Now stepping beyond YouTube, Mark Fischbach aims high with his directorial debut.
Iron Lung blends body horror, science fiction, and claustrophobic drama, an ambitious mix for any first-time filmmaker. Despite some rough edges in performance and pacing, the film reveals Fischbach’s strong visual instincts and a clear talent for delivering raw, visceral impact. It’s a bold debut that shows real promise.
The stars have vanished. Humanity is fading. Answers may lie beneath an ocean of blood.
Adapted from David Szymanski’s indie horror game, the story follows convict Simon, played by Fischbach, on what’s framed as an expedition but is, in reality, an execution. Sealed inside a submarine, Simon is sent to chart an alien blood ocean with the promise of freedom as his reward. He is alone in the dark, and help isn’t coming.
Fischbach is an ambitious filmmaker, and comparisons to Sam Raimi will inevitably be drawn. That passion is unmistakable here. Every frame shows care, craft, and intent.
The film is essentially Cast Away in a coffin-sized submarine. One performer. Minimal dialogue. No ensemble to play off. No Wilson. No sun. One claustrophobic location. That’s an acting Everest. Tom Hanks had a volleyball and open skies; Fischbach has darkness, metal walls, and rising hysteria. It’s a brutally difficult assignment.
The performance isn’t poor by any stretch, but the intensity rarely has room to breathe. By the third act, that imbalance becomes more noticeable.
That same issue affects the film overall. At just over two hours, the static setting and slow-burn lore reveals begin to drag. The premise is elegantly simple: go down, and you might not come back. Flashbacks and added world-building often muddy rather than deepen the narrative, diluting the urgency and visceral power the film does best.
And what it does best, it does exceptionally well.
Fischbach’s eye for composition is seriously impressive. Working with minimal space and resources, he conjures real claustrophobia, madness, and pressure. Some shots aren’t just well crafted, they’re flat-out cool. Here, “expert mode” works entirely in his favour. The tension is constant, and the visuals are disorienting in the best way, pulling the viewer into the undertow from the start.
Iron Lung isn’t perfect, but it’s bold, memorable, and made with conviction. It may be claustrophobic by design, but Fischbach’s filmmaking ambition is anything but. As a directing debut, it’s exciting, and whatever he does next is well worth watching.
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