[REC] (2007)

 

The Plot: Trapped in a quarantined Barcelona apartment building with residents, police, firefighters and a growing horde of ravenous zombies, television reporter Angela (Manuela Velasco) and her cameraman, Pablo, record brutal deaths and terrifying events while trying to save their own ass’s. Filmed entirely from unseen Pablo’s point of view, this high tension Spanish horror film will quench the most dedicated horror fans thirst with its aggressive action. Paco Plaza and Jaume Balagueró direct.

 

The music was amazing during the entire film. It really brought out the suspense and made it feel more real then the normal bullshit that many horror films use today. The main reason…there was none until the credits rolled. It was refreshing to be able to hear all types of creepy sounds that were not drowned out by cheep thrill sound effects.

 

The cinematography was very effective in my opinion. It was a handheld cam film, so there was some shakiness to it, but it wasn’t over done like in Cloverfield. I’m very prone to motion sickness, and was not effected in anyway while watching this movie…so trust me on this one. It enhanced the fright factor and made you really feel like you were a part of the movie.

The acting was perfect. This might have been because everyone was a great actor, or the more believable reason would be that the directors kept much of the script a secret. Most of the scenes were filmed by improv. The directors put the actors in a dark room with no light at all and give them a camera with a light and night vision….they are told basic things that they are expected to do during this scene and then they just start fucking with them using noise and other things…. I don’t want to give anymore away; you’ll have to check it out for yourself.

 

The effects were extremely realistic. The sounds and gore that were used in some scenes are real enough looking to send a chill down the crack of your ass. One of the scenes in the film even had my friend cringing…he works as a medical examiner pickin up bodies for a living, so you tell me if that isn’t fucked up enough!

 

Overall this movie really renewed my hope that people can still create an intelligent, realistic, creepy horror film in this day and age. The beginning is nice and slow and just keeps gaining speed throughout until its way too fast to slow down by the end. Instead of making dumb characters to prolong the movie, they put the characters into a situation that’s almost unsolvable. It was genius in my opinion, and a must see for any true horror fan.

 

5 Out of 5 Crom’s