Contagion

"Contagion" (2011, Steven Soderbergh, Warner Bros. Pictures, Participant Media, Imagenation Abu Dhabi, Double Feature Films) is a film about a deadly virus spreading worldwide.

I thought that during these current times of COVID-19 I'd revisit the excellent, terrifying and sadly extremely relevant "Contagion".

Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) returns home from an international business trip and accidentally sets in motion a pandemic which spreads like wildfire. We follow different characters who are in the main unaware of their connections to one another as they seek to contain, report, fight or escape the lethal virus.

The film does an excellent job of highlighting how easily the virus spreads, how quickly the panic spreads and how woefully under-prepared the world is in the face of such a situation. Unfortunately, looking at our current events, we are globally even less prepared than displayed in this film. But in the main, it is truly haunting how on the nose the film's events are.

The cast is fantastic. With excellent performances across the board from Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Laurence Fishburne, Chin Han, Marion Cotillard, Elliott Gould, Gwyneth Paltrow... frankly everyone.

Well paced and engaging, the film is gripping at the best of times, but its currently relatable content rings disturbingly true at present.

[Image: Warner Bros. Pictures]

Hani

Quarantine

"Quarantine" (2008, John Erick Dowdle, Screen Gems, Vertigo Entertainment, Andale Pictures) is the American remake of 2007's found footage film, "REC".


Duplicating the story, we follow Angela (Jennifer Carpenter) and her crew who are filming a documentary about the lives of a Fire Crew for their news station. When they get a call out, Angela and her camera man tag along, excited to get some action on film. They are called to an apartment building which has been locked down with everyone inside, due to the unusual behaviour of one of the tenants which is suspected to be some kind of virus. The Fire Crew and Camera Crew enter, along with some police but soon find themselves also locked in the building as it is quarantined to contain whatever the hell is going on in there. Soon they are all fighting for survival amongst a horde of infected friends and neighbours... while being sniped down from the outside, barring any hope of escape...


An unnecessary remake that didn't do much other than recreate the original concept scene for scene but in English. The film does have some great effects (that ankle scene) and Carpenter gives an amicable performance as our some-parts terrified, some-parts sassy protagonist.


All in all, the film is well made and enjoyable, but I'd be more inclined to watch Rec above it if given the choice.

[Image: Screen Gems]

Hani

Cabin Fever (2016)

"Cabin Fever" (2016, Travis Z, Armory Films, Contend, Pelican Point Media, IFC Midnight) is the remake of Eli Roth's movie of the same name and premise from 2002. Roth produced this remake, but it still doesn't really explain why it was made...

A group of fairly unlikeable young people go up to stay at a secluded cabin in the woods to party. The kids are soon exposed to, and eaten quickly alive by, a flesh eating virus which pretty much ruins their plans.

Z used a slightly modified version of Roth's original script and so the film is almost a direct remake of the original, but without some of Roth's gory humour. Essentially, the film is neither as gruesome nor as good as the original because it takes itself too seriously. The characters are completely disposable because they're just pretty horrible people and the locals are equally so. Deputy Winston, this time a female portrayed by Louise Linton, was a fairly inspiring deviation from the original and took that specific element in a new direction, but essentially the film as a whole is serviceable but fairly forgettable. I just can't fully fathom why they decided to make this remake in the first place!

[Armory Films, et al]

Hani

Maggie

"Maggie" (2015, Henry Hobson, Grindstone Entertainment Group, Gold Star Films) is a zombie film, but not your average zombie film.

With today's over saturation of zombie everything (movies, comics, jewellery, clothing, TV series, novels, cupcakes.... You name it, there's a zombie version of it), it's nice to see a film that brings something fresh and new to the genre. "Maggie" manages to create a thoughtful, emotive film with a different feel to the usual guts and gore zombie feature.

Maggie Vogel (Abigail Breslin) is stuck in the city during a semi-post-apocalyptic time. Most of the country has been ravished by a terrible virus which slowly turns its victims into the shambling, decaying dead. Those infected, like Maggie, are being rounded up and placed in quarantine, a happy place where the diseased and dying can frolic together, being chomped on by those in a more progressed condition than themselves. Fun, fun.

Maggie's dad, Wade (Arnold Schwarzenegger, in what is a very different role for him, but he still gets to get all badass on a few zombies here and there), finds her and takes her out to the country to stay with his wife, Caroline (Joely Richardson).

There Maggie is to live out her remaining days before the infection worsens and then she is to be taken to the dreaded quarantine area. She mostly spends her time hanging with friends, some of whom are also infected, feeling sorry for herself and occassionally chopping off a few rotting appendages or accidentally killing wildlife... You know, the usual.

But the good times must end at some point, and Maggie and Wade have to make a decision...

A really interesting film, it manages to create solid characters and relationships and still have a few gory scenes to keep it moving. It is a very slow burning plot, however, and definitely doesn't fall completely into the 'horror' basket; I'd label it as more of a thriller myself. But it does benefit from very good effects and makeup. One criticism I would have is that the film is so dark that the full gory beauty of the effects can not be fully realised.

Schwarzenegger creates a very gritty, realistic and endearing character with a lot of depth. You really feel his pain, and the film plays out as more of a study on all the characters' emotions than it does about zombies. Abigail Breslin equally portrays the doomed teen character with a lot of realism and emotion. Her situation is palpable and you truly feel a part of her horrific journey.

All in all, I really enjoyed this film despite its very slow pace. It wasn't my usual kind of film at all, but it was a pleasantly serious take on the genre and something different to watch.

[Image: Grindstone Entertainment Group]

Hani

 

28 Weeks Later

"28 Weeks Later" (2007, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, Fox Atomic, DNA Films, UK Film Council) is the sequel to the British zombie blockbuster, "28 Days Later".

Following the usual 'zombie' outbreak sequel formula we have a much bigger story and a lot more to deal with after the outbreak is now supposedly under control. This time we follow a small family, that is becoming increasingly smaller as the plot develops...

Sadly for the family, and also for the rest of the 'safe zone', the mother and son have some mutated genes which make them carriers of the Rage virus so... yeah... things escalate... quickly.

Much gorier and faster than the previous film it also has a level of grim that manages to be innovative in the bloated market of traumatic zombie horrors. The main issue is that it lacks its specifically British identity and becomes just another action zombie film.

However, the acting is great, there are a few good jump scares and the plot is nicely paced. I also enjoyed the presence of Robert Carlyle and Jeremy Renner.

[Image: UK Film Council]

Hani

Pontypool

"Pontypool" (2009, Bruce McDonald, Maple Pictures) is a psychological thriller but it has a few splashes of gore too. It's also quite low budget, but I wouldn't have guessed!

It's Valentine's Day and ex- 'shock jock' radio DJ turned local radio host, Grant Mazzy (Stephen McHattie), is on his way to the station in the small town of Pontypool, Canada for his shift during the wee hours when he has an encounter with a strange murmuring woman. But that's not the strangest to happen to him that morning, when reports begin to roll in of strange and violent happenings in the town...

A clever film which feels bigger than it is thanks to clever camera work, good sound, nice effects, wit and humour and excellent acting.

Our charismatically grumpy protagonist keeps the plot going forward and I enjoyed his relationship with the station manageress Sydney (Lisa Houle) and technical assistant Laurel-Ann (Georgina Reilly).

The film is surprisingly engaging considering that there is very little to see (they barely leave the station) and a good sense of dread and claustrophobia builds up as the audience learns of the circumstances along with the characters.




Whilst it's not the most realistic thing to ever have a film made about it, it's certainly worthy of a few chills and manages to keep itself clear of the 'just another zombie movie' tag a film like this could so easily have been placed under.

An unsettling film which had me enthralled from the beginning, I found it innovative and intelligently pieced together. I'm not sure about the bit after the credits though...

[Image: Maple Pictures]

Hani

Zombie With a Shotgun

"Zombie With a Shotgun" (2012, Hilton Ariel Ruitz, FilmBrewery) is a zombie themed web series.

We meet Aaron (Braeden Baade, a man with a fine set of arms! Those are good arms to have) and his girlfriend, Rachel (Lynnea Molone), who are caught in the beginnings of the zombie apocalypse. Unfortunately Aaron has been infected by "some kind of virus" and appears to be heading for zombiedom.

In the first episode we find out how Aaron comes to be in the possession of a shotgun. Now, zombies toting firearms is not a new idea, we've seen it in Romero's "Day of the Dead" for example, but it's certainly interesting to see someone slowly becoming a zombie with a gun and find out what they will do with it when they get there.

At only 4-6 minutes long each the episodes are snappy and short keeping the viewer entertained. A dark atmosphere is still successfully built up despite the short run-time, with the use of some effective scoring, dark sets and the presence of vigilante human characters who constantly threaten our protagonist's existence.

Perhaps a little slow in plot and with a surprising lack of gore for a zombie film, the series focusses more on the gradual degradation of our leading man and his relationship with Rachel, than it does on gory fight scenes.

The acting is professional and the editing of the final product is shiny with a gritty realism. The makeup and prosthetics are effective and quite traditional, reminiscent of the older, less drool-y zombies. The special effects appear to be all physical, too (yay!).

A good Indie series with excellent potential for transforming into a larger series!

Catch episodes of the series here: http://vimeo.com/zombiewithashotgun 

[Image: FilmBrewery]

 

Hani