What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[nosferatu42]

The girl with all the gifts.

MV5BYjQ1NjJmMWEtOWQ4NC00MzQwLThhMjctOTUxMTE4YWM3MGQxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzkxMzI1ODk@._V1_SY1000_CR0,.jpg

I wasn't sure what to expect from this, hearing it was a zombie film with a twist, so thought i'd try and avoid too much info and just bung it on.

It is a zombie film in the same way as 28 days later, in that it shares so much DNA with the genre that it is easy to describe it as such, with a virus/infection that spreads through the population but here it is plant based.
A fungal/spore infection that seems to have a lot in common with the one in the
great game "The Last of us".

In both instances the focus is on a girl who may be the key to a cure and an attempt to survive a trip through the heart of the infested wasteland.

Here we have a kind female teacher type, a couple of soldiers and a scientist, who are at first fearful of the titular girl (she is infected but retains her intelligence), then seem to come to respect her more as they face challenges together.

horizontal.jpeg

The performances from the leads are all excellent, with the girl really acting well above the range you would expect for someone her age.

lionsgate-0D88-DF85-571D-3C64-01C4-7-Full-Image_GalleryBackground-us-US-1501867156609._RI_SX940_.jpg

I have to say this was very well made and acted and atmospheric, the music is really interesting and is something that really stood out for me in the way it knits the post apocalyptic vision and the performances together.

Like 28 days it is a low budget British affair, but this works in it's favour, centering on performance,story and atmosphere rather than effects and explosions. One thing that i really liked were the infected standing around in a kind of haze until being triggered by sound and motion, this created some nice tense moments and reminded be of the "Blind dead" films.

I'm not sure i totally bought the ending, but it creates a nice circular element to the story, and i would definitely watch the film again as I really enjoyed it and was gripped throughout.

I picked up the dvd from CEX for £2, at that price it would be rude not to give it a go.

Recommended 8/10

[Justin101]

That scene in the shopping centre had me on the edge of my seat! I’ve not seen it since the cinema but it’s one I want to watch again!

[iank]

The Belko Experiment. A group of office workers find themselves trapped inside their corporate building and told by a mysterious voice to kill a certain amount of their colleagues - or they'll all die. Initial incredulity soon turns to fear, panic, and eventually, inevitably - violence. And you thought your colleagues were bad! This 2017 horror thriller was way better than I expected, with a strong cast, chilling premise and very fine execution that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout. I really enjoyed this!

[keirarts]

Day of the Dead: Bloodlines

Say what you want about the previous Day of the Dead remake. It was so unrelated to the Romero original it was easy enough to pretend the cretins that made it thought they had come up with an original title. No such luck here. Its a similar set up. Group of survivors hold up in a bunker. Here they seem to get on quite well for a fair portion of the film and the military guys are all rather nice chaps. This I can sort of live with I suppose. However then we get to Bub.
Howard Sherman as Bub in the Romero picture is one of those magnificent, Iconic characters that fans love. Here he's a rapist. Dr. Logan, Fisher and Sarah have all been rolled into one female character. Her one defining character trait beyond being a scientist is that she was almost raped by the Bub character prior to him becoming a zombie. When the group head into the city to find supplies she runs into bub. The old passion is renewed and bub manages to track the group based on scent from a bit of clothing she dropped. No, I'm not kidding. When Bub arrives at the bunker he's fortunate that no one notices missing people. No one notices noisy zombies moving through the air ducts so he gets pretty much free reign. Thankfully we don't see him rape anyone but the implication is very much there when we see him drag a woman into a room by her legs rather than just bite her.
I'm almost convinced that the idiots that wrote this were looking for something 'edgy' to include in the story and decided hinging the whole plot on rape because its 'dark'.
I can live with the other stuff. Even the stupid. Points where zombies jump out into frame to attack people in rooms cleared by military veterans. However Bub left a real sour taste in my mouth. Its impossible not to think of it as a remake of the Romero film. Not good. I was at a mates and he had to talk me down as I wanted to wreck something. Fortunately his new puppy consoled me.

Brawl in cell block 99

Much better. Vince Vaughn excels as a Stoic drug Runner who is basically a nice guy but capable of extreme violence when needed. He needs to get into the worst part of a maximum security prison to kill a guy on the behest of his boss who has his woman hostage. It's gritty, brutal and darkly humorous and not afraid to frame itself as an exploitation movie. Recommended.

[Justin101]

Originally Posted by keirarts

Day of the Dead: Bloodlines

Sounds dreadful, thanks for taking one for the team so we don't have to

[Rik]

Originally Posted by Justin101

Sounds dreadful, thanks for taking one for the team so we don't have to

That’s exactly what I said to Keir on Facebook last night

[bleakshaun]

Plague of the Zombies
An established medical specialist and his daughter head to a small village in Cornwall to visit some friends however soon discover an onslaught of deaths. It all leads to a squire dabbling in Voodoo and bringing the dead back to life.
One of my favorite Hammer movies, Plague of the Zombies is oozing with atmosphere and has some really great tense sequences throughout.
8/10

Sent from my MediaPad T1 8.0 Pro using Tapatalk

[Justin101]

Originally Posted by bleakshaun

Plague of the Zombies
An established medical specialist and his daughter head to a small village in Cornwall to visit some friends however soon discover an onslaught of deaths. It all leads to a squire dabbling in Voodoo and bringing the dead back to life.
One of my favorite Hammer movies, Plague of the Zombies is oozing with atmosphere and has some really great tense sequences throughout.
8/10

Sent from my MediaPad T1 8.0 Pro using Tapatalk

One of my favourites too!

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by nosferatu42

The girl with all the gifts.


Like 28 days it is a low budget British affair, but this works in it's favour,

Love this line.

28 Days Later cost millions to make and features name actors and the director of mega hit Trainspotting. . I don't think you have any concept of low budget British horror film making. As for Girl? It cost millions to make and features name actors.

Go ask Creativ Studios about low budget film making.

Sorry, nos.

Other than that i enjoyed your review.

[keirarts]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Love this line.

28 Days Later cost millions to make and features name actors and the director of mega hit Trainspotting. . I don't think you have any concept of low budget British horror film making. As for Girl? It cost millions to make and features name actors.

Go ask Creativ Studios about low budget film making.

Sorry, nos.

Other than that i enjoyed your review.

28 days later cost £5 million. Girl with all the gifts was actually the cheaper film at £4 million.

Compared to a lot of DTV films and ultra low budget films they weren't cheap. But when you consider low budget for America can be in the $30 million range both films could be considered as low budget given the scope of what they are trying to achieve