Written and directed by relative newcomer, Ian Clark. Starring Aneurin Barnard (as Adam, a young, attractive post-grad) and Alex Reid (as Joni, a slightly older temp-worker in need of easy money).
Plot: a group of people volunteer for a drug trial and must fight to survive after the experiment goes awry leading to frightening and often fatal results
Nasty? Right?!! A lot of the movie is quite nasty. Visually gory and bloody. And I loved it (spoiler), so I have some things to say. The movie starts off with some annoying people coming together at a facility to experiment in a drug trial to earn a little bit of cash. Our hero, Adam, and heroine, Joni, are setup early on. She’s a little older than him, but there’s a certain chemistry there that I enjoyed. Anyway, everyone gets their injections and by the end of the night one of them has already lost their shit. It’s sort of a zombie-type side effect that this drug has. People killing horribly. I mean, there’s nudity in the movie, but it comes from such a bad place that it’s no fun at all. After a while, most of the group decide to make some good and responsible choices, although they do split up a little much. They argue some but only because they’re scared. And it’s so well-acted that I was overly-emotional and terrified for them.
The crux of the plot comes in when everyone realizes that there was, of course, a control group, so not all of them are affected. But who took what? That takes a little time to reveal. However, even after that there is a sort of twist that isn’t really a twist at all. It’s more of a hard truth that even I, a girl who takes a moderate amount of medicine for a controversial disorder, didn’t think about until almost the end of the film. Perhaps only 10 minutes or so before the participants of the trial thought about it.
It’s a highly interesting and affecting movie. There’s a bit of talking and a few slow moments in the beginning, but DJ and I were never bored. It’s an original concept, carried a good motive (since they had no control over themselves), followed all the rules (some tragically so), had a great script, fabulous effects, decent Freddy Claws (as stated earlier) and overall, was an extraordinary story. It’s not highly rewatchable, but we totally recommend it. It’s just that remarkable.
I suppose I could list my favorite movies here, but instead I'll give you a strange glimpse into what makes me TaraRomero.
1. I met George Romero. He was the kindest and sweetest man. He talked to me for longer than he should have with the line getting longer. He also held my hand. And when he noticed the ladybug I have tattooed on my wrist, he said he liked it and asked me it's name. Till then, it had not had a name. Now, I call him George.
2. I love stickers. All stickers. I just adore them. I even ask for stickers for Christmas! As a matter of fact, the birthday that just past, every member of my immediate family gave me sticker packs as gifts. Affordable and extremely appreciated.
3. I have never put much stock in astrology or horoscopes, but I LOVE the magic of the MBTI. Omg. I am an INFP and it actually sounds just like me. Introverted mostly. Creative always. Heart before head and not the most logical. Totally me! For better or worse.
4. It's no surprise I count horror so high up on the list of things that make me, me. However, it's so within my soul that I was part of the Horror Club in college. Interesting bunch. And even took a Horror Lit class as an elective. I got an A.
5. Coffee always makes me happy. Always. I'm particularly fond of caramel macchiatos. But I'll drink black coffee if it's the only thing available.
6. I hate shock for the sake of shock and endings that depress me. I always mention the movies Within (2016) and the Eli Roth produced, written and starred in, Aftershock (2012), as proof of this distate I have. I abhor the idea that just because I like horror, some people think I'd actually praise a movie that lets you think the "Final Girl" just made it through the night, only to slap her in the face with a tsunami.
7. We are big time animal people. I mean, if I could, I'd have an elephant, a bear, a zebra, a penguin, an otter and a meerkat, living with me. Seriously though. We have 2 dogs right now and 2 cats. Both cats we picked up when they each came to our front door hungry. And both dogs we got from 2 different sets of neighbors. Both who, unfortunately, don't know how to care for pets long-term. But they're happy and healthy now!!
8. Revisiting my love of horror, one of the above cats, my cat, is a little black guy named Church. Because Pet Sematary. His middle name is even Pascow. To give credit where credit's due, the name was DJ's idea. But he loves horror too!
9. I'm big into art. Along with movie posters and an Anne Frank quote, I have some actual paintings on my wall. I really think Dali paints beautifully when he wants to. And if I don't get to see Michaelangelo's Pieta in person some day, I will be very disappointed.
10. Lastly, I find Emily Dickinson's poetry intriguing. I took an elective course about her as well. But do you know I injected horror even there? I was given a poem to dissect and I picked one on death, of course. Then, I researched old "Death Photos" and even printed out copies for everyone in the class. They were so interested in looking at them that it stopped them from all looking at me, and I was able to deal quite well with my stage fright. Haha
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