Iron Lung (2026)

Iron Lung: A Strong Debut | 3.5/5

Written by Noah Dietz: 2/11/2026

I was not necessarily excited for this one at first. I had enjoyed the game when it was popular, but to make a movie based on it would take a controlled hand that I wasn't sure Mark Fischbach had. A single location film in a cramped setting can be difficult to pull off, and to have a debut filmmaker tackle it seems like an easy miss. That said, with relatively few issues, Iron Lung manages to stick the landing as an incredibly respectable entry into the cosmic horror genre, as well as in the much more dubious category of video game adaptations.

The film opens with a narration. An event, referred to as “the quiet rapture,” is relayed to us. The stars have gone out, and all the planets have vanished. Humanity has been abandoned to the stars and very few of the heavenly bodies remain. It’s discovered that one of the remaining moons has an ocean of blood, and with nothing left to lose, the decision is made to explore. From here on out we’re in the only space we spend the entire runtime, welded into a metal tube. Fischbach, taking on the role of writer, director, and lead actor in Simon the convict, is one of the only people seen in the entire film. The sub is lowered to the bottom of the ocean with the task of taking a selection of photos of the ocean floor, with specific areas of interest marked on a grid map. Fans of the game will know this is the loop: navigate with a motion sensor and set of coordinates, take pictures, hopefully leave. This is the same promise made to Simon, though as things go on it’s hard not to feel like the voices topside might not follow through on their end of the bargain.

Initially, I wasn’t sure how this would play out. The game is relatively bare bones, relying on atmosphere and the gameplay mechanics to make the scares happen. Expanding such a relatively simple story can sometimes overcomplicate what made things work so well initially. Luckily all world expansion done here stays cleanly in the spirit of what made so many people fall in love with the game. I can with great confidence say this might be the best video game adaptation to film I’ve seen to date. The breath of fresh air that watching Iron Lung was after weeks of Silent Hill films cannot be overstated. The right effort was put in the right spots here, and one of those areas is our incredibly cramped room inside the sub itself. With such a small world to operate in, you can see a significant portion of the budget went into the submarine. You get the feel of the space quickly, as the design is simple and straightforward to the mission. It’s such a small area that when the engine crawlspace is revealed in the middle of the film it feels like a whole new world has opened up to you. It doesn’t matter that it’s just a small tunnel, the entire feeling of the cramped room changes once you know it’s there.

There are notable issues to be taken with the film. Though I was riveted for the entire back half of the film, the front half has some pacing issues I thought were frustrating. Repetitive dialog bloats conversations that could have been 2 or 3 lines maximum, and montages that pass confusing lengths of time plague what could have been a tighter production. Coupled with moments where Fischbach’s inexperience as a screen actor shows its head, and I can understand why some people would consider tapping out before things “get good.” There are a few too many moments of “tell, don’t show” utilized, but I found myself not minding as much by the end of the film. Where his acting falls short in the finer emotions are, in my opinion, made up for in the larger visual moments of the film. Room for improvement exists, but I’d be lying if I said it was enough to ruin the experience.

Obviously there’s conversation to be had about Mark having a built-in audience. He’s an incredibly popular YouTuber and this game specifically is one that took off more than some. That said, I think too many people are being overly critical of the film. I’ve seen “it’s a great movie … for a YouTuber” thrown around with great abandon. The issue here is the disregard of other movies that YouTube creators have put out in recent years. Talk To Me and Weapons were both films that were incredibly well received in both critical and audience spaces, and both were made by people who came from YouTube. We’re far from the eras of Fred, Smosh, or the Paul brothers' atrocious movies. Internet creators with artistic vision exist and it’s all right to give them their flowers, especially when they’ve earned them. Iron Lung is a fantastic debut feature from Mark, and I will look forward to seeing anything he wishes to release in the future. I’m a convert, and I will be purchasing a physical copy of this film if and when it releases.