[REC]202/10/2009
Director/s: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza
So I may be late to the party but I finally got a chance to sit down in a dark room for a DVD date with 2009's spooky sequel [REC]2, and it has to be said, I'm massively underwhelmed.
The film follows on directly from 2007's original [REC] - as in, 15 minutes after the events of - and I think it's a pretty great idea to have the two so closely linked time-wise. It's great fun being able to follow the new team through scenes we saw in the last film and watch as they stumble upon things we witnessed happen only shortly before they got there (only they don't have to worry about "That's where the body was last time we saw it ...") Watching fear grow in our new protagonists is interesting, and it is a lot easier this time 'round to fall into their shoes, to feel a part of their group and follow their panic and terror. On a couple of occassions in the film I was forced to draw a quick breath and think "God guys, what can we from here??". By "a couple" of occassions though, I mean a couple.
[REC] was scary. I didn't jump once in [REC]2. Action isn't at all sudden and is entirely predictable, as are most of the points in this film that are repeated over and over. The iconic rabid zombie shot where the Newly Infected hovers slowly at a distance and then suddenly lunges, all bloody teeth and red eyes? Totally effective the first time 'round. After four identical attacks you just wonder how their teeth decayed so fast or how long it would take to wash the blood out of their clothes. Similarly when a character edges cautiously into a corridor you can almost read the directions out loud - empty corridor ahead / turn around, empty corridor behind / turn once more / OMGSCARYZOMBIE. And the undercurrent beneath the whole film: WE ONLY HAVE ONE CHANCE AND NOW IT'S GONE - no wait, here's ANOTHER chance! - but now it's gone - but here's another one again!
On more pleasant notes the effects are quite pleasing throughout; a good handful of grisly headshots, some gratuitous blood splatter, more creepy and perfectly executed sound-effects than you could shake an antidote-filled syringe at. The CGI is almost seamless, only one or two lingering shots threatening to ruin the party. The camera work however is where the film really comes into its own, and there are some truly brilliant shots throughout (the shadow play in particular is something to be appreciated).
That's just not enough to fully sway it though. Audio-visual effects are one thing but they don't stand out enough against questionable acting and increasingly silly plot lines (honestly, the end of the film goes from questionable to silly to MORE silly to "please roll the credits now). It was a gutsy venture however, and I'll be keen nonetheless to keep an eye on the series - directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza are directing the series prequel and sequel seperately to complete the project in 2012.
Glad I saw it, but won't be rewatching.
★★☆☆☆
