We're approaching star talent as we speak and have been garnering interest from many.
Although, too early in the process (we would have loved to have featured them in the video) to announce their involvement, our stars are leads in box office hits right this very moment! We're making sure to choose the best stars for the project that will give theatrical distributors the best bang for their buck and have the worldwide appeal that they desire.
The music is going to be off of the charts! Literally. Alex has been in talks with the same guys who do the music for the show, So You Think You Can Dance? as well as the composer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and he has scored over 50 Hollywood titles).
We're using the stunt guys who did movies like The Fast and The Furious -- Heck! We're even negotiating with the exact same people.
Distribution: The film's ultimate goal is distribution WORLDWIDE. Alex's last film, Dance-Off, which was targeting 8-14y/o girls received just that...
Now, imagine creating a movie for a market in which he is the target! If that doesn't put your mind at ease, rest assured, we're already in contact with some of the bigger distributors in Los Angeles just to give ourselves a head start.
What We Need & What You Get
What we need: Development Funds
- These are the initial funds for our Entertainment Lawyer and Casting Director so that they can successfully attach talent and our lawyer can contract them in. From here, our jobs approaching private placement investments will become a little easier, quicker, and gets us on set earlier.
What you get: Exposure for your business and out to the masses!
- We'll be featuring Paintball Fields and Paintball Pro Shops in the end credits of the film. They'll scroll under each state in alphabetical order. Remember, we're putting this film in front of millions - REGARDLESS if #SPEEDBALL receives traditional distribution. We have a alternative distribution plan through channels such as, but not limited to: Netflix, iTunes, Hulu Plus, Cable networks in 80% of the nation's homes, Walmart, Best Buy, Dish Network, Direct TV, and many, many more!
- This film will be made and seen worldwide.
The Impact
What will #SPEEDBALL do for ALL of us?
- #SPEEDBALL, done right, is going to put the entire industry of "Paintball" on the map. We're getting rid of all the stereotypes associated with Paintball and playing it. Nobody is dying, this isn't a run-of-the-mill comedy sloppily revolving woodsball or scenario paintball. This is an AMPED UP, HIGH ENERGY take on making "the sport of paintball" the appealing, team building, blast of a time game it deserves to be shown as. This is it.
- Remember when paintball was making a go at ESPN and more and more people began talking about paintball circa 2007/2008? Then out from under our feet comes the market crash and what seemed like a hopeful leap into worldwide recognition quickly dissipated. This is that chance to bring all that attention back. Together, we can make this happen.
IMDb Review:
Possibly the worst movie I've ever seen.
9 August 2015 | by freydis-e ([email protected]) (UK)
I'm reviewing this as a curiosity, possibly the worst I've ever seen. It's not one of those so bad it's good, more so bad that, yawn, who could ever care? So what are the problems? No story – but that's not unusual in a film like this. No characters – can also happen in this kind of softish horror, but there's usually someone, even if badly acted and paper-thin, to latch onto. Not here. Makes no sense – frequently a problem in horror of all kinds and here it's made worse by the fact that there's absolutely nothing to hook you in and pull you along. Unexplained stuff happens all the time - example: why not take the car with keys in it and how did we get from there to railroad tracks? Maybe if I'd cared even a little bit, I'd have paid more attention and just maybe made a bit more sense of it.
So what does happen? People run around a lot, rarely for any sensible reason. They shout a lot, usually all at the same time so you can't tell what any of them are shouting. The women (and only them) scream, gasp and sob a lot – not that unreasonable when nasty stuff starts up, but I suspect plenty of men would do the same in the unlikely event that real life could ever be remotely like this.
This movie is a perfect 1. There's nothing here worth seeing, the kind of thing I never get to see because I walk out/ switch channels/ throw the DVD in the garbage if even the opening 5-10 minutes are this bad. This time I made myself watch, waiting for something interesting to happen. It never did and I wasted 90 minutes.
Comment by Dru Pleck
August 23, 2011
While this movie sucks, there was one great thing that happened when my buddies and I watched it. We were inspired by the flick to set up our own team and challenged another more experienced team at the paint ball course. We didn't get all militarized with uniforms and gear, but we did agree on the uniform - Batman hoodies. We chose our colors on Moon At Midnight's site because of the huge selection they have of Batman stuff. We chose hoodies because they protect our ears and heads more than t shirts or sweatshirts. The movie helped to motivate us as a team but also made us more aware that the real fun was in fighting a more experienced team of paint ballers - we love being the underdogs! No one was going to get killed, but paintball is a bit dangerous even with the protective gear, so it's all hands on deck the moment the competition begins. The best thing about our cool Batman styles is that we can easily identify each other, but also we're all inspired by Batman to take the fight to the enemy. I would say that after being inspired by this awful movie, our own battles are way more entertaining.
Paintball DVD Review
June 3rd, 2010 by Valkor
The story of Paintball revolves on a group of eight paintballers whom you really won't give two shits about, on their way to a paintball tourney that's hosted by a group called "The Organization". Unfortunately for the group, someone is using real ammo and people start dyin. What the team doesn't know is that the Organization chose them specifically, based on their paintball skillz, to be a part of real life hunt where the rich can watch them die in an assortment of ways, behind the safety of bullet-proof glass. Working for the Organization is a hunter who uses geo-thermal goggles to spot them and through an ear piece he takes direction from someone back at base, who tells him how to kill the prey and who to kill next.
Ultimately it all comes down to one player vs. the killer and who will survive? Well if you read the bad section you'll find out, but trust me it's not a huge surprise. I mean you probably won't predict who'll live to the end, but when you get there you'll probably go "meh".
The Good:
This film has video game written all over it! Everyone is packing a weapon, following a set path, finding new weapons, armor, items, and even falling through traps, all while being chased and hunted down by some unknown assailant whose motives they have no clue of or why. For the players, it's all hell breaking loose, nothing more and we as the viewer are along for the ride. And to further include us on the journey, there's lots of shaky cam following the character's actions, much like a 3rd person shooter. There's even some first-person action when we see the world through the killer's eyes. One scene worth mentioning, paintballer John (Peter Vives Newey) has just been shot and hung by the leg in a snare trap. The killer plays with his unconscious body a bit before setting up a bayonet right under him and cutting the rope. All of this is seen through his geo-thermal eyes. Speaking of scenes, this film has some lengthy ones. Some will go on for long stretches without nary an edit, especially during the action scenes. Just check out the first scene when the orange team starts shooting at the green team – there's not one cut as the camera flows from character to character as they evade bullets and attempt to battle back. So long cut scenes, lots of running around and item/weapon gathering and an unknown assailant chasing our players… sounds like a gamer movie to me. Finally, the music is spot on of a video game flick because it kicks in just when things are getting good and gets creepy when the killer is stalkin; it really sets mood.

The Bad:
First off, for a thriller, it's pretty uneventful; even with lots of shit happening, it's really not "edge of your seat" suspenseful. Next, as people die all around our main cast, they continue to play the game!! Rather than stop to try and piece shit together, they continue to look for flags and those damn boxes with items that are supposed to help them with "the game". Next is Dave (Brendan Mackay) - dude knows something. Has he played "The Game" before? Why was it so important that he get what's in those boxes? Actually, it doesn't matter because he bites it anyway. Next our main bad guy wears geo-thermal goggles in daylight. Who the hell does he think he is, the freakin Predator? Oh but as it's explained much towards the end of the film, he needs the goggles to see. IN DAYLIGHT?? REALLY!!!? If he was hunting at night it would be much cooler, but it's daytime… *sigh*. Finally, last paintballer to survive, Anna (Jennifer Matter), is able to get a hold of the killer's earpiece and screams into it for help, for which she eventually gets. The female voice on the other side tells her that she needs to gather the items in the boxes… REALLY!!! This chick has to backtrack to all those boxes just to make a weapon, to defeat this monster!! It's not like they were close together, they're pretty far apart! And you know what's even more fucked up? After she gathers all the pieces, the killer is suddenly hot on her trail. He fires a shot into her backpack… where the parts of the weapons are! So what happens? When she eventually pieces the shit together… the damn thing doesn't work because the shot into the backpack dinged up a hose that was much needed to make the weapon work!!!! WTF!!!! THAT pissed me off most, because I'd rather she just take out the out the guy with that bad ass gun. Instead she throws him through a window where he gets staked to death. Bleh!
The Ugly:
Dave getting a mine to the chest. Though it's seen through geo-thermal eyes, it's still pretty gruesome. Oh and that ending was pretty WTF as well.

Paintball is a unique film and one hell of an experience, but it's a ride you'll probably wanna try once and after that it's game over man! Game over! If you're gonna check this one out, you better bring some friends to up the enjoyment level. Personally, I thought it was OK and it does have some bad ass moments that if taken separately would probably be better than watching the film as a whole. So out of TOV 5 stars, I give Paintball 3 stars. Anyone up for the Doom movie? Anyone? Super Mario Bros? No?
More Background on PaintballTheMovie.com
PaintballTheMovie.com was the official website for the 2009 Spanish action-horror film Paintball, directed by Daniel Benmayor. The site served as the central hub for the film’s promotion, providing information, media, and a space for fans and curious viewers. This article explores the history, critical reception, media coverage, audience, and cultural impact of both the website and the film it supported.
The Film: Context and Background
Paintball (2009) is a survival thriller in which eight strangers participate in an "experts-only" paintball event that turns deadly when a masked assailant begins hunting them with live ammunition. The cast includes Brendan Mackey, Jennifer Matter, Patrick Regis, and Neil Maskell. The film is noted for its kinetic camera work and attempts to immerse viewers in a high-stakes, adrenaline-fueled scenario.
Website Purpose and Features
The official website functioned as a promotional and informational hub for the film. Based on common practices for movie websites of its era and descriptions from external sources, PaintballTheMovie.com likely included:
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A synopsis and background of the film
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Cast and crew biographies
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Trailers, promotional images, and exclusive video clips
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Press releases and critical reviews
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Community features such as forums or comment sections
The site was designed to immerse visitors in the world of the film and to attract both horror fans and paintball enthusiasts.
Reviews and Critical Reception
Critical Response
Paintball received predominantly negative reviews from critics and audiences. On major film review platforms, the film holds a low user rating. Reviewers frequently cited weak character development, a lack of narrative coherence, and an over-reliance on shaky handheld camera techniques. One reviewer described the film as lacking any engaging story or characters, making it impossible for viewers to care about the outcome. The review also criticized the lack of tension and suspense, generic stereotypes, and disorienting cinematography.
Other reviews echoed similar sentiments, stating that while the premise was promising, the execution was lacking. The use of visual gimmicks, such as thermal imaging filters, wore thin quickly, and the film failed to build or sustain any real suspense. The characters were described as indistinguishable, preventing viewers from rooting for any particular individual.
A video review by a paintball-focused outlet further criticized the lack of character depth, unclear motivations, and confusing plot developments. The reviewer noted that the film’s attempts at creative kills and visual style could not compensate for its narrative shortcomings and lack of emotional engagement.
Audience Reactions
Audience feedback mirrored the critical response. Many viewers found the film’s story predictable and the characters generic. Some noted that the movie’s attempt to use handheld camera work to create immersion instead resulted in a disorienting viewing experience. While a few viewers appreciated the film’s action sequences and moments of gore, the overall consensus was that Paintball failed to deliver on its intriguing premise.
Despite these criticisms, some viewers found enjoyment in the film’s premise or used it as inspiration for their own paintball adventures. For example, one group of friends was motivated to form their own paintball team after watching the movie, highlighting the film’s potential to inspire real-world engagement with the sport.
Press and Media Coverage
Paintball garnered attention in film and entertainment outlets, particularly during its festival circuit run. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2009, marketed as a high-adrenaline thriller for fans of action and horror genres. Media coverage often highlighted the film’s unique concept-merging the structure of a paintball tournament with the life-or-death stakes of survival horror-but most press reviews echoed the criticisms found in audience reviews, pointing to a lack of depth and innovation beyond the initial idea.
Audience and Demographics
The primary audience for PaintballTheMovie.com, and the film itself, included:
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Fans of action and horror films, especially those interested in survival or “battle royale” style narratives
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Paintball enthusiasts curious to see their sport depicted in a high-stakes cinematic context
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Gamers and fans of immersive, first-person experiences, given the film’s use of POV shots and kinetic camerawork
Despite the film’s shortcomings, its premise attracted viewers from these communities, some of whom used the film as inspiration for their own paintball adventures.
Known For and Cultural Significance
Paintball is best known for its attempt to combine the energy of extreme sports with the tension of survival horror. The film’s use of handheld camerawork and POV shots was intended to place viewers in the midst of the action, echoing trends in both horror cinema and video game design. Despite its poor critical reception, the film stands as an example of the genre’s experimentation with immersive storytelling and cross-genre appeal.
The website, as the film’s official portal, played a role in connecting fans, disseminating information, and promoting the film’s unique blend of action and horror. While it did not achieve lasting cultural impact, it contributed to the broader conversation around the depiction of paintball and survival games in popular media.
Details, Insights, and Examples
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Cast and Crew: The film featured an ensemble cast, including Brendan Mackey and Jennifer Matter. Director Daniel Benmayor brought a frenetic style to the project, aiming for a sense of immediacy and realism.
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Visual Style: The movie’s reliance on handheld cameras and thermal imaging filters was a notable stylistic choice, though many critics found it distracting rather than immersive.
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Notable Scenes: Some reviewers highlighted specific action sequences, such as kills involving thermal imaging and creative use of the forest setting. However, these moments were often overshadowed by the film’s narrative and technical flaws.
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Genre Context: Paintball fits into a lineage of films that blend sport and survival, drawing comparisons to movies like Battle Royale and Hostel. However, it failed to achieve the same level of suspense or character engagement.
Legacy and Lasting Impact
While Paintball and its website did not leave a significant mark on cinematic history, their existence reflects the ongoing interest in merging real-world sports with high-stakes fiction. The film’s shortcomings serve as a cautionary tale about the importance of character development and narrative clarity, even in action-driven genres. PaintballTheMovie.com, as the film’s digital home, played its part in promoting this unique, if flawed, experiment in genre filmmaking.
PaintballTheMovie.com was a product of its time-a dedicated portal for a film that aspired to blend the thrills of paintball with the dangers of survival horror. Though the movie itself was met with criticism for its execution, the website contributed to the film’s marketing and fan engagement. Today, Paintball is remembered as a bold but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to bring the adrenaline of the sport to the big screen, with its official website standing as a testament to the film’s ambitions and its place in the broader world of action-horror cinema.