Quarantine

Introduction

Quarantine begins with Angela Vidal, a TV presenter, and her cameramen are trying to get the introduction to her show right as they prepare to follow a fire crew in Los Angeles through the night. When the crew are called to an apartment block they find the police already on the scene. Once inside, they locate the source of the 911 call - terrifying screams coming from one of the flats. When they break down the door they see a woman in some distress who bites a policeman, infecting him with an unknown disease.

Things go from bad to worse when the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) seals off the building, severing all communication and there is no escape from those carrying the cannibalistic virus. All they can do is try to survive and keep filming.

Video

A clear and well edited film, with a decent transfer. A 'shaky-cam' film will never look great, but this looks very good with some excellent special-effects makeup.

Audio

The Dolby Digital 5.1 track isn't as atmospheric or as punchy as it could or should have been, with the surrounds only used sparingly, but to good effect with some decent jumps.

There is an audio descriptive track and English HoH subtitles.

Extra Features

The commentary is a lively and informative affair, with the Dowdles talking you through the filming process and pointing out a great Texas switch. At no point do they mention [REC] or that the film is a remake, which is verging on plagiarism in my book - they even stop talking before the credits for Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza appear.

The making of is only 10 minutes long and doesn't add much to what was covered in the commentary. There is also a feature on the makeup, an anatomy of a stunt and some trailers.

Conclusion

It's quite hard to give an opinion on this as a standalone film as it is a remake of [REC] that I saw as recently as last week. It's not just your average remake or a film inspired by the terrific Spanish horror but basically a shot-for-shot remake in the same vein as Gus Van Sant's Psycho, a pointless film that added nothing to the original and would only be of interest to those who hadn't seen Hitchcock's classic. This is the same, if you've seen [REC] then there is absolutely no point in watching this other than maybe curiosity. That they don't acknowledge the existence of Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza's film at all in the Extra Features is mystifying and perhaps they wanted to keep it a secret as it wasn't released theatrically in the US though I'm sure genre fans were aware of its existence.

Quarantine manages to be tense and gripping though the trailer, posters and cover art spoil the ending by featuring the last shot. Although virtually a replica film, it loses the spiritual element from [REC], going instead with a virulent strain of rabies, but maintains the Blair Witch Project meets 28 Days Later aesthetic and feel of the original. The casting is also a problem, whereas [REC] used unknowns, aside from Manuela Velasco who was a real reporter, this uses recognisable faces so when Angela Vidal appears, you think 'that's the girl from The Exorcism of Emily Rose/Dexter' and the landlord isn't just any landlord, he's Rade Serbedzija who played a terrorist in a recent series of 24! This makes it hard to take it seriously as a 'found footage' film of real people.

[REC] is a much better film, tighter, scarier and more convincing, but if you haven't seen [REC] and don't like subtitles Quarantine will give you a real thrill ride. That said, you'd be better off investigating the original or, if you are already a fan, sicking with [REC].