REC 2

REC 2 (2009) is a sequel (more of a continuation really, since the chronology aligns directly with that of its predecessor) that moves swiftly and brutally toward a terrifying conclusion. This Spanish horror film marries demonic possession with zombie-esque creatures and a viral contagion. It sounds like a crazy salad (and perhaps a bit too much), but directors Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza manage to tie it all together effectively.

Exposition is spare, as a SWAT team enters a contaminated Barcellona apartment complex to assist a "medical" official with his investigation of the strange outbreak that has afflicted the complex. We see the camaraderie of the team and learn the chain of command, and then they arrive at the scene and it's through a plastic barrier and straight into hell.

Jonathon Mellor plays Dr. Owen with aplomb. It's a one-note performance (he makes a grimace awfully well), but it's remarkably intense. His turn is really the focal point for characterization, and the rest of it is a claustrophobic search, going from room to room (which may or may not be inhabited by the demon-things) in search of a vial of blood.

There is a particularly frightening scene that unfolds in a heating duct, and a terrific sequence that pays the viewer's time off nicely in the final scenes.

It's not hard to recognize this film as the European penpal of the underrated Quarantine (2008). Both make good use of the perspective shots rendered with hand-held cameras. It's participatory filmmaking, and lends a level of authenticity to the proceedings. I give it a solid 'B' and recommend that horror fans give it a shot. It's better than 98% of the stuff that's been released in the last year...

Speaking of films that use that technique of visual narrative, I read a review of Trollhunter (2010) in my Fantasy & Science Fiction and I'm definitely intrigued...

Immortals (2011) was a bit of a letdown. Overlong and unnecessarily stylized (in places), this film lacked the mise-en-scene that made 300 (2006) such an unexpected success. 'C-'...

Clive Barker's The Plague

This title was released back in 2006, stirring some controversy and debate in horror circles for the circuitous and, according to some, corrupted final product that Sony's Screen Gems ultimately released.

The controversy is well documented here and here.

I have to say that I was taken aback by this film a little when it popped onto Showtime last evening. Just by virtue of its straight-to-DVD status and exile to the outer bands of satellite television, my expectations had been sufficiently tempered; I was happy to find that I liked it.

It's a fight-and-run thriller whose strength lies in the first act and, while the climax was a little flat, it was still an ambitious little number with a few genuinely chilling scenes.

I think, if you get thirty minutes to read the articles about the movie in the links above, you'll see that there's more complexity to this movie than what I saw last night.

You see, I watched the producers' (fourteen of them!) cut, not the director's cut. That's the controversy--the piece making the rounds out there is a far cry from what Hal Masonberg intended.

And let me tell you, I want to see Masonberg's vision. If the framing and staging that I saw in the producers' cut is any indication, the man can build tension. Seriously, the first twenty minutes of the film had me excited.

There are any number of cautionary notes inherent in this tale of conflicted vision on the creative front--not the least of which is the one exemplified by the old adage of too many cooks in the kitchen. Whether it's bad covers on rising novels or disagreements about the extent of blood and gore in horror films, it's a sad reality that, sometimes, the things we want to create aren't always the things that find their way into the world.