I only heard of [REC], the new Spanish horror film, by word-of-mouth and watched it for the first time before it was available on DVD, online, in eight different segments. I got together with about eight different people and we all crowded around my laptop to watch it in the dark. Despite the small, pixilated screen and the large group, the film still made a significant impression on everyone in the room.
Not too long after my first viewing of it, the American remake QUARINTINE came to Film Is Truth. To be fair, I watched that also and was (as I expected to be) greatly disappointed. Though the story tagged many of the same points, it just couldn’t be taken seriously and the acting was enough to distort the characters into people who I couldn’t really sympathize with, no matter what “horrific” events they were put through. Even the makeup jobs didn’t hold next to the original.
So I waited, in high anticipation, for [REC] to finally be released on DVD, to get the chance to see it again and spread the word. Although I was worried that it would somehow not be as realistic or as frightening when seen on a TV screen rather than a laptop, I had no need to be. This film is one of the pinnacles of new, foreign horror. Like LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, it takes an old favorite and refurbishes it into something refreshingly original. And it just so happens to be one of the handful of horror films ever to scare me.
Angela Vidal is our main character, a reporter for a late night TV show, who is filming at a fire department to get a first hand view of what the volunteers do. While most of the night is routine and quiet (setting an appropriate pacing for the film, one that continually builds to the end) they are soon called out to an apartment building where a woman was reported to be screaming in her home. When they arrive, it is first very unclear what the situation is, but the panic of the other tenants sets you on edge before you even know what you’re afraid of. Seen through the eye of the camera, and while other films have used this same technique (BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, CLOVERFIELD), [REC] makes it believable and not at all dizzying. The camera becomes a character, as its presence is questioned by the police officers also responding to the call, and they are forced to turn it off by authorities, even as the equipment falters during high-paced moments.
After finding the woman who was screaming, an officer is wounded and the situation becomes much more urgent. Before anyone can get the injured medical attention, however, they reach the bottom floor to find that the building has been sealed and they are all locked inside. Again, while some films have used claustrophobic settings before, [REC] uses it without staring at the same scenery the entire time. The quarantine still gives the story and the characters room to move, and makes climbing the floors of the buildings and either trying to reach the remaining people upstairs or keep them there a magnificent plot device. Asked to wait downstairs, the tenants panic and the terror rises as the state of the injured turns horrific.
Now, I’m struggling not to reveal too much more, because this film is better seen with few ideas about what happens. I am certain the surprises will get to you, but while watching also make note of the incredible make up jobs, and the impressive acting because without the work of these actors the film would fall apart. Part of the actor’s presence is due to the directors, however. In watching The Making of [REC], I learned that the directors only told the actors pieces of what would be happening, so they’re fear was more tangible and their confusion was legitimate. The finale is amazing and by the time you get there, I promise you won’t be able to look away.
This is a must for any horror or thriller fan, and for those who are craving an original plot out of the flurry of summer movies. Come by and pick up [REC], if only so I can talk further about this fantastic movie without giving anything away!
