Wednesday, September 30, 2009

[REC] (2007)

[REC] is a movie within a movie. Ángela (Manuela Velasco), Spanish TV journalist and Pablo (Pablo Rosso), her cameraman, hungry for good material while covering a story on the night shift at a local Barcelona fire station stay the course in the name of journalism.La zombie nina

Angela is zealous. She wants to turn an ordinary topic into something big. She flirts with the firemen, plays basketball with them, even foregoing sleep to make sure she doesn't miss a thing. So, when that call comes in, Angela and Pablo are ready.

When they arrive at the apartment building, they learn that a woman had gone wild--screaming and shouting. Cops are on the scene and they're not down with the camera. When the cops, firemen, Angela and Pablo head upstairs to investigate, they find the woman in a darkened room, covered in blood. She attacks the security guard, biting him. They retreat to get him medical attention. That's when they learn that everyone inside the building are now quarantined. No one can leave and if they try, they might be shot. Trying to keep the restless apartment dwellers inside proves difficult, especially when people start turning into zombies.

This one is dark, although you wouldn't expect it, as it begins quite playfully, almost in a comedic vein. While it lacks an arc, it's suspenseful, entertaining and has a kid zombie (when was the last time you saw that?). At some point though, you realize this story can't go any further and you just finish the ride and turn it off. That said, I learned there is a [REC 2]. Not sure how that one will play out, but I'm curious.

Co-Writer/Director: Jaume Balagueró

Country: Spain

Genre: Thriller

Run time: 79 minutes

Scale: 3

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