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March 28, 2024, 08:49:25 PM

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The º[Rec] series

Started by Bhazor, May 04, 2018, 04:07:00 PM

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Bhazor

Just watched the original Spanish º[Rec]. First person zombie horror. It's really damn good and I say that as someone who hates zombie films.

So lets talk about it, ey? Especially the sequels because from what I've seen of the sequels they go fucking mental and I'm dreading watching the rest of the movies. Please tell me they don't fuck it up.

Small Man Big Horse

It's been a while since I saw it but I remember the second film being fairly impressive (if not offering anything particularly new) whilst the third is a disappointment, and due to that I've not seen the fourth.

Paaaaul

The second one starts immediately after the first one and is nearly as good.
The third one is a bit of a slump, but is entirely missable as it's a prequel.
The fourth is better. It goes back to the main story and does some interesting things.

In summary. Definitely watch 2. Skip 3. Watch 4. Then watch 3 if you need more.

Paaaaul

Also worth a mention here are the Quarantine films.

Quarantine is a US remake of Rec. It is literally a shot-for-shot re-filming of Rec, but in English. Absolutely worthless.
Quarantine 2 forks off from the Spanish series' storyline, and is much better because of it.

Quote from: Bhazor on May 04, 2018, 04:07:00 PM
Just watched the original Spanish º[Rec].

I didn't enjoy this film because it is filled with shouting and screaming. That's one of my pet peeves and it can ruin a film for me. Does my head in. I have never been able to accept Texas Chainsaw Massacre as a classic horror, due to all the screaming in its second half.

Still, Rec does have it's moments. The climactic scene creeped me out and also made me interested to know what had been happening in that house. I suppose they explore that in the sequels, I haven't watched them.

DukeDeMondo

I've only seen the first two, and I haven't seen either in years, but I remember the first one being quite brilliant, and the second one being a bit of a fucking headache. Load of shouting and shooting and barging about. Storming down hallways and kicking down doors and yelling and roaring and cursing at everything going. Head-mounted cameras flung all roads and directions. Something going on with the Catholics. I dunno. I didn't like it very much. Tries to pull an Aliens, I suppose, but it didn't work for me. I was glad when it was over.

It's pretty well thought of, though, so probably worth a look if you enjoyed the original. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood.

Bhazor

I'm not one for loud bombastic horror films. I don't think I could have handled this in a cinema without having a cerebral hemorrhage. But I think it managed to avoid being cheap with it. All the noise felt logical within the film and added to the claustrophia. It also had a couple fun jokes where the sound cuts out because someone bumped the microphone or how Angela's voice switches from one sound channel to the other as she walks around Pablo.

Likewise the handheld camera work despite being as stupid as ever from a logic standpoint it did have some clever uses. More importantly it created a sense of the camera being an entity. Character's shoving it out of the way, the camera man bumping into furniture the rest of the cast squeezing past him. It creates a sense of immersion you really couldn't get with a traditionally shot film.

I mean its not a great film but its high class trash. Nothing cerebral or subtle about it but it scared the crap out of me better than any movie in the last couple years.

Mini

I only watched the first [Rec] and didn't see the appeal... too much shouting about the logistics of the building and not nearly enough fun.

SteveDave

The second one was interesting because it used several different cameras (IIRC) so you got the army people with head mounted cameras, some kids who broke in with a camcorder and someone else? Maybe the journalist from the first one?

Three wasn't all that apart from them getting rid of the video camera conceit quite early on. I didn't know there was a fourth one though.

holyzombiejesus

I thought the first one was great. I saw it at a Spanish film festival in Manchester and actually screamed when they put the camera up in the attic and you saw that thing. Thought the second (I think) was pretty bobbins - was that the one where there was a portal to another dimension and she ate an evil worm - and can't even remember the final apartment set one.

Is the wedding one - which was quite good fun - 3 or 4?

Paaaaul

The wedding one is 3, and 4 is set on a boat.

holyzombiejesus

Ah, so there isn't a final appartment one then! No wonder I couldn't remember it.

Sin Agog

His recent one on Netflix about possession was really good, I thought.  Really captured the harried life of this oldest sister/surrogate mother.  Could be it impressed me more 'cause I didn't know it was by the Rec guy, and just expected another Netflix schlockfest.

Paaaaul

Quote from: Sin Agog on May 10, 2018, 09:28:47 PM
His recent one on Netflix about possession was really good, I thought.  Really captured the harried life of this oldest sister/surrogate mother.  Could be it impressed me more 'cause I didn't know it was by the Rec guy, and just expected another Netflix schlockfest.
There's no "his" about the Rec series. Two guys made them. Both directed the first two films, then they each directed one each of the remaining films.
But yes, that Netflix film was good, even if its title eludes me right now.

Penfold

Quote from: Paaaaul on May 10, 2018, 10:47:54 PM
There's no "his" about the Rec series. Two guys made them. Both directed the first two films, then they each directed one each of the remaining films.
But yes, that Netflix film was good, even if its title eludes me right now.

Veronica.

I can't remember if I knew one of the Rec guys directed it before I watched it, I don't think I did. I liked it but won't be rewatching it unlike the Rec series which I always watch every couple of years. Except the fourth one, I've only watched that once, not sure why.