My Two Cents: [REC]

I wrote this in January of 2008. Yeah, it's that old. Also, when I write, I just hammer my thoughts out. Sometimes they read better than others. I try to do a little editing but I just don't have the time to revise a post to perfection. If you actually read enough of these, you'll probably start to get a feel for my style. It's not great writing, and I definitely tend to ramble, but it's mine and, for better or worse, I'm proud of it. Enjoy.

Let me start of by saying that it is 6:14 in the morning on New Years Day of 2008 and I am (obviously) sitting at my computer, thinking about the film I just finished watching. Yes, this is in fact my 2 cents on a film. A horror film, no less. You see what I did there? With the title? Clever, I know. Anywho, for those of you who aren't interested in horror movies or just don't care what I have to say, go ahead and skip class this morning. No offense taken. For everyone else...

Alright, the topic of discussion is the Spanish horror film [REC]. I came across this film on upcominghorrormovies.com and was immediately interested. So, I did a bit MORE research, tapping my favorite resource, IMDb.com. My interest grew. I had to see it. Sadly, foreign films are hard to come by, especially if they've only just been released in their country of origin. But, after much searching and dedication, I found it. The rub? It was in Spanish with nary a subtitle in sight. What did this mean for me? Duh, it meant I was going to be watching a film without understanding a word of what was being said. Yes, I did watch this foreign film with out a translation. No, I have no real idea what all was said. Interestingly enough, this had no negative impact on the viewing.

[REC], as I said, is a horror film from Spain, that can be best described as a cross between the Blair Witch Project and Danny Boyle's excellent film 28 Days Later... In other words: first person camera perspective + "zombies" = joygasm! This is about a TV reporter who, with the help of her cameraman (us), is covering the night shift at the fire department. In the middle of the night the men get a call and soon enough we are on our way to an apartment building to offer assistance and film the events that transpire. Once there, we see that something is amiss. It appears an old lady upstairs is off her rocker. Let me rephrase: she's fuckin' psycho! Covered in blood and, for all intents and purposes, rabid, she attacks. Things get... a bit hectic, the movie slows back down, then things get good. I have to say, watching this film at 4 in the morning in a dark house was great. Honestly, the last 15 minutes of this movie had me riveted. I finally know what "edge of your seat" means. Blinking is not an option here, people.

Because this is shot in the same style as the Blair Witch, there is a lot of shaking. There is a lot of blurriness. There is a LOT of chaos. While some will probably find it annoying, it adds so much to the tension. This isn't a film set with directors and steady-cams and make-up artists. This movie is on the move, the camera is in a man's hands, running up and down stairs, wrestling with the infected, fighting for survival. You feel as if you are actually there, holding the camera, and that makes everything that much more visceral.

I can't say it enough: I absolutely loved this flick. Sadly, it's over much too soon with a little over a 70 minute run time. On the plus side, those 70 minutes are very well spent. If this sounds like something you'd be interested in (if you're a horror buff like me), I'm sad to say you're most likely going to have to wait a couple of months for a DVD release here in the States (with subtitles though!). I, myself, am working on getting some subs and I'm sure once I do the film will be that much better. Again, a must-see for horror movie fanatics.

Trailer can be seen here: http://www.3l-filmverleih.de/rec/rec_1.html