Some people love to sing along to Anna Book Greatest Hits at a förfest in Sollentuna.
Me on the other hand, i prefer infected people turning into zombies, eating flesh from humans.
There is something wonderful about this combination, that will make any day feel fantastic. Is this the same feeling you got from listening to Sanna Nielsens latest album ? Uhhm, no, that is a feeling we don´t want to experience again. This feeling about infected flesh eating people is no doubt more pleasing. If you have not seen the first film of REC, released in 2007, from spanish directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza, i suggest you run and rent it right now. A really good spanish horror film, very intensive and well made. The sequel REC 2 was even better, with the same directors on board. That does not happen very often, so i would even recommend to buy REC 2, it is that good. After a couple of years of silence, there was talk of a third movie, simply called REC 3: Genesis. The difference this time was that only one of the original directors were on board, namely Paco Plaza. It was actually a fun ride, but not as good as the previous films, you could tell it was getting harder to follow up such great films. At the release of Rec 3 it was confirmed that we would have a final film released. And here it is, REC 4, this time directed by Jaume Balagueró, who were one of the directors of the first 2 films. When i heard that this was going to be the final film in the series, i had my doubts if this is really true. We all know that have been said so many times before, remember A Nightmare On Elm Street, Friday The 13th, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ? This might be the final film of the REC series, we will have to see. One thing is for sure, i love spanish horror films, especially since i loved the really good film The Orphanage. Is this final chapter of REC the perfect ending in this classic franchise, or is this ending that we did not ask for ?
Ángela Vidal ( Manuela Velasco ) wakes up, strapped on a hospital bed. She is no longer in the appartment house where she survived the infected humans. She is now onboard a ship, where she is kept for experiments. She tries to get answers from Doctor Ginard ( Paco Obregón ) , who are performing tests on her, but he refuse to answer. A man named Guzmán ( Paco Manzanedo ), also wakes up and have no idea of how he got on this ship. He meets a very confused old lady Anciana ( María Alfonsa Rosso ), who also woke up not knowing where she is. Ángela manage to get herself loose, and try and escape, but she is arrested as Guzmán try and help her into safety. They both meet Captain Ortega ( Mariano Venancio ), who want to make sure everything is secure, and don´t leave much information. Guzmán investigate what they are doing on the ship and get some help from the crew, where they reveal some kind of experiments have been made. The virus that caused so many human lives in Barcelona, is not destroyed, it is still here on this ship.
Looking back and compring the 4 films, is not that difficult. The first 2 films set out to do what the audience wanted to see. A roller coaster ride of plenty of gore, flesh wounds, bullet holes, everything you could ask for at the family sunday dinner table in Rågårdsvik. Even if the budget was limited, the quality was so good that you could tell they really worked hard to make it look as good, as it turned out to be. REC 3 on the other hand could not reach the same level, especially for 2 reasons. The storyline felt more simple, and the direction from Paco Plaza did not feel as solid, he decided to try a different path than before. Still as a horror film it did deliver, from an entertainment perspective. With this 4th chapter, i knew that the fans would hope for a great finish. If you loved the 2 first film, i don´t think you will be pleased completely with this final film. Is it a failure? No, at least not as bad as some might think it could have been.
The most positive surprise is that director Jaume Balagueró, have tried to capture some of that feeling from the first 2 REC films, and that makes a difference. Is it the final film we wanted ? No, there are details that could have been improved. The best part of REC 4 is when the infection spreads, through an infected monkey, then we really get the party started. Another detail i enjoy is that lead actress from the first 2 REC films Manuela Velasco is back. You might remember she was the tv news reporter, that did a segment on a firestation that became infected. Here she needs to survive in a different way, out in the ocean. The location of being trapped on a boat is a good idea, since last time we found ourselves at a wedding. It makes the sitaution feel more claustrophobic. REC 4 is not the final explosive film i was hoping for, i wanted more of everything to be honest from the first films. Still, this is much better than a lot of bad american horror releases from last year. If you are a fan, check it out at least, don´t have too high expectations though, just see it for what it is. I feel like going on a ship cruise in Spain right now, anyone who wants to join me ? Might as well load my 357 Magnum gun first, just in case i have a sour lady on board.
Rating: DDD
Inga kommentarer:
Skicka en kommentar