Movie: [REC]

So I've setup a little horror movie marathon for myself to combat the long stretches of time in between reading and pacing. First on the list was [REC]. If I recall correctly it was some IMDB list that led toward this. I had known little about it other than it was the original film that inspired an american rehash called Quarantine, which I'm pretty sure bombed, but the existence of an american rehash generally means the original is worth seeing. So here we go...

The movie begins with a cute spunky girl, the host of a TV show titled "While you're asleep," or something like that, on her way to a fire department to report on the nightly activities of fire fighters. She begins by interviewing a few of them asking what their job entails other than putting out fires and as the night progresses she grows impatient wanting a spectacle of sorts to report on to make the show an especially good one.

At this point it's fairly obvious the writer/director has a good sense of anticipation which is a relief because this is one of the make or break qualities of any horror film. The people involved really have to show restraint and hold off on the shock until that sliver of time right before boredom and then lay it on thick.

The call finally comes for the firefighters to pack up and deploy to an apartment complex where a woman is reported as being trapped in her room. As the story develops relationships are formed rather quickly between the reporter and the firemen. When they arrive on scene more characters enter the mix, the tenants of the building gathered in the lobby, waiting impatiently. They explain that not only is the woman alone in her apartment but that she'd been screaming wildly and uncontrollably.

I'll stop there with the description of the story because any good horror film should be experienced without any prior knowledge of the surprise. I can say however that tension escalates very quickly after the introduction of the conflict.

A quality that stands out for me is the strength of the characters. This film is a short one and we only know a few of the characters for a short time, but they were colorful enough to be memorable; and not overstated beyond an honest reflection of how a person would act in such a situation of chaos.

As far as how scary it was, there was one scene that really got me. There were many moments of sudden shock and the film should be commended for that, but the one scene that stood out for me I'm almost embarrassed to say. I'll describe it without much detail: The cameraman is peeking into an attic panning around slowly in a circle. You know something is going to happen, I mean, it's a dark attic, something's going to pop out and I was just waiting patiently. But, man, when it happened I went cold and stiff all over. I think I may have yelped a little in horror. It was a good moment for me.

Anyway, if you like horror movies and aren't thrown by subtitles, this is definitely worth the ride.

5/5